Lessons from Emma
In my 27, almost 28 years of experience in life, from time to time I would still question what I learned, or if I ever did learn something (to think I have a BS - does not stand for bullshit - degree in Information Technology).
I would usually stumble upon topics about the things they learned from their mother's and I was like, yeah, I learned a few useful things in life from my mom. Now having some free time at work, I decided to finally put it in print. Hope you like it, this is going to be a crazy ride.
The first thing I probably learned - more like remember - is about good hygiene.
When I was young, maybe around five, six years old, I really hate brushing my teeth right after a meal. It feels disgusting, the feeling of wanting to throw-up is so strong I would usually choke. But then, I have no choice, its either I brush my teeth or experience some serious spanking.
My brushing routine starts right after I finished my meal, my mom would tell me to "brush your teeth, you're going to be late for school", in her normal tone, and I will ignore her. When she realized that I'm not moving, she would start yelling at me "brush your teeth, you're going to be late for school". Same line, different tone, no choice man, she's mad, gotta brush my teeth or I'll be spanked.
The next thing I know, it becomes a habit to brush my teeth after every meal. Now at almost 28, I only got 4 minor dental filling procedure. Thanks Ma!
Hmm, what else, aside from taking a bath every day, in my case twice daily, changing undies, yes, change your undies twice daily.
The patience during your girl time.
One thing about being a girl is your monthly PERIOD. It is that hellish days/week where all you want to do is eat, sleep, cry and strangle someone all at the same time. Talk about mood swings.
When girls have that "time of the month" thing, we are so moody we just want to kill anyone who would trigger that killing mode. For me, the first few months of experiencing it is so explainable. I have cramps, i bruised easily, I want to eat and eat and eat, and I have that really bitchy mode (the first time I had my period is probably one of the most sweetest moments that ever happened, here's the story about it.)
My mom is very patient in explaining things to me. The proper use of sanitary pads (yes, i am using pads, I am not really comfortable with tampons). How to do this and that. What to do, what not to do, why do it and why avoid it.
So far, having my monthly menstrual cycle is still as painful, as mood wrecking as the first time, but I think its more manageable in a sense that you know what to expect.
How to Act as a Lady:
Picking Your Clothes for Every Occasion + Hair and Make-up + Bags and Shoes, in short, the girly stuff.
I was the T-Shirt and Jeans kind of girl, I still do, but when I was around sophomore High school, the school already allowed us to wear casual clothes and it would be disgusting to still wear your uniform, the girls in my grade wore dresses and stilettos while I remain the nerdy girl until JS Prom. No one asked me except for the dorks (sorry dude, I may look like a dork but spare me, no offense dorky guys, I have my own nerdy style).
If you're wondering if I transform into a lovely swan, NO, I did attend the JS but I'm with my friends, I wore a black cocktail dress, a stiletto which I swear never to wear one again - at least during that time - , I look good, but maybe not good enough for the "in kids" to ask me for a dance, so I dance with my friends.
This event made me slightly style conscious, you know the saying “You cannot climb the ladder of success dressed in the costume of failure”, slowly I started to change my style, I wore the dresses my mom bought for me years ago, which surprisingly still fits me. I learned how to mix and match then she would lend me her gloss, she'd fix my hair, that kind of stuff.
When I enter college I already knew how to dress, how to apply everyday light make-up, the before sleeping routine etc. I started collecting bags and cute - well sexy - underwear. And if your thinking I became the campus babe, no, I'm still the same old me, only better.
At present I have a huge collection of lipsticks, bags and shoes - some items, courtesy of my mom, Love you Ma!.
P.S.
Don't think about about what the society thinks about you, it's hard, I know, I still do it sometimes, but the more you acknowledge this societal issues or what the people around think about you the more it affects you, just be yourself, wear whatever makes you feel comfortable, but this doesn't mean your not going to follow certain dress codes okay.
She introduced me to a different universe
She loves collecting books of different genre's, she loves watching documentaries, she loves talking about current events, world issues, etc. I am so updated with everything, my imagination opened really wide, I can understand a lot of things at an early age.
I'm not saying I'm the intelligent kid, maybe the kid who reads a lot, who can give her inputs on current issue's, who can answer some uncommon questions, who asks questions about uncommon topics, who knows what's happening in the world and through little things, contributed something to at least help.
Cooking and other household chores
In our household, my dad and both my brothers knows how to cook simple dishes - like anything fried or boiled and toasted bread, he he he -, you can also ask them to clean the house or do the laundry (sometimes), basically you can depend on them in terms of cooking and cleaning the house once in a while.
It's different for me though, as a girl and the oldest, I have to learn how to cook or when my parents leave for some events, me and my siblings would starve to death or get obese with too much fast food intake and the house will look like a dumpsite.
I was also fond of watching my mom when she is working in the kitchen, - my mom is really my super hero -. I would usually help her with small stuff, like mixing the batter for pancakes, and the next thing I know, I can already bake some cookies with her help, I can cook simple dishes – not as good as chef's, but edible enough.
Managing my Finances
When I was in high school, my mom told me she had opened a bank account for me and my other siblings right after we were born, she would religiously put small amounts monthly and although the money was later used to buy a lot and build our home, it was engraved in my system, that no matter how huge your income is, you have to save-up.
Another amazing thing about my parents is that when they had me, my dad is still taking review classes for the civil engineering license exam, he was working, preparing for the license exam, being a father and a husband all at the same time. My mom told me that during those times, my dad receives very little salary, barely enough for a family of three and yet she can still save up little by little.
I remember that when I was in elementary, my mom would always tell me to set aside a dollar and save it. Then after getting my first job, she never failed to remind me to save up. So far I have a little savings.
Thinking about it now, I did learn quite a lot.
I'll update this post whenever I remembered or learned something new from her.
