I still remember those miniature airplanes soaring high
and low up in the spotless blue sky. It was a huge competition among the
aircraft lovers, but to me, it was more of a personally joyful and exciting
outing that had made me feel joyful as a
skylark. Not because I was one of the contestants who took part in the
annually held RC Model Airplane Contest but just because I was able to stay
right there next to my mom all day long. It felt more than happy and special to
be with mom without worrying about her leaving for other countries to attend
the international conferences of pilots.
My mother is the first female pilot in the Republic of
Korea. Back in the old days of the severely conservative society, she was ahead
of her time dreaming to fly and had forged
ahead with her passion to become a pilot. Despite her parents’ strong
opposition to her daffy goal and
threatening to repudiate her, she
did not give up on her dream. Yes, she is the woman of conviction and
indefatigable will power. Growing up with her life story in my mind, I have
built thoughts that one’s dream would never need imprimatur or approval of
any social systems or beliefs as long as he or she put her earnest mind to it.
When my older sister and I were little, there was a
famous TV character called Wonder Woman
who is perfect in every way: beautiful, smart, physically strong, and
warm-hearted. I thought of my own mother each time I watched the series of
Wonder Woman. Mom had always been such an invincible and bonzer figure to me. The image of the Rosie the Riveter type of woman had been stamped on my mind as a
perfect lady that was embodied through my own mother. However, in the back of
my mind, I was just a little girl who always yearns to have some more time with
mama. I liked the perfectly riveting
look of mom, but preferred her cooking for us in her kitchen. I loved her
sublime stilettos and spiffy dresses for the international aviators’
conferences, but preferred her comfy and boxy T-shirt saturated with the smell
of stew and kimchi. I was always fascinated by the old pictures of mom with the
unfaded smile in her gorgeous flight suits, but felt happier and more
comfortable with our childhood family pictures in which my sis and I were
sticking to mom.
Years and years had passed, and I also obtained one of
the proudest titles for a woman: MOTHER. Looking at the twinkling eyes of my
baby son, I made up my mind to be right there as his best friend, number one
supporter, and the best listener in his life. Although I am not even close to a
perfect mother at all, I know I’ve always been making sure that I will never
ever make my child feel lonely or tossed in this heartless world alone. With
this strong determination growing in my mind, I used to have some
misunderstandings of working moms. According to my own beliefs, working moms
had to be negligent of their duty as
a housewife or a mother. I was so focused on my own loneliness as a child who
had a busy celebrity mother that I wasn’t able to realize working moms are
trying hard to make the best use of their time with children whenever they have
a chance. Staying away from home for many hours a day because of their work
cannot be the curve ball that ruins the quality of their playtime with children. No need to or rather should not play the role of a soccer mom or a helicopter mom who chase after their kids all the time to be a good mom!
All mothers’ love for children is warm and deep. All mothers’ painstaking
effort to support their children is not always proportionate to the actual time they spend with them. As long as
mothers remain the closest distance at heart between themselves and their kids,
they are all super heroes. More powerful, wiser, and stronger than Wonder Woman
or Rosie the Riveter!
Expressions
joyful as a skylark: (phrase)
happy and excited
to forge ahead:
(verb) to advance rapidly, progress quickly, make rapid progress
daffy:
(adjective) crazy, lunatic
imprimatur:
(noun) a person's acceptance or guarantee that something is of a good standard
bonzer:
(adjective) excellent/ first-rate
Rosie the Riveter:
(phrase) Rosie the Riveter is a cultural icon of the United States,
representing the American women who worked in factories and shipyards during
World War II
riveting:
(adjective) enchanting/ bewitching/captivating/ charming
to be negligent of …….:
(verb) ailing to take proper care in doing something
proportional to…:
(adjective) corresponding in size or amount to something else
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