MUM STORIES: My mother is an iron lady

Margaret Maina poses for a selfie with her mother Esther Maina. PHOTO| MARGARET MAINA

What you need to know:

  • I must say life was so hard for us but my mother did her best to provide for us.
  • I never at one moment saw my mum giving up, she was always bubbly and smiling despite us seeing the struggles she was going through.

Sometimes the strength of motherhood is greater than natural laws- Barbara Kingsolver

I refer to my mother as an iron lady. At 66, she has endured it all in life.

I'm the last born of ten siblings, seven girls and three boys. My mother, a retired primary school teacher, separated from my dad when I was one.

My mother sought to be transferred to a different school and had to start her life all over again. She lived in the teacher’s quarters and with no house help, she would take me to class with her.

I would be given the back seat so that I wouldn’t interfere with the ongoing classes.

DID NOT ATTEND NURSERY SCHOOL

My primary education started at an early age, I did not attend a nursery school as I spent my days in class where my mother taught.

With the little salary she earned, Mrs Esther Maina managed to take us all through school as she was a strong believer in education.

The teachers' quarters we lived in was a one bedroomed mud house and at some point, my other siblings had to move in with my older siblings as it could not accommodate us all.

The love of a mother is the veil of a softer light between the heart and the heavenly Father.

HARD LIFE

I must say life was very hard for us but my mother did her best to provide for us. I never at one moment saw my mum giving up, she was always bubbly and smiling despite us seeing the struggles she was going through.

Despite all the challenges we have gone through as a family, my mum has always stood strong and fought for us so that we could fulfil our dreams.

She is my confidant, advisor and my mentor and my best friend.

Growing up, we would look at other children from well off families with envy and that motivated us to work extra hard.

During the day, my mum was a disciplinarian and a strict teacher and at night she was a caring, loving mother.

Mothers leave all their personal needs behind so their children can have everything they need. They will not sleep or eat until you get home and they know you are safe and sound.

Mothers will protect their children with the price of their own lives.

My mother would take loans from different institutions to ensure we were never sent home for lack of school fees.

Until her retirement in 2006, mum was a favourite teacher to a lot of pupils who until now thank her for her unending advices, and motivation that saw many finish school and score good grades.

She instilled in us great values and now having twenty one grandchildren, she is aging gracefully and she is always grateful that she did her best to give us a comfortable life with the little she made.

I am now a mother myself and I treasure and cherish everything my mother sacrificed for us.

It is always a great family reunion whenever we meet on holidays. We celebrate her every single day.

Happy Mother’s Day mum.