I never expected to question my mother\u2019s priorities\u2014until I saw the $1,800 receipt for a designer dress. She\u2019s 70, and all my life, she\u2019s been practical and selfless. She raised five kids on a tight budget, sacrificing everything for us\u2014extra shifts, worn-out coats, and never once indulging in anything extravagant.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s why the dress shocked me. It wasn\u2019t for a wedding or big event\u2014just her book club and a luncheon. Meanwhile, my son is heading to college, and every dollar matters. I\u2019d hoped she might help with tuition, even a little. So I asked her why. She didn\u2019t get defensive.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause for seventy years, I\u2019ve been more than just a mother\u2014but I\u2019ve never let myself be anything else,\u201d she said. \u201cNow that you\u2019re grown, I just wanted to do something for me. Something that reminded me I\u2019m still a person.\u201d Her words stunned me.<\/p>\n
In my frustration, I\u2019d forgotten the decades she\u2019d already given. Maybe this one choice\u2014for herself\u2014wasn\u2019t selfish at all. Maybe it was long overdue.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
I never expected to question my mother\u2019s priorities\u2014until I saw the $1,800 receipt for a designer dress. She\u2019s 70, and all my life, she\u2019s been practical and… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":38481,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-38480","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n