Please allow me a little bragging rights today. After all, it’s my special day as a mother It’s evening now in Manila and my day has ended on a sentimental note because of my daughter’s letter to me. It’s been a quiet, lovely day, spent in the company of family, including my own mother of course, who had dinner over at our house tonight.

It is the first mother’s day I have spent without H, who is posted in Vietnam, and though it wasn’t complete, I was comforted by the great number of text messages from family and friends, and the love of my two children who of course, haave half their father in them

As a mother you always wonder how you are impacting your kid’s lives and every mother’s day, it is always so affirming for me to receive a letter from my daughter entitled “10 Reasons why L and I have the best Momma in the WORLD”. Allow me now to quote some parts of her letter to me this year…Of course my heart was simply overflowing after I had read her letter. And I could not thank God for blessing me with such wonderful children. Here are nos. 2, 8, 9 and 10…

8. You taught us that we must grow up to be people who have missions, and reasons for living, just like you. In as much as I think what Oprah and Angelina do are wonderful acts, I know that I need not look far to find my own inspiration in doing my best to make a difference in this world. Without a Brad by your side (although I believe an H, a P, and an L are even better) you made changes in the lives of thousands of children, giving more color to their probably darkened-because-of-circumstance worlds. You taught me that in life, it is not about making as much money as you can, or being able to claim you are the best at everything. It is about finding that drive in you to make the world a better place. To find that mission in life and have FROG* in everything that you do. Only then do things fall into place.
(*Full Reliance On God)

9. Because you are an artist, we grew up surrounded by the best and most beautiful words of affirmation any child could ever get. I remember when I was seven years old, you took me to the Greenhills tiangge to buy my first ever journal. It was magenta, had those little Korean Morning Glory characters on them, and had some strange, grammatically wrong English phrase like, “The sun shining bright because there is you.” But what matters isn’t how that journal looked, but what you told me when you bought it for me. You told me that it would be my chance to start pouring out things straight from my heart and not be afraid to say anything. You even said that maybe I could develop a talent for writing! An absurd idea then, but I haven’t really put down the pen ever since. That instance was just like so many others in my relationship with you, where you gave me hope by affirming me and making me believe in myself. From little notes, to surprise devotional books, sappy but well appreciated Birthday cards, you always found the best ways to encourage us and make us feel like yes, we could do it!

10. Because we love you, and you love us. Unconditionally, 24/7 (and this is where it starts to sound like a sun cellular ad), at every single moment of every single day. Yes, we may drive each other crazy sometimes, or argue when it comes to petty things like car schedules, curfew or the number of clothes in my closet. But I don’t focus on those moments. Because I have never felt unloved by you, never felt like I could ever question how much you love L and I. And I live for those moments when I can show you just how much we love you too.

Happy Mother’s Day to all my mom readers and all the mothers of my readers