My Martyr

She struggled as a kid in the Old World living off cans of tuna. She grew up and was eventually left with two growing girls in a new country and a husband who left to chase his lost youth. She ate tuna sandwiches again so her girls could eat three meals each day. She worked, fought, and saved to put those girls in good schools and break the cycle. My mom is my hero: the one who talks me off the ledge and gives me a hug when life gets unbearably dark, the one whose love is interwoven with sacrifice.