As most Moms, I am very much like those all over the world. We always want what is best for our children. We pray that they will grow up safe, have amazing opportunities, and be successful beyond our (and their) wildest dreams and imagination. We never want them to suffer hardships or disappointments. A true "rose colored" world us Mom's would love to paint for our children.
I am so guilty of all of this and more. Whytney has always exceeded my expectations and amazes me with her tenacity and ability to overcome and face difficult obstacles head - on! For most people her age, they would give up and maybe never reach their full potential - maybe not even come close. Whytney is so different. She has had to overcome so many obstacles and life circumstances in her short 24 years. Some of which, I believe, I would have just thrown in the towel and given up.
Not only to overcome obstacles, but for Whytney to have accomplished her most recent goal, is nothing short of miraculous. A nine month contract on a ship. A small cabin shared by two FEMALES with NO window. A work schedule that would cripple most burly men. A ship full of guests that are not always kind. And last and certainly LEAST - a very meager earning, barely worthy of even mentioning. WOW.....I would not have been up to this challenge.
Words cannot express how proud I am of my daughter and the success that she has worked so hard for. I hope for her that this experience is only the first in a long list of opportunities that she chooses to make for herself. Yes - I said "make for herself". So many of us WAIT for those opportunities to just drop in our laps. How often does that happen? Whytney is the type of person that will search out and find those and take a chance.
This has, apologetically, been the sappiest blog to date. However, I want my daughter to know that the end of this contract does not and should not represent the END, but a BEGINNING. A beginning of a new adventure, one where there are many possibilities - one with new opportunities - and, hopefully, one with a little more cash earnings! It can't hurt!
19 more days until a Mom can wrap her arms around a Daughter! And then, hopefully, time will stand still for a moment!
LUM&L
My mother wanted me to be her wings, to fly as she never quite had the courage to do. I love her for that. I love the fact that she wanted to give birth to her own wings.
Erica Jong
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