My mom was not the motherly mom type though. She was a workaholic, so she was rarely home. I learned to fend for myself since an early age, and since we never really spent that much time together, there weren't too many occasions for her to pass on much motherly advice.
However, among what little she did tell me, there was one that I remembered clearly. My mom used to tell me: thank God for unanswered prayers.
Of course when I first heard it, I didn't understand what she meant. I thought to myself, uh oh, what had my mother been smoking lately?!? Why would I want to thank God for not answering my prayers? Thanks, but no thanks. God knows I could use a little help here. I mean, if only He'd answer just half of my prayers, my life would have been sooo much easier--at least that was what I thought.
Well, ever heard of that saying "mother knows best?" Holy cow, turned out she's right after all. Years had gone by since the first time my mom had told me that, and many, many times, I discovered that what she said was true. Here's one example.
When I was 16 years old, there was this boy (let's call him Ruff*) that I had a crush on for the longest time. I was head over heels for Ruff: I worshiped the ground he walked on, I waited patiently by the house phone for his calls (no mobiles at the time, folks), I would rush to meet him at a moment's notice. Basically I was doing everything that the book "He's Not that Into You" would've advised you NOT to do. Hey, who could blame me, he was my first "real" (not) love.
To say that it was a case of unrequited love would not exactly be the right description either, because you see, Ruff clearly was enjoying all the attention I bestowed upon him. Every time we met, I swear I could spontaneously combust. Whenever we were together, we were on fire; we definitely had a "thing," even if we were dating other people at the time. He was my one and only, the only person I wanted to say "I love you" to. (Dear ex-boyfriends, if any of you happened to read this, I'm sorry I lied when I told you I loved you, okay?).
And of course, I prayed. I prayed and prayed to God that one day, Ruff and I would wake up, realized that we couldn't live without each other, and finally confessed our love for one another. Days became weeks, weeks became months, and months became years. 6 years to be exact!
Today, Ruff and I ended up living in the same city. We are both married with kids. I'm used to seeing him from time to time, although most of them was in passing or by chance only. However, a few months ago, we happened to attend a funeral of a mutual acquaintance. For the first time in years, I had a good look at him--this boy that I was so in love with for 6 friggin' years! I was sitting opposite from where he was sitting, and my husband happened to be having a chat with him.
Shazam! It was almost as if my mother was there, telling me, "thank God for unanswered prayers." Because in all honestly, that's how I felt. "Thank you, God, for not answering my prayers!" As I looked on, first at him, and then at my husband, I couldn't have been more glad at how things turned out. I mean, the man had these weird tiny facial hairs all over his face! Not to mention the premature balding from the looks of his deeply receding hairline. And since when did he develop this "tic" anyways? The kind that made him looked like he got something in his eyes, causing him to blink like, 78 times in one second?
So here's a toast to you, Mom, for being right, once again. Indeed, thank God for all my unanswered prayers. You never did like Ruff anyway.
Happy Mother's Day.
Love, your daughter.
*Name had been changed to protect the privacy of the individual. And to protect him from further embarrassment.
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