My Mother

Swathi Jagadeesan

Staff Writer

If I had to answer the question, “Who is your inspiration,” I would undoubtedly say that it’s my mother. She’s overcome countless menacing circumstances and is the strongest woman I know. My mother has always been the type of person to devote herself to helping people.

My mother was unexpectedly diagnosed with a type of blood cancer called Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia (APL) in March, 2019. As one can imagine, this was devastating news for my family. Most days consisted of me going to school and then directly going to the UCLA Hospital to visit my mother. This entire period of time was embodied by desolation and sadness for my family; I don’t remember a time when my family members cried so much. My mother was faced with a life or death situation, and the odds certainly weren’t in our favor.

As expected, my family was hit with staggering amounts of medical bills to pay, grief, and confusion. This was definitely a very low point for us. It was all in the hands of the doctors treating my mother to cure her. There were certain changes that were heartbreaking to witness such as the time when my mother's dark hair fell out, and the skin on her hands with which she used to hold me became red and dry. She was not the person she once was.

Due to the plethora of medications she was on, my mother had a difficult time completing simple tasks, such as eating, using the bathroom, and even just talking. My mother was experiencing immense amounts of pain, she had a bountiful amount of bruises all over her body, and was unable to breathe normally; witnessing this was traumatizing for my family. At this point, my mother’s life was not the same and we were all on the verge of almost saying goodbye to her.

Towards the end of 2019, a miracle occurred. The cancer was completely wiped out of her system and she was cured. I remember this day, and it was one of the best days of my life. The night she came home, I was with my grandmother and we were awaiting my mother’s arrival. When I saw her get out of the car, my heart dropped. She needed help walking up the stairs, but that didn’t matter because knowing that I wasn’t going to lose my mother after all was immensely comforting. Instantaneously, the whole dynamic in my family began to change for the better.

As my mother began her journey to normalcy, she continued to pursue her dreams. As of August 2020, my mother is living her life comfortably, and is currently taking classes and studying at Irvine Valley College. I am incredibly proud of the woman she’s become; although cancer took so many things away from her, my mother overcame numerous obstacles and decided to take everything that happened to her in a positive way. She never let her circumstances dampen her spirit and continued to pursue her passions.

My mother is definitely my biggest inspiration. Without her, I would be aimless, have no goals, and be an entirely different person. I’ve learned so much for her from only these past 16 years, and she inspires me everyday to not give up and keep trying even if something seems impossible to reach. She motivates me to always be the best version of myself despite the circumstances that I might be faced with, and I’m beyond blessed to call her my mother.