I know you’ve heard hundreds, but here’s yet another
Extolling the virtues, again, of a mother.
I’d like to assume that yes, she’s the best –
But that wouldn’t be fair, since I don’t know the rest.
What I do know is what my mom does every day
And I’ll tell you, though maybe it might sound cliché.
She helps with our projects and stays up all night
And makes sure we all know the wrong from the right.
She does all the “mom” things, like most mothers do
But that’s not for this contest – ignore those, will you?
There’s an obstacle coming, and yes, it’s that time –
To make it seem better, I’ll tell you in rhyme.
It was ten years ago, and I was carefree…
Nothing would stop little eight-year-old me.
But in just a few hours, I started to worry
For my parents left home in a terrible hurry.
We got a phone call, and in it the answer-
My mother had bad endometrial cancer.
It took months of treatment and a huge operation
(Did I mention that this all took place on vacation?)
But at long last she was done, and she came home to us
And I thought that we would all make a big fuss,
But nothing much changed, and I understood
That she already lived her life as she should.
She’ll go and do things ‘cause she hates feeling lazy
(And because of this fact, her kids think she’s crazy.)
She’s not overly sappy, and knows life’s a ride –
She believes in the fact everything’s better fried.
She won’t be the one that will hug you and cry –
She’s the one who will mockingly dab at her eye.
She knows life’s a gamble and treats it as such.
(We’ve probably seen Vegas a little too much.)
She won’t whine and complain or give up and quit,
If she wants something, she gets up and just works for it.
Being a mom is full-time for years,
But she’s devoted to helping, so she volunteers.
She does it all with wit and a grin,
And if you play her at Scrabble, you simply can’t win.
I can’t think of another person I’ve seen
Who can joke all about her mutated gene.
The cancer could come back any old day,
Or her time might be up in a different way,
But she’s getting the most that she can out of life,
As a teacher, a mother, a friend, and a wife.
So in twenty years or if it’s next week,
Her outlook on life is what makes her unique.
She doesn’t wait to enjoy it; she simply has fun
And she’ll laugh and she’ll smile ‘til the day that she’s done.