Last mother’s day, I wrote a piece on my mother called Mother’s Day. This year for the first time ever, I will share someone else’s thoughts on my blog in honor of mother’s day.

On Christmas morning this year, I woke up to one of the best gifts I ever received as a mother. There was a scroll of paper coming out of my silver Christmas stocking with a thin gold bow. When I opened it and read it, I was filled with such love and pride.  I thought about all the worry and guilt I had as a working mom. I thought about the stress of the season and trying to make everyone happy and in that very second, I felt like Cindy Luo from Whoville.  Staring me right in the face, was  the real meaning of the season. In the scroll, on the paper,  was a school assignment which was written by  my daughter. It was titled “A Hero”

My daughter read my article on my mom and my grandfather and she asked me if I could share her essay with you. So at her request here it is:

A Hero

When you think of a hero, what comes to mind? Superman? President Barack Obama? Beyonce? Well, I think of my mom, Andrea McGonigle. The word hero is defined as someone who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities (Dictionary.com, 2016). My mom was born in Belfast, Ireland and moved to America at only one year old. She’s a Drexel University graduate, Microsoft employee, and an all around amazing mom. She has the most beautiful personality and is drop dead gorgeous. Andrea McGonigle is the most selfless, compassionate, hardworking person I have ever met, and I am extremely lucky to have her as my mom.

One quality that my mom possesses is selflessness. Andrea will put anyone and every one before herself no matter how serious the situation may be. She always wants to help others do better and always wants you to succeed and reach your goals. My brother, Patrick, is right-brained, which means he is more creative and learns visually. This makes it exceptionally hard for him to understand concepts that may seem easy. His homework is often discouraging and difficult for him, especially because most teachers educate using left-brained methods, which my brother does not understand. Just as it is frustrating to my brother to constantly do poorly on homework and tests, it’s difficult for my mom to help him through his homework and studying. Andrea, like most of the population, is more left-brained, which makes her think in a more logical fashion. This makes it difficult to teach Patrick math and reading skills. My mom takes time out of her busy schedule every single day to help Patrick with his homework. Although she may have work to do or presentations to carry out, my mom would rather put Patrick first, then do her job, because she wants him to succeed. Andrea will do anything if it helps you do better and reach your goals. My mother’s selflessness is one of the primary reasons why she is my personal hero.

Another important feature that my mom bears is compassion. Andrea cares about and will help everyone and everything. My mom loves all of her friends and family and prays for them every single night before she goes to bed. She will drop everything to help someone who is in need. Just Thursday, December 6th, my mom had a work call that she had to be on, but she helped my elderly neighbor find his dog in the cold weather, and safely returned the dog to his home. This proves how much compassion my mom has for the world. Andrea’s compassion shows through her work, kind words and actions, and especially how she expresses herself during her day-to-day life.

The last and most important quality that a hero should have is the ability to be a hard worker. An especially rough time for my mom was in 2007. She was at the top of her game working at a company that manufactures and distributes pharmaceuticals and medical equipment, called Merck, but after nothing but hard work, she was laid off. After about six months of working her butt off, Andrea managed to get a job at Microsoft as a Partner Account Manager. Now, nine years later, my mom is the Managing Director of Health and Sales. Andrea always strives to be the best she can be by working her hardest and encouraging others to do their best as well. She constantly works her hardest to help others succeed and make it easier for me and my brother. My mom never gives up and always tells me and Patrick to give it our best. This goes for school work, sports, and activities as simple as building friendships or making the right decisions. Andrea works on level 100 during every hour of every day to help me and my brother to reach our goals.

As you can clearly see, my mother, Andrea McGonigle, is one of the most amazing role models. She shows many astonishing features, such as generosity, humility, gratitude, intelligence, respect, patience, selflessness, compassion, and willingness to work hard, as well as a million more heroic qualities. In conclusion, my mom is a hero, except, she is not just a hero, she is my hero, and I cannot explain the limitless amount of love I have for such a beautiful soul. Mom, I love you.

Buzzworthy Lesson: Don’t be so hard on yourself. Trust you are doing the right things and it will all fall in to place. Happy Mothers Day!!