Happy Birthday Mom!

Today is Mom's birthday. Happy Birthday, Mom!One time, I was out with my Mom, I don't know where. We run into one of her old co-workers from at least 3 years back. Mom's co-worker recounts a really cute story to me that more or less went like this:

"You know, before I met your Mom, I could never steam broccoli correctly. It always came out mushy. My children hated eating it. Your Mom comes to work with steamed broccoli, and I asked how she steamed hers. She boils the water then at boiling point she turns the stove OFF--I never did this--then puts the broccoli in! [I might have the actual steaming broccoli direction wrong, but that's not the point] Now my children will eat my broccoli. They love it."

It's when I hear little stuff like that that reminds me, time and again, that I have the best Mom in the world. Just hearing from other people how great my Mom is makes me smile, makes me feel so blessed and lucky. Not only is she a great Mom, she's a great Lady, Wife, Daughter, Sister, Aunt, Friend, Co-Worker, Neighbor, you name it.

She's great at telling stories--editor of her high school newspaper, yeah!
She cooks amazing Filipino food.
She dresses well.
She smells good, and her skin is soft.
She has a great smile and laugh and a charming and unforgettable sense of humor.
She's a great hostess and party thrower.
She lights up any room that she walks into.
When I walk into a family party, people come up to me saying, "Hi! How are you?...Where's your Mom?" Then beeline for my Mom.

Oh, how I long to be Mother with her soft skin and hairless arms. To have people naturally gravitate towards you with smiling and laughing faces, probably reminiscing in their heads a lovely memory of you. How to steam broccoli, perhaps. Oh that charm, that wit. That smile that puts everyone else at ease. Can all this be genetic, somehow?

Oh no no no. It's all you, you lovely lady. Maybe some of it came from Grandma. Some of it. Happy Birthday!