Rei at 7 days. Very small and skinny.

I have long since considered Kahlil Gibran my guru and his book, The Prophet, my bible. Growing up, this was one of my favorite quotes from this book. When I get into an argument with my mother, I would pull this out from the recesses of my consciousness and recite it. Not in my mother’s face, of course. That would get me slapped.

Now that I am a mother. I would never honor this wisdom. Ever. My child is my child. I still love Khalil and consider him my guru. But now my favorite quote from him is more career-oriented:

Work is love made visible.

To all the mothers out there, Happy Mother’s Day. We’ve made this world a much better place just by existing. Unless you are beating up your 8-month old kid, in which case you are not a mother and you deserve to be in jail.