If you ask any daughter “Who is your hero?”, you will probably hear a very common answer “My dad.”
In my case, it’s MY MOM.
My dad went to work abroad when I was only 3 years old. He gets to go home every six months, then every year and became every two years. Our OFW family set-up went on for 26 years. It looks to me that my mom was a single parent except that she gets a monthly remittance and an emotional support from my dad. Bottomline, she had been a mother and father to us. When I graduated, it was my mom who cheered for me and went up the stage. When I had my first heartbreak, it was my mom’s shoulder I leaned on. When I had my first born it was my mom who bathed my daughter first, and even witnessed her first steps. When I was busy working and didn’t have time to drop my daughters to school, it was my mom who did my duty for me. From the simplest to major decisions during my childhood to adulthood, it was my mom who walked the path with me, right or wrong, without her, I cannot do it alone.
Now that I am a mom of two girls, repeating the set-up that we had back then – my husband working miles away from us, life is not easy. I wonder how my mom conquered all.
With all the sacrifices that she did for us, I am not even sure if everything was paid off, or at least recognized. With all the husay and malasakit that she did for me since birth, and now with my children, I am still unsure if I did the same. Though I admittedly call her my buddy, I know that it is not enough to just treat her to a dinner, or surprise her with a bag that she’d love to have.
With this, I proclaim my mom as my unsung hero! I may not tell her often, but I love her dearly.
