My Mother, My Idol

I think many of us would agree that our mother is/was probably under appreciated, especially when we were young.

The older I get, the more I love and value my mother.

I’m fortunate that she is still with me and going strong.  I’m especially lucky that we talk all the time, often multiple times per day.  She probably has no idea that she is my rock, my sounding board and the greatest advocate a son could ever have.

I am blessed with a mom that always put my sister and I ahead of herself, dropping whatever was going on in her life when we needed her.

To say she goes above and beyond would be an understatement.  Growing up, she NEVER missed a sporting event (and I played three travel sports for years).  She even came to almost every one of our softball games after college!  In those days, most parents didn’t follow their kids to all their events, but my mom was always there.  Maybe she was the trendsetter for the current generation of parents.  Growing up she helped us with our homework, made every meal for us, sewed patches on torn blue jeans, and brought our sack lunch to school on days when we left it at home.  I think if I asked her now, she would still drive 30 minutes and bring a sack lunch to me at my office if I told her I needed it.

My friends and hers would tell you she’s like a second mother to them.  She will always do things for other people, so much more so than most.  I think this is what I find most amazing about her, her selflessness.  She’s also very hard working and when she’s not substitute teaching at Prospect High School (yes, she still subs 3-4 days a week), she can be found gardening or on her roof cleaning out the leaves from her gutters. When I go home to see her in Arlington Heights, we often go out to dinner and inevitably several people will say hi to her or wave.  It amazes me how many of their names she remembers.  She’s a celebrity in that area as she has taught/impacted kids not only from my generation, but for thirty years, and now she’s taught my peer’s kids that have gone through the high school.

My mother is a Health and PE teacher and has a passion for sports (high school, college & pro ).  When I go with her to the high school football games, she walks me into the press box to hang out with the coaching staff.  Earlier on game day, she can be seen out to breakfast with all the coaches from Prospect HS.  That’s right, all the male high school coaches and my mom talking sports before school.  What kind of woman does this?! My mom.

Yet still, she always finds time to talk or be with her grandkids or help my sister and me with all the trials and tribulations that go with having teenage kids.  The burden is double on her since our dad died almost 17 years ago. She has more than risen to the cause every time for both of us.

She truly is and always has been a SUPERMOM. She is my idol.

She inspired me to write my second book Beyond Money    

Give thanks for your mother every day and your wife as she is also probably under-appreciated.