Dear Oliver (and Hudson): The Matriarch

A Mother’s Day tribute

By the time you’re old enough to read this, she will have changed—as we all will. You won’t remember your mom as a young woman who learned on-the-job how to be a mother for you and your infant brother. But I can tell you, she is someone special. She spends her days and nights changing diapers, warming baby bottles, and trying to catch a nap when she can. She worries about your health, laughs at your childish antics, smothers you with kisses when you’ll let her, and swats you on the behind when you need it.

Observing your mom causes me to remember my own mother. Carol Porter came to motherhood at an early age and took it on with tenacity. She could, at times, seem as powerful as a hurricane or as gentle as a summer breeze. She was loving without being mushy, spiritual without being preachy, and firm without being mean.

Most of us don’t think about our mothers until we are old enough to feel their impact on our lives. As you get older, you will probably see your mom as an opinionated, controlling, nuisance who doesn’t appreciate your sense of humor and your need for adventure. How ironic, because she taught you how to laugh and personally led you on most of your childhood adventures.

I am glad we set aside a day to honor our mothers, even though they would insist they were just doing their jobs. Make sure your mom knows you love her every day—not just on Mother’s Day.

And don’t adopt the philosophy of humorist and writer, Mark Twain, who said, “My mother had a great deal of trouble with me, but I think she enjoyed it.”