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Oscar Moms
by
Maggie Van Ostrand |
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Most
people watch the Oscars every year to see who's wearing what or how
well their hair stylists predicted the rage hairdo, or who's bling
has been blung. In the case of George Clooney, how hard he worked
to get the 30 extra pounds off that he put on for Syriana.
Others watch to see which celebrities and which movies win which awards.
Not me. I watch to see who gets thanked. I want to know if credit
will be given where it's due.
Last year, it was New Zealand who got the credit and the year before,
it was God and agents, and the year before that, it was marketing
wizard and Miramax head, Harvey Weinstein.
But at last, in 2006, Oscar finally gave us a banner year. Everybody
thanked their mom.
At last count, no fewer than nine winners thanked their moms. In two
cases, Best Actor Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Best Actress Reese Witherspoon,
enough praise was heaped on their respective moms to satisfy the heart
of every watching parent. What about the rest of us mothers?
So it's hurtful for those of us who get no thanks whatsoever from
our kids.
Where is our day in the sun? Where is our thanks for a job well done?
My kids turned out just fine. I suppose they think they did it all
by themselves.
What, they can't admit that, without our loving discipline, they might've
turned out to be car thieves or drug mules or worse, they might've
had to pick up their own socks?
It's not that moms have an insatiable need to be thanked. No, that's
not it. It's just that we'd like a little recognition for all the
beds we made, the dusting and vacuuming, the secrets we kept for them,
the quiet worrying we did over them, the money we somehow managed
to get for their first car, the washing and ironing, the times we
held our tongue, the thousands of miles we drove them to sports and
musical events, and, through thick and thin, for just being there.
Like Mrs. Hoffman and Mrs. Witherspoon, we who gave our children support
all those years, would like to be thanked.
Is that too much to ask?
Copyright Maggie Van Ostrand
"A Balloon In Cactus"
March 7, 2006 column |
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