Mother’s Day is a special time of year where we can recognize the important women in our life. Whether this is our biological mother, grandma, auntie or any special person who helped raise us into the people we are today. They can be our biggest fan, our loudest supporter and also the person who keeps us grounded in reality - hopefully not grounding us anymore as a punishment! They say being a mother can be the most difficult and most rewarding job at the same time so this is the perfect time to recognize those individuals.

Mother’s Day can also be a day of remembrance for those no longer with us. Gone but never forgotten, the special place in our hearts will always be there for them. Let this day be full of love - in moments of loss and grief I understand no words can erase that pain. What I always like to share with those in the grieving process is ‘remember how lucky we are’; out of the whole wide world YOU got to spend that time with those no longer with us more than ANYONE else in the world. We’re the luckiest people in the world because for that time they were here they were ours more than anyone else’s. May their spirit live on forever in the memories we made with the time given to us.

I personally am lucky to have my mother still in my life and she gave me the heart I have in my chest. In 2005 my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer and it turned our entire family upside down. At 17 years old I had no idea what to expect and it was one of the scariest times of my life. I remember the day after my high school graduation she had her first chemo therapy session (she asked her doctor to delay beginning treatment so she would be at her best to see me get my diploma). I remember when she got home she hugged me and said she had left a voicemail to an estranged family member she hadn’t spoken to in ages. She let them know how things went and that she was not scared. She said “1 down, bring on the rest”. After a year of treatment she entered remission and 5 years later was declared ‘cancer free’. Her strength and spirit through that time is something I carry with me everyday.

If you still have your mother, call her. Send her picture messages. Text her you love her. If your mother is no longer with us, keep her with you in your heart and carry yourself in a way that would make her proud. They gave us life, we owe them that much.

- Estevan Romero