5 Invaluable Life Lessons from my Mother

Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve always made absolute sure that my mother has the best Mother’s Day she can possibly have. Whether I had a steady income (or allowance back in the day) or not – I’ve always shown my appreciation for her unconditional love in any way I can.

Real talk: when I was six, I wrapped up one of her house plants for her as a gift several days in advance (because I was clearly well prepared) and it was dead when she opened it. I can’t make this stuff up.

Now, as an adult member of society, I’m happy to report that I know better than to wrap up a plant and I’m also happy to report, a beautiful woman named Brenda who I’m lucky to call my mother, has been having an extra special weekend.

To top it off and in celebration of her, I wanted to share 5 invaluable life lessons that my mother has taught me about life in my 32 years.

1. Traveling is Good for the Soul. Mom took me on our first mother daughter trip when I was 13. It was my first time on a plane and my first time visiting a foreign country that wasn’t the United States.  I learned a ton on that trip about discovering other cultures, what not to eat at the buffet, and that getting thrown onto a horse for the first time and just going with it, is really the best learn how to ride.

Since then, we’ve gone on so many mother daughter trips and each time I travel, whether she’s with me or not, I’m thankful to her for teaching me that there’s a whole lot of things to discover on this big blue dot in the atmosphere.

2. Keep your Eyes on the Prize.  Even after she fell in love with dad, mom moved all the way across the country to Vancouver to follow her dreams. Obviously, she came back because I’m here, but her courage and fearlessness that led to her making that move continues to inspire me to chase my dreams and be fearless today.

If it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be. Do what makes you happy and everything else will fall into place if it’s what the universe had planned.

3. Love Everything on Planet Earth. I’m not perfect. Some creepy crawlers freak me out and I could be much better at recycling, but one of the values mom always instilled in me was to love absolutely every single inch of planet earth and all of its creatures. She is the reason I can’t watch a cute animal video without flailing and happy crying. She is the reason I have rescued nearly every kind of animal from danger at some point in my life. She’s the reason I adopted Bella from the SPCA.

The lesson here? Be kind to everything. Humans, animals, trees and the ocean, rivers and lakes. It is a privilege to call Earth home.

4. Salt Water Cures All. I’m pretty sure as soon as it was safe to put me in the ocean, my mom did. Summers at the cottage meant that much of my life has been spent in the ocean, toes in the sand, and with sun-kissed skin and hair. Not surprisingly, it is for this reason that part of me has always felt like I was a mermaid in a past life.

Mom – thank you so much for never letting me be afraid of anything in the ocean. Just like you, it’s my happy place.

5. Patience is Everything. Whether it was baking cookies, planting a garden, or excitedly counting down the days and hours till our next family vacation, my mom taught me that patience is everything and good things will come to those who wait.

She was always right, every single time. Especially when it came to finding Mr. Right.

Mom – thank you for all the lessons you’ve taught me along the way and for those yet to come. I love you. 

To my best friends who are mothers – you girls are rockstars and I’m so proud to know you. To every other mother reading this – this is your day and I hope you enjoy every second of it. You deserve it. And to all of you who lost your mothers far too soon, I’m sending some extra love your way.