In my mothers; shoes

“Wow where are you from,” asks the clerk behind the counter. My mother replies, “Here, I’m from Arizona.

One year ago my mother was terribly sick, and was in the hospital for almost two months. During this time she received several dozen breathing treatments. She was seen by a speech therapist, a throat specialist, and doctor after doctor; who in the end could only fix her bronchitis, not what remained from her illness. She had no voice, only a whisper, and a shaky whisper at that. My mother was devastated. She prayed and prayed and didn’t know what to do or think of what happened to her.

After months of suffering and trying to speak again her voice came back but only a little bit. She has been asked if she is a victim of stroke, is she Swedish, English, where is she from, and snickers behind her back. Do people understand that if they don’t have something nice to say to not say anything at all? What if you were in her shoes, what if you were struggling to be heard? So many people will never know what it is like to be my mother, I have no idea what it is like to be my mother either, but I watch I hear, and I defend all the time. My mother is not a joke; she is trying to just live her life, without the ridicule, and without the hatred. One day she was almost attacked by a homeless man because she wouldn’t respond to him regarding his financial situation. She tried to speak however on some occasions she cannot get the words out of her mouth. This situation was one of those days.

Just remember that if you hear someone who sounds like they may be sick; think before you tell them how awful they sound; you may just stick your foot in your mouth. Mom you are my hero, you have always been my hero and I am proud of you for going out there into the world and LIVING LIFE.. I love you. I always will.