Happy Birthday, Momsy

I've heard it said that if you want to know how a girl, or a woman, will look when she's older, the thing to do is to look at her mother. I do hope they're telling the truth. My mom's turned 61 today, and she doesn't look a day past 45. She has aged so gracefully, that I couldn't resist asking her, just a month ago, how it is that she manages to look so young. With a smile, she told me, "there's my secret", and pointed to my dad (who, I think, was scrolling down the news, that time).

Aside from my father (I am quite certain she'd given the best answer to my question), I think it's my mom's possession of that joie de vivre that has enabled her to ward off the "old woman" look. Laughter is one of the things she's not stingy with; it's quite contagious, too, her laugh. She has an innate ability to shrug stress and sadness away; she's an advocate of clean living (which she doesn't forget to remind us, her kids, about, by the way); and she seems to have that perennial twinkle in the eye for new things, undiscovered places. She's always loved to travel, go places; lakwatsera, as we call her. 

All in all, she's managed to maintain a certain sense of wonder for people and places and things, which is not something that I can say for myself, tsk.

Today, I raise a toast to my mom, and all the things that she is, most of which I continue to hope I could still become. 

But first, that youthful glow. I should ask her for more tips.