Mother…My Life Mentor

Mother…My sole life mentor. Although many might say that they were influenced by great leaders, pioneers or innovators, my case is different. The people who influenced me the most were the ones that I have lived with for my sixteen years of life. They are the ones who supported me when I failed and the ones who lauded me, when I succeeded. MY FAMILY! Particularly my mother has been my sole life mentor and the paragon of success for my entire life.

When my mother was only nine years old, she had lost her father. Since, she had been responsible and the sole bread winner for her family. But she had a fixed sense of determination to succeed. My mother would support her family and still contribute to her community. She was even appreciated multiple times by her local newspaper for acting so benevolently toward others.

Respectable attitude and sensible behavior portray a panoramic view of who you are as a person, my mother says. In addition, that I should also be careful to objectivity in every step of my life. And to abide by the fundamental belief that I should not impose onto others what I would not choose for me. She advices me to remain tolerant of diversity and to accept differences as a civilized manner of unity.

Even though, my mother came from humble beginnings and was born in a tiny village, she had big dreams. She wanted me to achieve more by giving me the opportunities that she had never had. She would tell me to read the deeds and speeches of great leaders such as John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, or Mahatma Gandhi, hoping that I would eventually follow their footsteps. In addition, my mother would expect me to ponder about their wise words and learn from their wisdom. For instance, when Martin Luther King, famously, said, “I have a dream” in time of anguish, she expected me to make that more substantial by having a dream myself.

Although you should have aspirations, my mother always tells me, they do not come easily and life is not a bed of roses. For without any pain, there is no gain. Hence she instilled in me the very idea that hard work and education are my doors to success. And that the privilege of education, which is lacking to so many in my home country, is amply available in the US and that I should take full advantage. Moreover, she would infuse in me this idea to make me stronger and fight temptations that would corrupt me.

Whenever I come across anything in my everyday life, I find my mother’s advice to be very real and I embrace it even more. Furthermore, every minute I spend with my mother, I consider it as a future investment in my life.

My mother has been my ultimate guide and has made me the person I am today. Her strong and lasting influence has, indelibly, left a mark on me. Everything I achieve in the future will be because of my mother and I will always express my deepest gratitude for the privilege of having her as my mother.

Mesmer G. Gebrialfa