Simplicity is a word that defined my mother’s life. She always wanted things simple like: directions, information, and appliances. Her desire was to always have a few complications as possible.

One of the reasons that my mother preferred the basic of everything was that it made life easier for her. She did not attend school beyond junior high level and often struggled with reading and learning complicated tasks. She finally learned to tell time when I was young. But her tenacity on keeping on learning well into her adult years was and still is a valuable lesson to me. She often would remind me to keep trying. “If you don’t do it this year than maybe next year” was always her encouraging words.

She often read to me when I was little. Even though it was difficult for her, she really enjoyed it. She and I loved those storybooks. And to be honest, I still do today!

Because my mother did not have any extensive formal education, people might think she did not have much of an open mind. But she did! In fact, I’m grateful that she did not know much about my disability or any medical issues because it would have frightened her. While all the doctors and nurses were stunned about my physical appearance at birth, she just looked at me with love and called me “her baby.” Actually that really shocked the medical team even more as they looked at each other in amazement about my mother’s reaction.

My mother was opened minded about many other things as well. When she was young, she was very into the conservative mindset. However, she begins to have second thoughts about narrow views on subjects as she got older. She loved people no matter what they were like. She deeply loved homeless people and even gave them food and things. She loved gay people and always had an opened mind about them. She often said that there may be things that people don’t know or understand yet. She couldn’t just say no to something she didn’t know.

One of the most gifted things that my mother had was her insight into films and filmmaking. She loved movies and would get very excited in going to the movie theatre to see the most recently released film. She also spent most of days watching DVDs at home. She got very good in predicting film formula and would often know the ending before the conclusion of the film. It is from her that I inherited my appreciation of films!

It has been four years since she passed away, but I’m still learning how to be from her. Her guidance has not died. In fact, her simplicity has taught me more about educated people than any course. As a college student, I see how even graduates can be closed minded. They have forgotten the simple things in life: love, compassion, and understanding. So I feel honored to have gotten an education in simplicity. It’s the best degree to have!