To those of you who have taken your mother for granted...

Mother Teresa has always been an inspiration to all; however, our mothers were given to us as a blessing from God, and over the years, I have learned that they should not be taken for granted. Ephesians 6:1 states, ”Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right”. For those of you who have chosen to take your mother for granted, I hope this helps you realize just how special our mothers really are. On July 7, 2015 I got a wake up call as my mom received a call that she had been diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer. Just imagine my confusion. In my mind all I could think was, "how could this be happening?"

After my confusion settled in I was shocked and all I could think about was how sorry I felt for my mother. Her worst fear was chemotherapy, and there was no way she wanted to live without her beautiful locks. My mother didn’t begin surgery or her cancer treatments until after I had already started my semester of college. As time went on, it got harder to deal with my mother’s condition, homework, exams, and being a full time member of my sorority. Eventually, I started telling myself that I was going to have to leave Oklahoma State so I could live closer to my mom. I think the scariest part of going through cancer is the unknown. I never knew if my mom wasn’t answering my calls because she was asleep or if something terrible had happened and she was gone. As I went on throughout the year I met a sister of mine, Caroline, who had gone through the exact same situation as I had with her mother freshman year, and eventually, she became my big. She was my mentor on learning how to deal with this situation from afar and realizing that she will be okay. In the end, Caroline was right — thank goodness she was. My mom had her last chemotherapy on Feb. 15, 2016 and is still cancer free to this day!

As time went on, I realized just how important my mom was to me. I would catch myself always calling my mom for help on something, needing advice, or just to call because I was bored. She is my rock and is constantly there for me whenever I need something, and even though we still butt heads and annoy each other sometimes, I love her to death. I have tasted the closeness of death and I have absolutely no idea what I would do without my mom. She is everything that a mother should be and more. For me, cancer always seemed unrealistic to happen within my family, but I was wrong, and it brought my family closer than we had ever been. Throughout this year of heartbreak I have learned that my mom, Lori, is the strongest and most loving woman I have ever met. She has taught me to never give up when life gets hard, to always hold on to the ones you love, to never care what others think, that being bald could be a new fashion statement, and most importantly, to never take life for granted.

To everyone who still has their mother in their life, do not take them for granted. Show your mom how much you love her every day because in 20 years, she may not be around, and you will wish that you had taken time each day to call her or to even send her a simple text saying “love you mom, have a great day.” As Abraham Lincoln said, “All that I am or ever hope to be, I owe to my Angel Mother.”

To my dearest mother, I love you to the moon and back.