A Mother's Keeper

A Mother's Keeper

“I’ll be ok mami” Those were the words that started my college journey here at the University of Florida. Standing there saying goodbye to my mother before she departed to Miami seemed surreal to me. 

Ever since I could remember I had been my mother’s keeper. 

 At that last hug my whole life flashed before my eyes. It’s funny how some people say that, that happens right before they die but for me it happened right before I was about to start living.

I went back to my small home located Miami, Fl. I went back to the happy times. I traveled back to a time where my parents were very good at concealing the truth about their marriage. As a child I knew I was less fortunate, than most of my peers in school in an economic aspect.

 However, that did not bother me much because I felt more than fortunate to have a family. I admired my parents, the morals they instilled in me and I treasured every smile, laugh and moment of joy. I was so blinded by bliss. I would’ve taken to offense if anyone would have told me that my parents seemed distant. I figured since they loved me and my older sister they must love each other. I remember smiling when I remembered my mother teaching me how to cook and my father buying me a new pair of skates. Every bruise, burn and scratch was always well taken care of.

Those brief memories of happiness ended just as soon as they began. It was at the age of nine when I went from enjoying my childhood to embracing adulthood.

 I remembered the first time my sister and I heard my parents arguing. My father told us to go to our room. It wasn’t long before I realized why he had done this. Just as the plates shattered against the floor so did my world. There was shouting that was preceded by silence and the slamming of the door.  There was no need for someone to tell me what had occurred. I had seen the play by play in my head. 

I had been fighting the urge to cry while I was in my room.  My older sister looked like she was going to cry, but before she could burst into tears I hugged her tightly. I told her it was going to be ok and to wait in the room. I gathered the courage to head to the kitchen and console my sobbing mother. It was at that moment that I faced reality.

Divorce is the worst thing that can happen to a family. The constant bickering, the never-ending custody hearings and child support court dates can really drive someone crazy.  I remembered being my mother’s lawyer, doctor, translator and best friend. I went with her everywhere and anywhere that she needed to go. 

All the qualities that I admired about my mother were slowly fading away. Her strength, energy, smile and laughter were ceasing little by little. 

The only motivation she had were me and my sister. Our accomplishments in school always brought back those qualities. Hence, my sister and I always made sure to achieve academic excellence.

During the weekends my mom had us go to my father’s house. My sister was always happy to see my father, I, on the other hand never wanted to leave my mother’s side. I would go to the park across the street and spend the entire day there.  

I disliked being at my father’s home so I asked to help out at the horse stable that was owned by the park. I was thirteen when I got my first job and it was at the horse stable. 

I would wake up every Saturday and Sunday at 6 am to head over to the park. I would take the horses on their morning exercise and ride around without a care in the world. I would clean them and their stables. During the afternoons their owners would come to ride them and I would take their children on rides as well. From tips alone I would make about $150 dollars every weekend. Ever since then I’ve always had a job to help my mother financially and to pay for my own expenses.

The happiest and saddest moment of my life came the day I found out that I was accepted into the University of Florida.  I worked very hard during high school to get into the school of my first choice. However, I knew accepting my invitation to attend meant that I would have to leave my mother. Although, my mom was saddened by my moving she was more than ecstatic to help me prepare for my big move.

 It all happened very quickly. Before I knew it my mother was dropping me off at dorm. There I stood hugging her goodbye, trying to be strong for her, as I’ve always been. This time my strength failed me. This was the first time I allowed her to see to see me cry. Many people would say that my upbringing prepared me to live on my own and though they may be right it was going to take a while to adjust to this new environment without my best friend. Looking back on that day I would have to conclude that moving to Gainesville was the best decision for my future.  I’ve grown as a person, a student and a daughter. My mother has also come a long way. She is about to open her own business and is the happiest I’ve ever seen her. The distance has helped us grow as individuals all the while strengthening our relationship. 

My mother will always be my best friend. 

Analysis

I chose to write this narrative because first and foremost it is very dear to my heart. It shows how I was raised and a series of events that has made me the person I am today. I chose to title it “A mother’s keeper” in hopes that the reader’s first question would be “what is a mother’s keeper?”   That question is answered through the narrative with the images. I hope that from the narrative with the images the reader can conclude that a mother’s keeper is her daughter.  A mother’s keeper is a daughter who is there for her during hard times, sad time and happy times. A mother’s keeper is a daughter who understands that no more matter what her best friend is her mother. I chose to put the pictures in a different order so that the reader could make their own narrative about the images. Looking at just the pictures I would think that a writer is possibly trying to make a comparison and contrast between Miami and Gainesville. The first picture is also the last picture in the narrative because it signifies that the relationship I have with my mother is never-ending. The song I chose sets the tone for the story.The song does a great job in describing what is happening in the narrative. I feel that it prepares the reader for a heartwarming story.