Laura Tate
Celebrate mom
I’m writing a column about Mother’s Day a little early-it being on May 13. But the reason is a good one. This is the first year we are celebrating a Mother of the Year, in honor of publisher Arnold York’s late mother, Rosie, whom some of you might have read about in an earlier column that Arnold wrote. To choose a mother of the year, we are asking readers to submit a short essay of 250 words or less telling us why your mother (or stepmom, foster mom or similar person in your life) should receive the Mother of the Year Rosie Award. All the details are on page A9.
Parents, especially moms, are the most important people in our lives for most of us. I can speak for myself on that subject-my mom is the core from which I draw my strength and sensibility about life.
I don’t know how I could ever handle the loss of my mom-she’s always been there. While I don’t get to see her all the time because she lives six hours away, I know I can call her any time, and she’s always happy to hear from me. When I visit her, she’s always so proud and shows me off to her coworkers at the restaurant she manages and talks to them about my job as an editor. It’s comforting to know that she’s always there for me, whether it be for a simple chat on the phone, or to encourage me in something I’m working on.
She’s always had to be tough and strong, being a single parent raising my two brothers and me, but she’s always shown her deep love for us in many ways.
Arnold’s mom, from what he wrote in his column, was a tough and enduring woman; she was several months shy of 100 when she passed away. And when she died, Arnold wrote in his column, “She left a very big hole in my universe.”
Yes, our mothers make up a large part of our universe.