tofu916.com - its all here.

mi mom was about 16 when she got preggo with mi. she carried mi across the stage to receive her diploma. she put alot of her life on hold for mi. she could have done so many different things. shes a SMART woman.

all mi life, it was just her and i. i wanted a new keyboard every year for mi bday, and this woman would work extra hours just so she could afford a friggin lil casio for mi. this woman worked TWO jobs, and i still complained and threw fits.

as a teenager, i was such a ungrateful asshole. i was a rude, smartmouth kid who was too popular for his own good. and ooooooooooh shit, how full of miself i was! however, mi mom was always in mi corner. she fought the school board tooth-and-nail to keep them from expelling mi (when i stabbed that kid). she even moved outta the greater city and bought her first house where i would be closer to school, as i couldnt go to any school in the district. all she expected was BETTER of mi.

so it really didnt surprize mi when she sold mi bed when i was 16. i had been sellin dope, and turned down the scholarship offered to mi. she STILL gave mi mi 1st car before i moved to Long Beach with mi GF.  when i was hospitalized, guess who would visit & call mi? mi mom was, and always will be mi hero.

nowadays; ma is the glue that holds the family 2gether (i dare ANYONE to challenge that). when our family members are in need (which is quite often), mi ma is right there to offer what she can. she has provided bail, she has paid rents, she has paid off debts, she has saved LIVES, she has provided protection to/from certain people. im TELLIN you, mi mom is the bomb! from about 2003 til her death; mom took great care of mi grandmother. grandma never had to worry about anything. she had A1 health care, and she didnt even have to spend her own money. when i feel like lashing out at the [haters], mom is there to say, “c’mon tof. be bigger than that. i KNOW theyre pissing you off, but let them have their way. thats how you win in the end“. and honestly, sometimes i need that. she hasnt been wrong yet.

i had to make it clear to everyone in mi lil speech at mi grandmas funeral just how important mi mom is to our family.  i could never pay mi mom back for all of her unconditional LoVe and support. so mi aim is to make her proud of mi. even if i never make a nomination, if she wants a seat at the grammies - she’ll have it. and it would be the very least i could do.

so ma - im sorry for putting you through hell as a kid, i thank you for being there for mi, thanks for being mi bestfriend, thanks for being in mi corner when you KNEW i was wrong, thanks for takin care of grandma, and thanks for being an inspiration to us all. i was talkin to old school homies the other day about “bosses” and one said “but nigguh, TOFU’s mom is a got damn BOSS, and always has been!” it made mi blush, cause its so true.

i LoVe you, mom. there will never be another YOU! =o)

Tags: family, grandma, ma, mom, mother, mothers day, musicians