My mom told me regularly over the years that she wanted to be an actress. It was her childhood dream. She wanted to be famous, see her name in lights, walk the red carpet at awards show and looked surprised when the envelope was opened and they called her name.
Instead, she’s a nurse. Working two jobs and has been for the past….seven years?
What happened between then and now, never mind that Hollywood only accepts a select few, and generally those whose skin contains only a teensy bit of melanin?
Well, she went to high school. Fell in love with her high school boyfriend. Went to college. Stayed in love with her high school boyfriend. Graduated from college and they got married. 14 months later, I was born to my 24-year-old mom. Two years later, my younger sister was born. A year and a half later, my youngest sister was born.
And now she is a nurse.
My mom does not really like her jobs. Neither of them.
But even though she’s overworked and underpaid, she still manages to go into work and take care of those patients like they are her parents. She’s saved more lives than I can count. That, to me, makes what she does awe-worthy, even if she isn’t on the red carpet, or no one else gives her accolades.
I’ve wondered how my mom has felt about some of the events in her life. It wasn’t until I became a mom myself that I realized my mother was an actual person, who had desires and interests and dreams that didn’t necessarily include me or my two sisters.
I wished “mom blogging” was more of a thing back then that it is now because it would be totally cool to read through her archives and see how events in my life appeared in her eyes.
When she decided to quit her job working in HR and go to nursing school, she was juggling a full course load and three young kids and a husband who frequently traveled for work. How did she manage everything and not lose her mind?
Or when she got laid off from a nursing job when I was in high school and only three months away from starting college? How did she have faith that everything would work out and we’d still be able to afford my tuition?
Or when I shocked her with the news that yes, she’d be a grandma at 45? I would kill to read her blog post the day after she got the news.
I’m not sure what her blog would have said but I know she loved us. She might not have made it to Hollywood, but she’s a star in my heart. (Corny, yes, but you know what I mean!) 
If your mom had a blog while you were growing up, would you want to read it? What do you think it would have said?
I think my mom’s blog would have looked a whole lot different. She was born in the late ’30’s but it would have been interesting to read.
My parents have been together since my mom was 13 but my dad continually broke her heart over the years until one day she put her foot down. They’ve been disgustingly in love ever since. What I would want to read is about how my mom felt when my dad was being a jerk, and just why she stuck around. Obviously she made the right choice. My dad is such a great guy, loving husband, great father, super fun grampa. So it’d be kinda interesting reading about him being an ass. Haha!
That’s a really cool idea. I often wonder how my mom made it work. It was me and her against the world. While my dad has always been in my life, they broke up so he wasn’t in our house. She worked two jobs and sent me to private schools. How in the world??? I couldn’t imagine. I think I need to have a talk with her about her dreams and ambitions. Thanks for this post!
Oh Lord the things my mom would’ve said in so many different situations. The thought just makes me giggle. How amusing! .. I think I might talk with my mom about this tonight after work. She was a single mom starting when I was 5 years old–I just wonder what went through her head on any given day.