Mami

     Today is March 1st. Nobody really cares here in America, except that maybe it's a new month, so a new paycheck. In Romania today everybody celebrates the beginning of spring. We give each other cute little pendants hanged by white and red thread that we call "martisoare". It's a beautiful holiday, girls and women receive spring flowers and every single person on the street will have a "martisor" attached to his/her coat. It is a celebration of love, of spring, of green and new hopes.
    I missed my mom a lot today. I wished she was here with me today, not an ocean away. Two years back my mom was here with me and we were both waiting for Catalina. At that time I was so preoccupied with preparing my mind for the happiness I was about to experience, that I could not appreciate the time I had with my mom. She was her usual sweet, patient mom. We took long walks together, during which I kept on talking about my miracle that was about to come.
This picture here was taken the Sunday before Catalina was born. It was a beautiful day, after a long snowy winter.

My mom walked slowly next to me and stopped every 10-15 minutes so I can rest. She was telling me stories from her youth, nice little gossips about people from my childhood. It was a lovely day and I can only hope I was not too mean to her (I am blaming pregnancy hormones for all the bad I was doing at that time).  :)

Next day it was March 8th. March 8th is yet another beautiful holiday in Romania and many other European countries. It's woman's day. But mostly mother's day. We exchanged little gifts. I cannot remember what I gave my mom, but I remember so well what I received. It was a little glass mirror with a mother and child and few verses engraved:
"Mothers and daughters never truly part,
Bound by the force of a single beating heart."

At that time I kind of felt it was cheesy and too sweet. But now, that little mirror is one of the most precious things in my house. One of those things you cannot imagine breaking, because it holds so many dear memories and love and significance. It was a gift from my mother to a silly, knowing of nothing mother to be. I cannot imagine a more appropriate and a nicer gift. Thank you so much, mami. So, so much. I hope I will have that mirror to give to Catalina when she will have her own daughter.

That night Catalina decided she's cooked enough. Second morning we got our miracle. My mom was there to witness it, she was capable of the most selfless love, that only a mother can be. She watch me and Marius being happy without limits, she cried of happiness with us, but never pushed herself into our lives. I do have the most amazing mother.

Can you imagine how much love is pouring out of me when I look at this picture?