A Letter to Mama

Dear Mama,

It’s taken me a while to write this because I’ve been trying to find the words. The words to describe just what your love means to me. So, I’ll just start by saying, I love you! Everyday I fall more in love with myself and who I’m becoming because of who you are to me. A mother and a friend. You are my rock! Well, more like a hardboiled egg. Just hard enough on the outside to protect the soft, mushy contents on the inside. It’s all good, because I love eggs waaaaay more than rocks anyway! You are my mother, and you always have been to me! You made a decision to round off your perfect four, with me. You saw me as enough. Of course, you saved the best for last, even though we know who you love the most! ;)

You are so strong, Mama! In ways that I can only hope to be. You’ve been down some roads, but you’ve also come up. You’re still surviving your late husband, my daddy, with the biggest smile on your face. I’ve always found comfort in hearing your laugh. I can always hear you before I see you, but I know you’re in reach. Regardless of your past, you never forgot to be a mother. And girrrrrl…look at you now! You’ve grown! You’ve bloomed into a beautiful rose, with a precise number of thorns. Not to be picked, but to simply be admired.

You were home, teaching me how to read and write before I was old enough to go to school, go ahead and pat yourself on the back because you did a damn good job at that! You cooked, you cleaned. You made sure that me and my brother had everything we needed, and along with my second set of parents Steve and Shanta, we had everything we wanted too! You made an old, dark house, that leaked when it rained too hard, feel like home. Me and my siblings still share everything we have ’til this day because of you. I’m so blessed. WE are so blessed! I am beyond grateful for the way you raised me. You instilled in me a long time ago, that a relationship with God is the most important one. I didn’t understand back then, but I know now. Those whoopings with a self-hand-picked switch taught me discipline. Yea, my head is big, but my heart ain’t lacking in size and neither is my mind.

I know you pray for me day in and day out, for all of us, that’s why I wake up each day knowing I’m covered. In the event of an emergency, or just my dramatics, you’re the first person I call, “Mama…” In my tone of voice alone, you can tell when things are right or when they’re all the way wrong. You tell me the things I need to hear whether I want to hear them or not. You are my stamp of approval. Signed, sealed and delivered.

You allowed me to be free, and to bump my head. You taught me love through showing me. You taught me respect by giving it. You taught me how to care by caring. You love with all of your heart and feel everything, and for that reason I do too. We are totally different, but the same in so many ways. Miles apart, but closer than ever. The bond we share is unmatched. No amount of money could substitute for the relationship we share. I thank God everyday for you. Please, don’t change! You are a mother everyday, so with you, every day is Mother’s Day. Ain’t a woman alive that could take your place. You are appreciated!

Xo,

Baby Girl ❤