Unfortunately most of us wait until something goes wrong before we tell someone what they mean to us, how they’ve impacted our lives and how much we appreciate having their life force in our space…let’s not do that anymore…go tell someone you love them.
Some shit went wrong, she wasn’t supposed to get that diagnosis, but some things also went right, she was blessed to have a cancer that was operable and she got a chance to take stock of the things she really values in life and now it’s my turn for me to tell her how much I value her.
My Mom is all the things. I have been blessed in this life to have the love of family, friends, and colleagues but no one has shaped my life in a more powerful way than my Mom. I’d like to believe that her grit, kindness, fierceness and principles of hard-work were passed on to me but the truth is she is the original, the pioneer. Growing up, I never saw her sit down. She worked for the phone company for more than 3 decades, most of that time she worked outside repair and then would come home and work outside in the yard til dark. She had a lot of pride in her work and rightfully so. It wasn’t an easy job, long hours, outside in the elements, majority male work force but she loved her work and she was great at it. It was so inspiring for me to see my Mom be in that line of work and love her job so much. Mothers should empower their daughters through actions, not just by words. I didn’t grow up overly confident and shy is how most people would describe me but I always, always felt capable and that was simply her influence. She provided me love but gave me freedom to struggle and figure things out, which is so important.
She’s had her share of hardships in this life but I believe God put those in her path her knowing that she could use those challenges as a source of strength in this very moment. The last couple months have been so hard on her, she’s been in pain, she’s made major life decisions, she’s had a massive surgery but she is here. I firmly believe with my whole heart that this is just a blip and it’s about to get REALLY GOOD!
Mom….you have new, exciting adventures and people waiting for you. You have grandkids to play with. You have friends all over the world to connect with. You have more people to shock when you tell them I’m your daughter, not your sister (I had to get one dig in there). You’ve got this. You’ve got me.
I love you.
mpoweredstate 
So nice! A good reminder to not wait to tell the ones u love how important they r! Your a great daughter I know….your Momma speaks so highly of you!
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Thanks so much Kim!!
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I love reading your stories. They are always good and come from the heart.
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Thanks Dave, I appreciate the comment!
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That was beautiful Cara. Your Mom is all that!
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Thank you so much Sherri!
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I cried with every word I read, very well written Cara! You are truly blessed to have such an awesome roll model like your Mom and that’s exactly why you have turned out the way you have! The Apple did not fall far from the tree, sweetie! It’s been a very long tough road for all of us to see someone we love so deeply hurting so much! You did an awesome job taking care of her and keeping us updated, thank you! It’s not easy shuffling kids, sports, family commitments making sure you are at the hospital to catch the Dr, doing what you can for your mom yet sitting there feeling so helpless, I think I have thought of every thing you were going through and that just broke my heart you had to go through so much. But you did it and you did such a great job, you should be very proud of yourself, I know your Mom is very proud and I’m soo proud of you as well. That’s the true meaning of putting your big girl pants on and taking care of business. In life we have a tendency to take things for granted but when life throws you a curve ball it opens your eyes and puts things into perspective I have always said good always comes out of bad, you may have to pay close attention to it but believe me they are there. Thank you for this love you!
Nancy
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Oh my goodness, Nanc! I appreciate you writing all of that just for me. I also appreciated the texts and prayers for my Mom. I love you and your heart! ❤️
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What an amazing tribute to your beautiful strong mama!! We love her and it’s clear, you are just as beautiful and strong as she is ❤️❤️😊
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Thanks Dianne for that sweet comment!
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