In honor of Mother’s Day, this article will be solely dedicated to my mom and what makes her great. Feel free to share what you love about your mom too!
Disclaimer: My dad is fantastic too! Since it is Mother’s Day though, he won’t be mentioned as much.
In full disclosure, I am 23 years old (soon to be 24)! My mother has put up with me for a whole 23+ years, including time in the womb.
I assume she thinks it’s worth it because she still answers my almost daily calls and messages across the country.
Throughout my life, I have always looked up to my mom. What daughter doesn’t? And now that I am becoming a mom myself, she has become even more essential in my life.
Today I want to divulge certain life lessons I have learned from my mom and what I want to pass on to my children. 
Lesson #1: Life is an Adventure
Ever since I can remember, my mom has always redirected any frustration by saying, “It’s an adventure!”
If we got lost driving, it was an adventure. If she wanted us to go somewhere we didn’t, it was going to be an adventure. Basically anything and everything is an adventure.
Continuously my mom shares with us her passion for life, including traveling and learning. She is famous for always wanting to go to museums and taking her time while there. Oh yes, she is that person who takes triple the time that everyone else does because she is reading everything and asking questions.
When I was younger, my family moved around a bit. Even when we didn’t move, we still loved to go on vacations and visit different parts of the world. If you can guess, even traveling with three little kids was an adventure to my mom!
Nevertheless, it is due to my mom that I have visited countries such as Mexico, Canada, Germany, France, and South Korea, among a bunch of US states.
When I was 19 years old, I lived in Madrid, Spain for a year and half without any family or friends nearby. If you can imagine, I had no culture shock whatsoever because I was already used to new places, people, and languages.
My mom taught us how to use empty boxes to make forts and how the world seems brighter as long as there is music in it.
Who else would I have wanted to drive across the country with? That’s right, my mom and I drove the full three days from Maryland to Utah together.
Not surprisingly, we didn’t argue once or have any disagreement while being cooped up in a car. Both my mom and I were glad to spend that time with each other and stop at unique museums along the way.
I will gladly pass that enthusiasm for life on to my own children. They will all know that nothing in life is ever dull.
Lesson #2: Your Best is Good Enough
I’m sure I’m not the only one who grew up knowing that academics and school grades were important. Both my parents tried their hardest to have us understand that concept.
Perhaps it’s because of my mother’s Asian roots, but she was just a tad more strict on grades than my dad was. I always believed she wanted me to be a straight A student like my older brother, but I was wrong.
Regrettably, it took me years to realize that my mom only wanted me to try my best.
Call it mother’s intuition, but she always knew exactly when I was being lazy at school versus doing all I could. It 
wasn’t about the letter grade; it was about exerting myself and working hard.
I will never forget the time I got in trouble for not doing certain homework assignments in my 8th grade Social Studies class.
It didn’t impact my letter grade much, but it did teach me a valuable lesson: Laziness is not acceptable.
The same applies to all activities, even with musical instruments.
Growing up with your mother as a piano teacher automatically means you will know how to play the piano too. It’s true that all three of us kids learned our scales and music theory. All of us also picked a different instrument to play in addition.
I chose the clarinet, my brother had the trumpet and guitar, and my sister played the violin (my mom taught violin too, coincidentally).
Although none of us became masters of our musical weapons, we did learn discipline and how to practice, practice, practice! There was no way we could slack off in a personal practice session because my mom would readily remind us of how to better ourselves.
Those learned behaviors have stuck with me ever since.
Lesson #3: Treat Others the Way You Want to be Treated
You could be a complete stranger and my mom will stop whatever she is doing to immediately help. Whether it be driving you to the grocery store, babysitting your kids, or slipping you a hand written note, you will be taken care of.
When I was in high school, my mom worked at a catering company. Many of the jobs were in Baltimore, MD (an often sketchy city, especially at night), but that didn’t stop her from braking on the side of the road and giving the leftovers of that night to a homeless person.
“…When ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.” – Mosiah 2:17 (The Book of Mormon)
And how could I forget the moment I found out my mother sometimes gives food to a known resident of the city? He is generously referred to as the “crazy bike guy” around my hometown, which would deter most people from even talking to him.
Fortunately, my mom understands that he only has a slight mental disability. That does not signify he shouldn’t be treated properly!
Back when I was still living at home, my parents started an initiative with us. Each month we were given a $5 gift card to McDonald’s and were told to put it to good use (aka give it to someone in need).
The best part about those gift cards is how we did it as a family. As soon as any one of us got rid of our card, we were eager and excited to share our story with the rest of the family.
What better way to unite a family than through service!
Amid all the hustle and bustle of life, my parents have always stood by us. They came to every single one of our sports games, performances, church presentations, and anything else you can think of. Clearly, I was blessed with perfect role models for me.
So thanks, Mom and Dad, for getting hitched and making me and my siblings. Thank you for loving us and teaching us by example.
Mom – Thank you for showing me how to live my life to the fullest and never take any moment for granted. My children will know exactly where they get their adventurous, intelligent, and kind genes!
Happy Mother’s Day!
Now it’s your turn to tell me all about your mother and how she has influenced your life!