Lots O' Love Story Contest

Every birthday, my mom reminisces and tells me some of the memories from my childhood. I just turned 13 this February, and I never grow tired of listening to her stories. It reminds me of what a blessing it is to have my mom and what a wonderful mom she is. I asked her to tell one of her favourite stories (below):

My mom’s story:

Robert was telling me how much he loved me when he was four years old. For example, he said, “I love you so much I could scream.” I wasn’t sure if he really knew what that meant for his age. Maybe it was just a phase. Nonetheless, I was grateful for his claims of love. Then a few days later he said, “I love you more than myself.“ Again, I really wasn’t sure if he knew the magnitude of that declaration. It was a month later I read to him a book titled, “Chicken Soup for the Soul Celebrates Mothers”. There was a story about a mother and her 4-year-old daughter who were trying to declare their love for each other by comparing their love with other things like, “I love you more than ice cream” and so on. The mother thought she had outsmarted her daughter by finally saying, “I love you more than the universe”. However, her daughter responded with ‘I love you more than myself.” I was so moved and overwhelmed by that story; I feel incredibly blessed by my son’s gift of love. My son’s declaration reminded me to appreciate these precious childhood years. On the way home from his 5th birthday party two weeks after, Robert said to me several times, “You’re the best mommy in the whole wide world.” He meant it, and I knew...he knew what that meant.

My mom is the best mom ever. She cares for me and loves me. I know she would even die for me. She became a single parent when I was only six months old, and she wears many hats: chauffeur, chef, tutor, story-teller, first aid attendant, the good guy, the bad guy, etc. The times that I have been to the hospital (for a few nights) for my asthma or anaphylaxis..she was there even when she had to do her studies. She gives me hugs at night and always says, “I love you” before we go off to our own rooms to sleep. We have good days and bad days, but we also have a golden rule: never go to bed or leave the house angry.

Starting at a young age, she read to me at bedtime. There was rarely a night that we would miss reading bedtime stories even when she was tired from exhaustion. She admits now that she had discreetly turned two or three pages at a time to finish the book faster...until I learned to read and understood every word. That trick was short-lived. (I am somewhat embarrassed to admit this...but she still reads to me children’s books when she can even though I am capable of reading novels on my own. It’s our bonding time, and we enjoy looking at the beautiful pictures and smelling the ink from a new book.)

She would make one day on the weekend, “Robert’s Day”...a day where I could choose what I wanted to do (within reasonable limits, of course). For example, we would go to the park or the library. Sometimes, we went to the aquarium or Science World.

My mom shows her love for me in so many ways. She gave me her lunch when I had forgotten mine even though she was probably hungrier than me. She stays up late to help me with my homework...one time as late as 1:00 am. Thankfully, it doesn’t happen very often, she says. She goes out of her way to help me, which makes her a very loving mother. She even took me to Hawaii recently, which was the place I wanted to visit all my life. She was stricken with guilt that I had to miss school so we could go and watch the North Pacific Humpback Whales migrate (and a lot of tropical fish)! I know how much she had to save up and plan so we could go. It was the most memorable vacation ever!

My mom doesn’t spoil me, and she doesn’t buy me everything. My mom is special because she teaches me life lessons such as not getting caught up in materialism and that self-worth is not measure by what and how much you own. She works hard to save up selectively for some of the gifts I begged for..but the very best gift I received was my mom! I couldn’t live without her. She’s the nicest person I know, and I’m so glad I was born to be her son. I couldn’t wish for anyone better. She really deserves this spa getaway this time and many times more. I am too young to work so I can’t afford to buy her the spa getaway. Besides, she doesn’t believe in child labour or paying me to do chores. This is the least I can do to show how much I love and appreciate her. However, she reassures me that what I wrote for this contest is priceless, regardless of whether or not we win. She calls it my declaration of love. My mom’s love is what makes my world go ‘round.