Happy Birthday Ma

| mom |

My mother was raised in Tây Sơn, a district of the Bình Định Province in South Central Vietnam. When she was 21, she carried me for 9 months and gave birth to me on May 21. Within a month, my family obtained sponsorship and moved to the Philippines. My parents learned English there. We then relocated to the United States. 

My mother gave birth to a total of 7 children, one who didn't make it. She is a woman. A strong, bold, broken, sad, happy, woman who has gone through so much emotional and physical abuse in her lifetime. Today, my beautiful mother turns 50. I try my best to celebrate her all the time, because any being who can give birth is MAGIC. Everything I can do, I can do because of my mother, a woman. My mother has always been one of my idols, and although she has flaws, I strive to forget about those. I mean, she left her motherland for us. She raised us. She gave us LIFE.

Love all the women in your life today, but don't forget that for the rest of your life, they DESERVE your love and your respect. I promise to try to always do that. I'll end today with some knowledge from Grace Lee Boggs: "Love isn't about what we did yesterday; it's about what we do today and tomorrow and the day after." Keep up the praise and solidarity you are showing today. Don't forget, women run this fucking world, ok? OK.