My Mom and I

A person that I really care about is my mom. There are multiple reasons as to why she is my number one person, but the main reason is because she has always protected me from anything. Anytime someone would say negative things about me or tried to be a toxic person coming into my life, my mom is the first person that would notice and help. There are many times in a day we get into arguments and say things we don’t mean, but in the long run, we both know it’s nothing to take seriously. She came from Eritrea as a teenager and that on its own was hard. She left her parents and came to stay with my dad and build a life in Chicago. She never told me anything that she went through to get where she is today because she does not want me to feel bad or guilty.

One day in middle school, I came home to my mom and dad arguing. It was about me and I automatically felt guilt. I went to my room and burst in tears because I thought everything was my fault. My mom came into the room and she had already knew I was crying, despite me trying to turn the other way so I didn’t have to face her. All she said was, “Rodina, I’m sorry you had to hear that, but just know it’s not your fault and I love you”. Hugging her, I felt appreciation towards her and that was a key moment in my life. 

There have been many other times when my mom has been there for me, but there are also many moments where we don’t see eye to eye. Since she is very strict on going out and who I hang out with, I was never allowed to go to parties and do things everyone else my own age was doing. This made me feel jealous of all of my friends and how easy it was to ask them for something and they would say yes. Starting in middle school, my resentment towards my mom started to grow because she wouldn’t let me go anywhere. My dad was already strict enough and I knew not to ask him, so the times where I thought I could depend on my mom, she would let me down. Now that I am a senior in high school, I realize that being strict on me growing up had some benefits that came out of it, such as learning to have fun in simpler ways.

My mom and I have a very layered relationship because there are multiple levels to it. To the core, I adore my mom and appreciate her for everything she has done for me, even the things I don’t know about. She has done more things for me behind closed doors than I will ever know. She is my best friend, parent, and favorite person all in one. It’s hard to show my appreciation for her because I am not the type of person who shows it outwardly, but she knows how much she means to me deeply.