Her Legend: A Woman Admired from a Distance

'The world needs someone they can admire from a distance; from a faraway distance.' That is a quote by Michael Bassey Johnson, a Nigerian penman. The quote is brought to life in the legend of one woman I distinguish and admire so much. We all have that one person whose individual traits are exceptional and laudable to us. The motive behind the appreciation could be their character or attainments. Some individuals are admired because of their professions, their beliefs or values. Others are admired because of their talent or what they do.

I wish to share with you an important person who has impacted my life significantly and one that I admire the most, my mother, Mary Jones.

My mother is a selfless woman, who is genuine and kind-hearted in all of her contact with other people. I admire her because of her attractiveness, intelligence, and outstanding character. Mary is a natural beauty who many fancy and talk about. She has long, black, curly hair, white round eyes, and a slim petite body. She is five inches tall and has a contagious smile. I admire her look because it is attractive and captivating.

Her intelligence can be reflected in her business. She has a fashion line which is outstanding in the design market. Her name stands out when we think of the fashion industry in the country and on a global perspective. As I look at her business I see both threats and opportunities. Although there have been many challenges in the past years, since Venus Designers launched a collection similar to her business, is not a challenge anymore but a success.

My mother's creative nature can be demonstrated in the various unique fashion design ideas which have made her win many awards. She is rich in knowledge about the current fashion trends as well as technology. She balances her business; family, community and personal life well, without compromising on any facet of her life.

She has an extreme personality which makes her exceptional and admirable. Mary's personality of sacrificing her time, thoughts and energy to serve others is very genuine. She is by no means trying to achieve anything for herself. She serves others diligently and expects nothing in return. She loves people and always wants to help. Mary is more concerned with the needs and wishes of the community and not those of her own. She is active in community initiatives and intends to help and improve the lives of the less fortunate people in my community and society at large.

When times are tough she never keeps her head down or loses hope. She simply fights and makes everything better again. She never lets anything tear to her spirit or steals her smile away. I do not know who else I could admire and draw my inspiration from, if not her. I hope that one day I will be like Mary Jones.

I reflect on my teenage life and remember an occasion which occurred several times. I perceive a beautiful and happy woman in her late twenties who just desire to unwind at the end of her day and household roles. I see my four sisters dozing off, and one by one she takes them to bed. At around ten o'clock news hush up, I make up to speak to her, now it is a perfect time; I surely was not going to talk to her in the morning hours before she went to work. 'Mum, I need to discuss something with you.'

Every time I wanted to speak with her, she would give me her complete concentration. Then I would start to talk about anything that was disturbing me that day or in the week. The subjects varied from school issues, teenage challenges, and technology and any other truth-seeking questions I had. Despite the issue of discussion or how much I would delay her to sleep, she gave me her time, thoughts and energy exclusive of letting me think I was causing any sort of inconvenience to her. She had to sacrifice her sleep and give me her attention.

My mother did not do this for the mere role of being a great parent, no. She sacrificed it all because she wanted to. From the way I saw her sit attentively and listen to all I had to say, I could tell she was interested in what I said. Our discussions were real, and she talked to me, not like her daughter, but as a teenager, just like any other individual probably talking to a peer would do. I could see her burning urge to help in case I had a problem.

Based on this scenario we can all see my mother is selfless, kind-hearted and genuine. I believe my mother understands much of the things she knows because of the life she had to go through. She made us understand from a young age that she struggled for everything that she has today. She understands the true meaning of struggle and hence the reason why she does not like to see other people struggle in life because she understands how tough it can get.

The impact of admiring my mother has made me emulate her creativity and serve others without expecting anything in return. Everyone who sees me and knows my mother says I conduct myself just like my mother and I appreciate it. I aspire to be just like my mother when I grow up. She has influenced me to be hard working in a school and strive to achieve success in all my endeavors. Mary is always an inspiration to me. I am proud to say that she has made me, who I am today.

In conclusion, we all have a person or people we admire for reasons only best known to us. I admire my mother, Mary Jones, for who she is. She is a great combination of strong character, super intelligent and beauty with brains. She is simply a woman that many would want to be, someone that many can admire from a distance, from a very far distance.