Mom, we’ve been through it all. From consoling me when a high school friend was being unnecessarily problematic, helping me decide how to word a particular English essay, and to deciding on the right college, I am one of the lucky people who get to proudly say that you have been right at my side through it all. I never appreciated just how much of a sounding board you were for my thoughts and opinions until I went to college and did not have you by my side every day.

I never fully realized just how much better I felt after telling you about my day’s daily dramas, and how much attention you gave to my stories, and how engaged you were in even the most minute details. You really truly care about what I have to say, and make me feel important and like I matter.

I now try to make the important people in my life feel just like how I do during a conversation with you: understood and acknowledged fully. It takes a special kind of friend, a rare one, to give me the same kind of good feeling I do when I talk to you. I have luckily found some at school, but that will never compare to the love and attention that you give to me.

It can be confusing and disheartening at times while away from home, where I can be unsure of who is a true friend, and who I can confide in. All of the confusion is alleviated whenever I speak to you on the phone. You laugh when I laugh, and cry when I cry. My pain is your pain, and I know that you always want me to succeed and do my best in life, no matter what career path I choose.

I would be lost without our phone calls and conversations, and I guess I have never really expressed to you how much all of your support means to me. I always just assumed that you knew. After all, how could I not appreciate you after all that you have done for me? You drove me an hour and a half to ballet classes every week, just so I could dance with the best teachers out there, and helped me pick out outfits to wear countless times. You allowed me to make my own decisions regarding which high school to attend, and left the decision up to me to transfer my senior year.

At the time, I wished that you would have just told me what to do, and make my decision easier. However, you knew that I would ultimately feel better if I made the choice myself, with no one to blame or thank but myself. As my choice regarding high school proved to be successful and make me happy, I had you to thank for the endless support, but myself to thank for making one of the toughest decisions of my life.

That life lesson was invaluable and shapes every choice that I make. Without you, who knows what I would have done? Not only in that one instance, but in multiple aspects of my life, I have you to thank for the endless support. The future and growing up is terrifying, but as long as I have you by my side, I am not afraid.