My mom is a fighter.
She might not think of herself as such, but that’s how I think of her. She’s not the kind who dodges the blows, or backs away from the fight. Oh no. She wades through the punches, accepting the slings and arrows of everyone who gives her shit, and she does not give a fuck. I got that trait from my father as well, who is small-s stoic (think John Wayne crossed with Harrison Ford), but it’s easier to see with my mother, because she’s more open. I’m two levels of don’t give a fuck, thanks to them.
My mother is the mean grandma, which I don’t mean as a slight. You see, I have this theory. It goes: everyone has a nice grandma, who gives them what they want, and a mean grandma, who gives them what they need. I know I had those grandmas, even though my nice grandma gave me what I needed as well, to my eternal benefit.
My mom is the mean grandma, for sure. I don’t have kids yet, but I see it with my brother’s children. She’s the one who gives them what you need, and who can slog through a world of lies and bullshit without being torn down by them, because she knows exactly who she is.
She’s a substitute teacher occasionally, and all the other teachers love her, because she takes charge of the room and makes sure the class stays on track. The students, I feel, respect her at minimum, because they know she doesn’t put up with their shit—and if they don’t know that, they find out soon. She’s not the kind of person you’re always happy to follow—she’s not going to coddle you—but you go where she tells you anyway, because you know it’s for the best. Plus, she’ll smack you upside the head if you need it.
My mother is a fighter, and always has been.
If my mother was a politician, she would be like Hillary Clinton.
Which makes me sad, because my mother probably didn’t vote for Hillary. I don’t know who she voted for, and I’m not sure I want to ask, because I know she’s voted Republican for most of her life. Best case is probably that she didn’t vote for president at all, though perhaps I would be surprised.
Which is a shame, because she’d have ignored the one who would have governed much like she would have, in favor of the one who endangers us all.
