Despite what you may believe, not all mothers have clean cut, primed to perfection hair that shines in the sun as they push their stroller through the park. They don’t have long braided hair either, found working at the gym after dropping their kids off at soccer practice. They aren’t all sculpted into the cleaning house everyday routine or hanging at a nice cafe on the street corner with friends right before carpool. They don’t all wait at the designated bus stop for their children to walk them home. Some don’t care for their children, choosing the dollar pill and powder. They don’t cook the homemade meals or even order take out. They don’t hang with the type of friends in a cafe but a run down warehouse, hoping to get a fix without getting busted for the third time.

No, not all moms are like this. Some work day and night, providing the roof, the food, and clothes. They kiss their children goodbye with quick tight hugs, a ‘be careful, honey’, and a sloppy kiss to the cheek making their younglings cringe. There are those who leave little notes in lunch boxes, hoping the little things count just as much as the big. They do the grocery shopping, hoping to pick out everything their child needs and yet manages to get their favorite cookie to make their week. Television dinners in little, black, plastic containers because they can’t find the strength to get up after collapsing on the couch from exhaustion. They don’t wait around for their children at the bus stop or chat up with friends in a little cafe. But, they care. They do. And despite not working out at they gym like they should, having the primed hair or making meals every night that would fill their child for more than just a few hours, they love their child enough to work to the bone, be there on graduation day and give as much support as they can. Even from far away.