is a single mama in the city, super-savvy editor, writer, video host and shameless shoe whore.
Just like her
Sunday, May 13, 2007 
Growing up, in moments of complete exasperation, my father would throw up his arms at me and say, "You are just like your mother!" This would often involve bags of shoes that were an addendum to all my other luggage for family vacations. In these moments, my mother would jump in immediately, "Take that as a compliment! Take that as a compliment!" She refused to let being like her be negative. Especially about something as practical as packing a few extra pairs of shoes.
In honor of my mom this Mother's Day, here are five things I would love to have to be just like her:
1. Artistry. My mom is a very different artist than I am with wispy brush strokes and doodles of baby faces that are striking in their resemblance to the children we know. Her intuition about color and how details create a beautiful picture make her my favorite person to have in a fitting room and the greatest mental re-decorator of everyone else's home.
2. Math wizardry. I hope that by some grace of God my mother's math skills make their way out-utero into my DNA. She can add up numbers in a snap with little mind math tricks that I rolled my eyes at as a kid and envy as an adult.
3. Commitment to kids. As a teacher for nearly 40 years, my mom still holds many of her students dear. She remembers their names, laughs over stories about them decades later and follows up to find out about their lives when she meets up with her colleagues or visits the neighborhood she taught generations of students in.
4. Joy. My mother gets the giggles and can't stop. She plays CDs in her car way too loud and sings over the music with abandon. She always dances at parties and she always runs at the tidelines at the beach. When opportunities to let go and feel free call her, she greets them without worrying about a plan or the rest of the world.
5. The stories. Our family stories are slipping away as my grandmother's memory gives in to Alzheimer's disease. My mother remembers so much, though, and keeps the details close so she can give them to me and I am so grateful for that.
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