My Mother, My Hero

My Mother, My Hero

In 1859 Henry Ward Beecher said, "the mother’s heart is the child’s schoolroom." I believe that statement because of experiences I’ve had with my own mother. I have learned more about life from her than from my 15 years of schooling. Over the last 20 years my mother has taught me many valuable lessons just by being a living example of compassion, thoughtfulness, and generosity. She is an angel that has protected and carried me throughout life.

In the book, One Day My Soul Just Opened Up, Iyanla Vanzant said, "a truly compassionate person is one who can feel what you feel because they are one with you in mind, body, and spirit, not out of obligation or a false sense of responsibility. A compassionate person is one who understands what you are going through and, rather than joining you in your suffering and fear, sees for you the blessing and the victory at the end. A compassionate person does not join in the victim mentality of blaming others; instead they will stand strong with you, supporting you through the acceptance of the situation. The compassionate person knows with you, for you, and when necessary in spite of you, that all things work together for your good." That quote is like a mirror image of my mother because she encompasses all those traits. She showed me the utmost compassion when I was in high school. I was very sick with a chronic disease. I couldn’t walk and I was in constant pain. Though I couldn’t see it at the time, my mother saw for me how lucky I was. She consistently pointed out that I was lucky that we could afford the doctors I needed. I was lucky that Fibromyalgia wasn’t deadly. And I was lucky that I had family and friends who were there for me. She saw for me the positive thi...

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...s Thanksgiving she donated money to Bethel Mission to provide a Thanksgiving dinner for the homeless. And every Christmas she buys presents for the underprivileged. As the saying goes, "no one stands as straight as when he stoops to help someone."

My mother is my hero because she has taught me to treat others with compassion, thoughtfulness, and generosity. She taught me that those values were important in the best way, by living her own life according to them. She didn’t just tell me about values she felt were important, she lived by them. I have always admired my mother and felt so blessed to have her in my life. I know I am a better person for having her for a mother.

Works Cited:

The Giant Book of American Quotations. Carruth, Gorton and Ehrlich, Eugene. Portland House. New York. 1988.

Vanzant, Iyanla. One Day My Soul Just Opened Up. Fireside. 1998.