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One of the biggest influences in my life is my Mom. she is one of 10 children born to an Appalachian coal miner who could not read or write. Her family lived in the mountains of Kentucky in a little cottage that had no running water and no electricity. She read by kerosene lamp.

As a child, she attended a one-room schoolhouse, which also had no electricity and no running water. There was one teacher for eight grades, and each row in the classroom was a grade. My mom says she liked listening to the lessons of the higher grades. There was a big, black potbellied stove in the middle of the room, between the fourth- and fifth-grade rows. My mom couldn't wait to get to the fourth grade so she could sit by the warm stove in the winter. She got her drinks of water from a big bucket in the back of the schoolroom. She would make a little cup by folding writing paper, and she would use a metal dipper to take water from the bucket and put it into the cup. She says the water tasted like the writing paper.

At Christmas, my mom's family couldn't afford a tree or presents, but they did get hard candy, nuts, and oranges. To help feed the family, my mom's father raised chickens. When it came time to eat a chicken, he would wring its neck, and it would flop all over the back yard before dying. My mother got attached to one chicken and made it her pet. She named it Miss Red. Miss Red would lay brown eggs, and my mom would collect them. My mom's father killed all the other chickens for food, and he tried to avoid killing Miss Red, but she was the last chicken, and the family needed food. He waited until my mom had gone to school, then he wrung the neck of Miss Red. My mom came home from school and discovered that Miss Red was cut up, fried, and sitting in a platter on the supper table. My mom cried and refused to eat Miss Red. Her mother gave her a nickel and tried to comfort her, but to this day, my mom can't eat chicken without remembering Miss Red.

As a child, my mom suffered through the death of her mother. After that, she was put in foster homes and was constantly moving from home to home. She was able to get through college all by herself, receiving scholarships and working part-time. She now works as an editor for McGraw-Hill books and takes night classes toward an M.B.A. She says, "Education is a lifelong process." I find it amazing that the daughter of a man who could not read or write is now a book editor.

One quality my mom possesses that I admire is her ability to persevere and overcome hardship. She has always taught me that my true dwelling place is in my mind, and that I have dominion over my thoughts. It is always important to monitor my thoughts and make sure they are positive. As a child, my mom thought a lot about the future, and she just knew it would be brighter. She says, "I wrapped my will around the future and pulled myself through."

Sometimes my mother remembers how she never had the things she needed when she was my age. She remembers how little love she got, and how embarrassed she was that she didn't have the right clothes and such things. Now my mom goes out of her way to make sure I have everything I need. She's a very loving, nurturing mother.

I once asked my mom how old she was when her mother died. She whispered softly, "I was 10." I try to fathom what it would be like if my mom had died when I was 10. I can't imagine, and I'm glad I haven't had to experience that.

I must admit that my mom and I sometimes disagree because we're both so strong-willed. Actually, my father affectionately calls my mom "just plain stubborn." But now I realize that her will had to be powerful to pull her through tough times. I am thankful that she taught me to be determined and to focus on the positive. She says those two things can help everyone survive.
~ Rachel Glover

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