Writing Prompt: Mothering My Writing

In this month’s essay, Jeanine DeHoney vividly recalls the habits of the woman she called “Evelyn” but lovingly referred to as “mom.” She writes, “I wrote about the bright red nail polish she loved, the way she always chewed Wrigley’s spearmint gum, and how she made lists of everything she could think of, from actors who won the Oscars to ingredients in her favorite recipes.”

If you could profile your mother, what salient features would you include — her smell; her habits; her laugh? What did you love about her? What did you hate? What part of her is within you and obvious when you parent your own children?