Happy Mother’s Day 2011

This is a my mom. Four years old and full of spunk.

This photo, with an impeccably well-groomed child perched on an equally well-groomed pony, standing on a freshly swept urban sidewalk, shaped my vision of an ideal childhood — the one I was so cruelly denied.

For years I used to beg my mother to buy me a pet horse. Kind of like the one pictured above. Only bigger and with a longer mane. And without the spots. I wanted a chestnut mare. And if you’re going to bother getting a horse, it might as well be the kind you like.

“But dear, we live in the city.” To her, the logic was so clear nothing more was left to be said.

“We can keep the horse in the garage and I can walk it in the park.” To me, these solutions were so obvious nothing more was left to be said except “What shall we name it?”

I never got the horse.

Or the pony I was willing to bargain down to. Or the dog. Or the cat. Or the squirrel that hung around the yard. Eventually Mom caved and allowed me a pet snail, which disappeared the first time I took it for a walk in the garden.

Since this is Mother’s Day, I would like to officially apologize to the woman who not only gave me life but have never once threatened to take it away despite relentless requests for pets. I’d also like to say sorry for my non-stop chatter when she was trying to bake, my total inability to clean up after myself and for breaking one of her antique liqueur glasses by flipping my coat around, despite being told daily not to flip my coat around.

I guess karma has a sense of humour. I finally got my pets. And this morning I came down to this.

I’m guessing the cat won’t apologize. Kids!!