My mother is more than just the woman who gave birth to me and the woman who raised me. She is my hero and my best friend. She has shaped me into the respectable woman I am today and I would be lost without her. She gives me hope and she makes me proud to be a woman. She defies the stereotype that a woman can either be smart or beautiful because she has a brilliant mind for mathematics, a gorgeous smile and a generous personality.

This remarkable woman always puts herself before others, even if it means sacrificing her own comfort and health. I remember waiting to board a plane going from Boston to Phoenix. All the seats in the airport terminal were taken and my mother was seated next to an outlet. Nearby, a boy sitting on his father’s lap complained about how the PSP he was playing on was running low on battery. My mom offered her seat to the child so he could plug in his device while she stood for the remaining 20 minutes.

She also went all out for my birthday parties. She wanted my childhood memories to be my favorite, as I look back at the good times I had with friends and family. Every year was a different theme. One year, she rented a van to bring all my friends to Build-A-Bear, and another year, she hired a puppeteer to perform for us. In the end, it wasn’t the show or the stuffed bear that mattered. It was the simple fact that my mother would do anything to put a smile on my face.

I am very ambitious, like her, and she has always encouraged that in me. She has always told me that I am capable of anything if I work hard enough for it. She encourages me to strive for perfection, but still shows me that I should be proud of myself even if I’m not perfect. And even if she knows my dreams aren’t likely to come true, she supports them anyways because she knows that my aspirations are what make me unique. I have always had a passion for the arts, whether it is the performing arts or the visual arts. When I was younger, I wanted to be a performing artist. While I admire the performing arts, this is not the right path for me to take because I don’t have a good voice, the talent for dance or the patience to be a professional musician. When I finally came to the realization that I would not be a performing artist, my mother held me and said she had the same dream until she realized her real talents were in mathematics. Now, I focus on the visual arts, and she hangs my paintings and sculptures all over the house and her office.

I would be nothing without my mother. She builds my character. She taught me that I should respect myself and demand the same respect from my peers. With her help, I realized that my worth does not come from others, but from myself, and that my happiness comes from fulfilling my dreams instead of by surrounding myself with people. She shows me how to be strong and independent like her, but always makes sure that I ask for help when I need it. She is my best friend. She is my rock. No woman should ever take her mother for granted, for she have done everything for you since the day she found out she was pregnant, and she never asks for anything in return.