My Mother taught me to love only one man and be faithful.

We are not rich. But my mother, though a girl, though never studied, is the strongest, the drive that motivates my father to work, to have our food, so we could eat and continue to live, and has manage to help my father to make all of us, her children to go to school and graduate. Growing up, I have never been interested with money, neither want to marry a rich man, so I could get rich faster, or get a dom, or sugar daddy, or get a 4M's as the gossippers in town called "Matandang Mayamang Madaling Mamatay" or Rich Old Man That Will Die Sooner. I feel disgusted hearing those, also, knowing someone that really is involve from that kind of thing. But recently as I turned in midtwenties age, listening to others stories, reading confessions, I realize that life is really hard and though, you don't agree with the things, you starts to understand. Understand that, you don't need to bend and agree with the choices of others. You don't need to have your beliefs be like of others, and understands there are different culture outside where I was sheltered from home. Very different from what my Mother have taught me. And who am I to judge?

My Mother taught me to love only one man and be faithful, so does the man to me, and if ever, I found one, I shall keep the assurance until nothing's left on me. My Mother taught me that, a woman shall have only one man, so a man shall have the same. I can share a food, but not a man she joked. And was that wrong?

My Mother taught me to be strong and not to depend on someone, to help the husband if ever marry and not to be a baggage. And as what I saw growing up, they did make me strong a woman, can live without a help of a man. So if ever I have been left out. I can still live with my own. And was that wrong?

My Mother taught me to study, to dream, to go to places, to be smart, to learn things, to face the real world, to be aware of different kind of people, beliefs, nature and the harshness of the world. And I become open, a critic and despite the wanting to change others perspectives I tried to understand. It was not my life, my choices, and do I know their stories? So who I am to judge?

My Mother taught me that life is hard, nothings comes free, and everything's comes from hard work. She would always reminds me you cannot see a free food in the road, unless you marry a rich man from abroad. But I was raised to not get easily what I wanted, but to work on what I wanted and get it. Work hard, and you'll have your own reward, she would always say, all the things that I work for are the best to enjoy. Are the best rewards. And it is, indeed.

My Mother taught me to care to others and send help whenever I get the chance to help. She says "help until you can, without, expecting you'll get something in return". And if ever I get rich, which isn't most likely to happen yet, I'll send help, teach all the young girls, their importance, that they can dream, that life isn't all about money, though we are weak, and learn a few, and though life is unfair, we can get what we want without depending on others, we just have to ride and be smart.

My Mother taught me not to interfere, so long as my life wasn't at stake. See, ignore and go. But as time pass by, we cannot always just look. Are those who dies of hunger shall be ignored? As I see how these things are, I remember the line from the book I have read, "How can you sleep at night knowing somebody out there is dying? Don't have food to eat and sheltered under the bridge lying in the cold floor." It is true that when you see things, life makes its hard to ignore. Always help!

My Mother cooks, my mother prepares for her husband, my mother took care of her children, my mother always makes time, worry every time, but does it has to be that always? My Mothers dreams maybe, is the dream seeing the things I have become and enjoy it. Which she has not--I think enjoy, before she married at twenty.

How about you? What are the things that your mother taught you? And how they differ from the real world?

Thanks for reading! :)

Lead images:

Thanks to Phil Hearing @philhearing for making this photo available freely on Unsplash 🎁 https://unsplash.com/photos/42LLGP-QPj4