Happy Birthday Mom

Mom.
The one who's done just about everything a mother could possibly do for her child. She's driven me everywhere, paid for me thousands, if not millions, of times, loved me with every bone, every fiber of her being. I'm her pride and joy, the thing that she could brag about to all her friends. I'm her world, I've been her everything, and she wanted it that way. I made her so mad sometimes, but no matter what, she still loved me.
And now it's her birthday. The first birthday she's had in 18 years that I haven't been around to give her a homemade card or a hug. The first birthday she hasn't been able to see my brother and I sing happy birthday, and the first birthday that we haven't been there to take her out to dinner as a family instead of making her cook.
I miss her, even though she frustrated me so many times, made me angry, made me sad. She was always there for me, at every one of my dance recitals, all of my choir concerts, and all of my other random events. Like my guardian angel, she was there every time I fell. But now... She's so far from me. How can I be safe without my guiding light?

She may not have said it often, but when she did, I knew it was from her heart. She would say I love you at my finest moments, the times she was so proud of me her heart nearly burst with pride. She told me she was proud to have raised a daughter like me.


So Happy Birthday, Mom.

I hope you know I'm proud to call myself your daughter.