mama knows best

clean forgot about mothers' day until i saw the chocolates/flowers/food processors/kitchen utensils that had come out at various shop windows in a bid for kids to splurge on their moms. why are moms always getting the same-old same-old each year? it's as if those gifts are an affirmation that moms' places are in the kitchen or something.

talking to N yesterday, i found out she'd bought her mom a brand new tiny li'l car (a metallic blue bubble of a toyota echo, which i've been eyeing too!) and she'd taken over the 20-yr-old toyota seca that her mom used to drive. i'm sure her mom appreciated that. of course, it helps to be in oz, where cars are a cheap and necessary form of transport! way to go, N.

i'm not sure what i could get for my mom this year, with her in taipei with my dad and myself stuck here down under's. in search for a meaningful gift-from-far-away, i think the gift that she would most appreciate is something that she already has.

no. i'm not talking about myself.

well, it could be an arrow pointing in the direction of my dad... but only in part.

i think that, ever since i left her side, she has been able to really blossom and take on a more light-hearted approach to life. the shy, timid person she has always been in making way for a new, more gregarious woman who has grown wiser from her past. in a way, i feel i've been hampering her development in this area all along, just by selfishly being there. all my coaxing of "go out, meet up with your old friends from school!" have finally taken root, and my mom's coming out of her shell and trying out new things. i'm SO proud 'a her! being amongst her tai-tai or 'auntie' friends have done marvellous things to her self-esteem, and i grin like anything whenever i hear of her escapades on our fortnightly 1-hour phone catch-up sessions.

and now that my dad's stationed in taipei, my dear ol' mom's going up north every so often and trying out stuff on her own. instead of thinking that she's been left all alone in singapore by the immediate members of her family, she has become stronger and more resilient with her endlessly cheerful outlook. no complaints, only encouragement. that tech-savvy woman is armed with that Creative MuVo, sony ericsson P910 handphone-pda thingy, and her fujitsu lifebook (ok, so i'm not a techie person... i dunno what model/specs, or the proper name). what do you say to a woman, so up to date with her gadgets, sitting outdoors at a cafe coolly sipping her mocha mint macchiato? equally at ease with my dad's uppity business associates, and with my chill-out gang of friends at home? and then she goes home and tends to my grouchy old grandfather and takes all his nonsense in her stride.

and there she is, offering great advice to me when i'm stuck. we haven't really been very close as mother-daughter per se, but it's been much easier these past few years, to share. guilty of shunning her advice in the past, i now realise [how cliche] but valuable and well-meaning she has been. i've been a sufferrer of prolonged teenage angst, and i can see how it has affected my mom as well. her major bout of illness (involving 2 rounds of unconsciousness and 2 hospital stays) in the past 2 years have weakened her physically, though not at all mentally. and i was reminded again NEVER to take her for granted.

so, mom, thanks for 26 years of support and unconditional friendship. i know i've been a difficult one to handle, forever being stubborn and aloof. i love you, and through countless disappointments, i'm so grateful that you still don't hate me. can't wait for you to visit in june!