Today is my mother’s 53rd birthday, and I wish nothing but more blessings and good health in her golden years. God blessed me with a loving and supportive mother, and I could not ask for more. Even if I am married and with children of my own, she still supports and advices me like her little girl.

Fifty-three years ago, a little girl was born in Meru, Kenya. The little girl was hardworking and brilliant in school. Her father invested in her educated for her empowerment, and though she did not join her dream career-law, she became a teacher. She met and married my father while working as an intern, and she soon bore her firstborn daughter. It was no longer about you the moment you welcomed your first daughter. The little girl born 53 years ago is my beloved my mother! No words can match up the sacrifices she has made to bring up her three daughters. We love you, mum!

I am a woman of 28 years, and I owe everything that I have and am to my mother, who today will be turning 53. Raising your three daughters besides all the hardships meant working twice, if not thrice as hard. My mother hurts when you hurt, and she prays the rosary each day for her two grandchildren and us. My mother’s love is beautifully irrational. She looks beyond my mistakes and flaws, seeing the best version of not only me but all her three daughters. She has always been there for all of us, day and night. Mum, Ma. She has taken this role dearly and never relented, no matter what. No one shapes lives than our mothers. You have taught us to work harder beyond our current circumstances to become a better version of ourselves. It is from you mum that I have learned to love my babies selfless and dedicate my life to them.

I cannot go without acknowledging the challenges you have gone through mum. I look back at the events, and I am sure beyond doubt that you are the strongest species on earth. The biggest challenge being the loss of your father. It was tough for you mum. How you gathered the strength to pick us from school to attend the funeral, without saying a word to us about it, and coming up with a lie to protect us from the emotions is something I still do not understand. You remained calm throughout the 3 hours’ drive, without getting emotional. I know the divorce was draining, emotionally, and financially. I am still baffled by your strength throughout this trying and stressful time of your life. This was a hard time for us as a family, financially and emotionally, but you still held our hands.

I thank God for blessing me with a mother in my childhood. I enjoyed the new clothes you bought us during Christmas and New Year’s Day, the road trips, the holidays and your delicious pilau and chapos. I will do my best each day to say, “Thank you, Mummy” I want you to know that I could not be anywhere close to where and who I am today, were it not for your love, support, and counsel.

Thank you for being strong in broken circumstances. I love you! Happy 53rd birthday mummy.