Letter to a (*insert amazing adjective here*) Mom

Dear Mom,

Even starting this letter is difficult for me. And that is exactly why I am writing it.

This is meant to be a confession, but not of something I did in the past, or a singular event that needs to be explained. Instead, this proclamation isn’t one that will surprise you, but I want you to know that it is on my mind.

I am bad at conveying emotion in general, so I know that I do not do an adequate job at showing you the gratitude, admiration, and kindness you deserve. To be clear, I’m not saying this due to some need to entertain a notion of mother-son love. I am saying this, because I am aware that I have a problem reciprocating all the wonderful things you’ve done for me, and I want to be intentional about fixing that moving forward.

I don’t say it enough, but I love you. And I wanted to write this letter to highlight a few reasons why that you deserve to know:

1. Every child owes an unpayable amount of gratitude to their mothers for the sacrifices they have made on behalf of their children. And you are no exception, and certainly the rule. A working mom who voluntarily gave herself hours of more work to do once we had gone to bed, just so she could pick us up from school. Not to mention the additional hours spent helping me with homework (maybe not math, but the memories of reading Pensativa with me will never fade). Despite your hesitations with the methods of my various sports coaches over the years, you took me to practice, watched all of my games, and always made me feel as if the plays I made were the difference in the game. Thank you for the things I can remember, the things I can’t, and the things you will keep doing for me.

2. You embody perseverance, and although I probably rolled my eyes every time, you certainly preached it. How much you believe that truly anything is possible if you keep going for it, may not be what my siblings or I wanted to hear every time we faced mild adversity, but it was the right thing we needed to hear. Stories of your father’s struggles in Mexico, and his success through nothing but grit and never giving up clearly made an impression on you, and I want you to know that those lessons that you display every day have made an impression on us.

3. The only downfall to kindness is when nice people get taken advantage of. This causes people to either be naive or lose faith in kindness as a principle. However, you never fell victim to this. Your positivity and kindness are known not only by your children, but all our friends, teachers, and anyone who meets you. Giving someone the benefit of the doubt is how you start every one of your relationships, and that compassion is felt in every smile and enthusiastic question you offer. I’m still amazed by the questions you find to ask, yet I shouldn’t be, because they stem from a genuine benevolence that is hard to find in the world. I think the most impressive thing to me, is the ability you have to be firm, steadfast in your beliefs, without comprising your kindness. No one, and I mean NO ONE takes advantage of you. But you never let feeble attempts to prey on your sympathy rob you of your greatest weapon.

I hope this letter is something tangible you can refer to whenever I inevitably fail to properly reciprocate your love in the future. These three things are just the tip of everything I should be thanking and acknowledging you for. But again, I confess that I don’t always do a good job showing you. So, for now, I’ll leave you with this letter, and these final words:

I love you.

Love,

A son who struggles with showing his mom how much he loves her