Dear Mom,

I know I have been away at school, as busy as ever, but I wanted to be sure I said thank you. I have told you a million times how grateful I am for you in my life, have thanked you for all of the times you put up with my stupid laughter, my jokes, and my breakdowns, but I have never been at a point where I had to go more than a few hours without seeing you... And it has changed me. I have been able to take a step back, see that you have quite literally sacrificed everything for me, and now that I do not get to hug you every morning when I get up, or kiss you goodbye every day, or cry on your shoulder when I just want to hide from the rest of the world, I can truly say I appreciate you and love and admire you more and more every single day.

I don't want you to cry (too late for me), but I just wanted you to know that I hope one day I can be as strong, kind, and loving as you. Thank you for always loving me, even when I felt like I could not be loved. Thank you for holding my hand when the airplane lifts off of the ground. Thank you for spending countless hours reassuring me I will pass Chemistry, for studying with me, working on college applications and endless other things with me.

Thank you, most of all, for keeping me in line. For being my best friend, confidant, and my protector. Thank you for letting me make mistakes (after plenty of warning), and for still loving me after. Thank you. I cannot say it enough.

Thank you for letting me take stupid pictures and videos of you (well, you and I). Thank you for always encouraging me to be my own person, and to embrace my weirdness, my quirks, and my flaws. Thank you for showing me that I am beautiful, even when I don't feel like I am. Thank you for teaching me to have a good work ethic (or I would not have made it this far in school). Thank you for letting me ride the bus when I was little, even though you didn't really want me to... And thank you for driving me to school when I was done with that phase. Thank you for providing me with a home full of love and built off of honesty. Thank you for encouraging me to perform and direct, even when I was at my wit's end with stress. Thank you for running lines with me, proofreading my papers, and telling me to stop studying when I was on overload. There is so much more I want to thank you for, but I do not have enough words in any way, shape, or form that are worthy enough.

You are the most beautiful, incredible, intelligent, and outstanding woman in the world. Thank you for being my mom, for teaching me, and for telling me that you miss me (it means more than you know). Thank you for loving rap music as much (if not more) than I do, thank you for being goofy, thank you, thank you, thank you.

So, Mom. I love you. From a million miles away, or just down the hall, I love you to the moon and back, counting every star along the way.