What is a mother?

What is a mother ? This is a question that I was recently asked. Boy is that hard to even start to answer!

I was the youngest of two in my family , with my brother being 10years older. Our mum was great and we loved her to bits. My dad was also great but he worked long hours do we did not see much of him.
There were no other children younger than me, until I was 12. Then my brother had my niece Emma!
This was the first time I was not the baby! The second I saw her it was love and I drove my poor sister in law mad wanting to hold her . I was far too young to be a parent but it was the first time I felt that total love for someone.
Later I was blessed with two children of my own, and what a joy they have been.I'm so proud of them everyday .
I am totally amazed at how fast time has slipped away. Time is so fleeting ..... Children seem to sense that and make the most of each second. That is something adults should remember.
Live now live for today as time slips past without us noticing.
For me to say "what is a mother" is total love, and that stands even if you didn't give birth to this person. You think everyday how lucky you are.
Mothers deserve recognition and appreciation all year, and so do their children.
I would like to share a poem.

What "mother" means

"mother" is such a simple word,
But to me there's meaning seldom heard.
For everything I am today,
My mothers love showed me the way.

I'll love my mother all my days,
For enriching my life in do many ways
She set me straight and then set me free,
And that's what the word "mother" means
To me

By Karl Fuchs (www.poemsource.com)