I woke up at 7:30 a.m. on a Sunday morning because my mom asked me to.
I wasn’t happy when my alarm went off, but I got up anyway.
My mom was serving as a panelist for Boston University’s Association of Women Dentists spring brunch. She asked me if I wanted to come, and I said sure.
I didn’t know that it was supposed to be a formal event, so I didn’t have any clothes ready. When she came to pick me up, she threw a huge TJ Maxx bag at me, filled with every piece of work attire she had.
“Apúrate,” or “Hurry up,” she yelled from the car while I sifted through Tory Burch flats and various vests.
My mom came to the United States from Colombia in 2001 and redid dental school, all while being a mom. While I danced around in the living room and begged for mac and cheese with hot dog bits in it, my mom was writing research papers and studying teeth.
Her work ethic is kind of crazy if you ask me.
If I was awake at 5 a.m. looking for a snow day announcement, she’d be on the couch in her pajamas, studying and only looking up when our town was close to popping up on the TV screen.
She still finds ways to make time for me and dentistry — which sometimes involves dragging me to a random brunch.
I got into the car wearing a weird mix of the clothing items she brought for me.
She told me I looked beautiful but still let me complain about the outfit for a moment. After trying and failing to fix the outfit myself, my mom stepped in and fixed it right up.
I used to fight with my mom over wearing “nice” clothes. It happened every holiday until I was about 17.
We’d argue back and forth for hours, which would ultimately end with me in tears and the dress in my hands. I’d come out of my bedroom, and even though I was being a brat, my mom would still brush my hair, iron the dress and hug me tight.
I mentioned that I needed coffee, and so she nodded, placed her glasses on her face and locked in. She told me we could go to the place that I like.
My mom is one of my biggest fans. In my senior year of high school, she posted a video of me singing and titled it “Sophia K. A Future Broadway Star.” I didn’t know that she posted it until a year later.
I laughed about it with my friends.
Privately, though, I watched the video back and felt how proud my mom was of me. She always lets me know that I’m killing the game — and even though I pretend it’s embarrassing, I’m really grateful for all the support she gives me.
She let me order my drink on her phone, saving me from spending another seven dollars on a latte.
After we picked up my coffee and arrived at the event, my mom noticed that we had a couple of minutes to spare before we had to go in.
She suggested we watch SNL — so she pulled out her phone, and we laughed for a solid ten minutes before going inside.
One time, my sister and I were driving around with my mom, and I thought it would be funny to play fart noises on the radio. I connected my phone, and once the farts started going, we were all laughing.
My mom then decided to start pulling over next to people and turn the volume up so they, too, would be listening to the fart noises coming from our car. My stomach hurt, and tears were falling from my face.
My mom loves to laugh, so I try to laugh as much as she does.
We went into the event, exchanged some hellos and waited for her turn to go onto the panel. She listened to all of my gossip while we ate eggs and bacon.
They called her over, started taking a thousand photos, and then the event began. When she sat down at the table for the panelists, I nearly cried.
I felt so proud to call her mom.
When I look in the mirror in the mornings, I see her face in mine. I have a genetic reminder that the two of us are pretty similar.
I guess I’ve won the lottery if I’m anything like that — she is undeniably epic.
She’s a hard worker with a great sense of humor. She’s loving, kind and has inspired me to become the woman that I am today.
All of those early mornings, holiday fights and laughter-filled car rides taught me a lot. I want the rest of my life to be filled with moments like those.