My father who is generally niggardly with praise is extremely generous where mother is concerned. He spoke of her once as selfless, sacrificial and devoted and I would like to add that she is helpful and understanding. It is not unusual for us teenagers to run into little problems and then to boggle at them. Whatever you do, she is there solidly with you to help you. Perhaps one of the greatest things in life is to have a devoted, selfless, helpful mother and the person whom I admire most is no one else but my mother who seems to have these qualities.
There is no gap separating us, children, from our mother and we do not create that artificial barrier called the generation gap. To her I am an open book and, as a rule, I do not pry into her personal problems, if at all she has any. She speaks little and has a patient ear for our rigmarole.
Our conversation, often one-sided, can be long and topics may range from the pranks of the little sister to something new in Chemistry that I learnt at school.
A quality that I admire most in her is her selfless devotion for us. Her own interests are of little importance to her where ours are concerned. The meals will be ready at the time we need. She can forego a good night's sleep without a murmur, nursing us when we are ill. Her personal possessions are meagre and they have to be so for in her scheme of things our interests come first. The little she seems to excel us; she seems to take secret delight in seeing us fashionably dressed.
My mother has an undeclared philosophy and that is to use to the full one's ability and she practises it without preaching it. In spite of the domestic chores, she finds time to read and often she reads books that have an educative value. She should know about child psychology and now adolescent psychology. The culinary art for her is something that is to be further developed. She avidly reads health magazines as if to regulate our intake of vitamins, minerals, etc. She keeps abreast of developments, both national and international, and is particular to read the newspaper early in the morning.
She believes that our ties with relatives and friends should be maintained and makes it a point to visit them at regular intervals. Since my father fights shy of people not so close to him, I would say it is our lot, to accompany her when this tendency seizes her.
Perhaps she needs one of us as an escort, partly because tradition requires it ; it could also be because she is timid. When visiting, she ably exchanges niceties and invites them all home as if we do not give her the company she needs.
My mother does not have a black list of dont's; she gives us freedom of speech and action ; but ensures, by what she does, that responsibility is not dissociated from freedom. At times, when we get on her nerves, she keeps a statue-like silence and the little things we do to please her and to make her break this vow of silence seem to have their sudden effect. She does not compete with us in any way and she does not believe in forcing us to study. Perhaps she feels that we emulate her and that all she wants us to do is to do our best. She does not wait eagerly at the gate to know our position in class and she learns of our performance in the examination only when we, with certain amount of pretended modesty, present our report cards for her signature.
To my father she is secretary, companion, domestic accountant - all rolled into one. Her devotion to him is typically oriental and at times it would appear that her only goal in life is his happiness. It is not unusual for him to run into a bad temper and my mother's moderating influence has a telling effect on him. He seldom talks to us, but mother as his secretary keeps him informed of our activities. My father is appreciative of her loyalty and devotion for us and as I said earlier he is rather extravagant in praising her motherly qualities.
Perhaps my mother should have her own share of weaknesses and it is not prudent to be conscious of them in one whom I admire most. I am inclined to believe that it is the mother that keeps the members of the family happily together and in this she succeeds amply and hence my admiration for her.