Sometimes I sit back and wonder if there are some people out there that have an incomprehensible ability to somehow find more than 24 hours in a day. To say that she can "do it all" doesn't seem to justify her greatness. I've watched her not only climb mountains but conquer them. I've watched her live her life with a certain purpose that exceeds any benefit of her own, one that assures that everyone can rest easy at night, even if she is wide awake.

She's not the one who clocks out just because it's 5 o'clock, but who stays until there is absolutely no more work to be done. Amid her whirlwind of a life and incredible attributes, I know that there is something she does not always realize; it is how necessary she is to me, and how thankful I am for her.

Dear Mom,

You're the kind of wonderful that doesn't come around too often. Watching you live your life with such authenticity is something that will continue to inspire me, and motivate me to pursue this world with nothing but passion. I can't help but criticize my trend for ignoring the little things you do as if they're a given in everyone's life. But, how can you not? How can you sit across the table from the person you love most, and hear them do nothing but support your dreams, and not hope that that type of person is in everyone's life?

To say the least, I've hit the jackpot. Talk about one in a million? Let me introduce you to my Mom. I can only hope that I can live my life with a relentlessly hopeful outlook on life because when I think of you, I think of road trip talks and almond milk coffees. I think of happy beach days and gloomy movie nights on the couch.

To know that my life traces back to you is a feeling that I always will carry with me because to live humbly is to live like you. I've learned that love is not always defined by what we see, but the way that people make you feel. And if you ask anyone, there is no other person that can make you feel as confident or as unstoppable as my mom can.

As you spend your days prioritizing the people around you, remember to stop every once in a while, and remember that you, too, are necessary and that you must be a priority too. I'm not sure if there's any justifiable prize that could be enough to thank you for living your life the way that you do, but I would like to start with my appreciation.

I'm as guilty as most in assuming that you know how thankful I am for you, but you probably don't. Your love overpowers any challenge I face; you're the support that is so necessary to my life, and for that, I am nothing but grateful.

Thank you for being the light that is so necessary in so many people's lives. To get to call you my Mom is a bliss that I will forever treasure.

Love always,

Jessica