Dear Mom,
Twenty years. It feels impossible to believe that two whole decades have passed since you left this earth, since your laughter filled our home, since your gentle wisdom guided my days. Yet, somehow, your presence is still so near. You live in my heart, in my thoughts, and in the quiet spaces where I still find strength through you.
There isn’t a day that I don’t think of you. Some mornings, I wake up and almost reach for the phone, forgetting for a brief moment that you’re not just a call away. Other times, when life feels overwhelming, I can almost hear your voice saying, “It’s okay, my dear, just breathe, and trust God.” Those words still steady me.
Your love was a covering, tender, yet strong. You were a woman of grace and quiet strength, whose faith carried us through storms. I see now that you gave us more than comfort; you gave us the blueprint for how to live, with kindness, resilience, and unshakable faith.
Mom, the world has changed so much since you left, but I often wonder what you would think of it all. I imagine your smile at each little victory, your laughter in the middle of family chatter, your tears of joy at how far we’ve come. I hope, in some way, you can see it, that you can see me. And I hope you’re proud.
Your absence has taught me the meaning of presence, how love, when it’s pure, doesn’t end with goodbye. You are the reason I lead with compassion, the reason I find beauty in strength, and the reason I never stop believing in the power of grace.
It’s been twenty years, but your love still guides me like a light that never goes out. I miss you deeply, but I carry you with me in everything I do, in the way I love, in the way I serve, and in the way I choose to live.
Thank you for every sacrifice, every prayer, and every lesson. You are still my greatest teacher, my constant reminder that love never dies, it simply changes form.
Until we meet again, I’ll keep living the way you taught me, with faith, kindness, and heart.
With all my love, always,
Kemi