My mum
Happy #InternationalWomensDay to the first woman I ever knew
This was originally published yesterday, 8 March 2017 to my mum on Facebook. It caused quite a few friends to do the same, so I thought in the spirit of pass it on, I’d share it with you.
This is my mum, (with dad) at Highclere Castle during their September visit. She had been DYING to go there. I was so happy I was able to get us tickets for the last day of 2016 openings. I might have been disowned if I hadn’t managed it, seeing how it is less than a mile from my house!
Today is International Women’s Day, and while we are bigging up world leaders, teachers, CEOs, and a million other deserving women, I want to single out one OUTSTANDING woman, my mom.
My mom is the heart of our family (see photo for proof of her in the centre of a bunch of family). If one of us hurts, she hurts more keenly. If one is happy, she is elated by our joy. If one of us is struggling, she supports us and feels our pain. My mother dedicated her adult life to raising 5 (mostly) well-behaved and polite children.
On days like today, we tend to look forward — to STEM, or to glass ceilings, board quotas, or all sorts of things to get parity for women with men.
But to know where you are going, you need to know where you came from.
So today I am starting by looking back. To the woman who made ME the woman I am today. A strong woman. A confident and authentic one. Who believes she is just as good as a man, if not better. A woman who knows what she wants, and confidently goes out and shoots for the moon. Mom didn’t always understand my / our dreams or desires, but she always encouraged us all to pursue them — but if you pursued it, you were all in, or don’t bother. Dedication should be my mother’s middle name (it’s Mary.) My mother taught us to commit, to be graceful in winning, in defeat, and in life in general (some of us are still working on the defeat part, we Kirby 5 are a highly competitive bunch.) To take the high road when that wasn’t the easier road to take, but the right one, the honourable one.
She was my compass growing up, and my role model. I learned to write from her, to read from her, and to do endless things, all thanks to my mum, her constant presence and treating us all alike — the 4 girls and my brother. My mother is kind, thoughtful, graceful, compassionate, and sometimes a bit of a nudge. (Sorry mom, but you said never lie!) While I know she thinks I can be ‘too much a Kirby’ (aka Kirbyland) sometimes, and I am not always showing my love, respect and admiration the way she ‘gets’ it and shows it (and would like to receive it), I am hoping today, of all days, she knows this. How very much I love her, thank her, admire her, am amazed by her and just as she has always been there for whatever we all needed, that she knows that we all have her back.
Like I said, she is our heart. Our family’s heart, and it has grown as our family has grown with in-laws, grandchildren, and so many others. And without heart, we are nothing. I’m pretty sure I speak for Craig, Alison, Heather, and Brooke when I say that.
You raised 5 children, you have 7 grandchildren, and just like you were always there for me, to celebrate an A on a test, or winning awards on Field Day, or to cheer me up after a I lost a tennis match, I am always here for you, no matter what you need.
I love you mum. Happy International Women’s Day. You rock. I’m glad God chose you for me.
Love, your eldest and bestest,
K ;-)
Kristine is Anglo-American, a Brooklynite by birth, living in Britain, with Irish sass from my dad. Wants: wine, whisky, lots of sleep. Ecommerce / digital / tech geek. Sports mad, especially for Serena Williams and Lewis Hamilton. Wants to be in Cornwall, and listen to the sea. And she thinks her mom rocks lots, more than she tells her….
