It's the same thing, every year fer us.
We Apples that remember or heard about it jus' push it out'o our heads an' keep on workin'.
But why?
It feels wrong jus' ignorin' it every day; 'specially on this day...
Mah name's Applejack, an' I got some things that need sayin'.
Ya see, way back when Big Mac' an' I were jus' little foals not even old enough tuh walk right, our mom an' dad were the proud owners an' caretakers of the one an' only Sweet Apple Acres.
Every day they got up at the butt crack'o dawn and kicked their hooves out against the trees until the apples came'a rainin' down intuh the buckets.
Life fer us went pretty well, back then, from what Ah've heard. Pretty much like now'a days.
Except... Well, one day Granny jus' found Momma lyin' at the base of a tree with not a single basket full'o apples. Told us later that her heart jus' gave out from so much buckin', every day from sun-up tuh sun-down, that she couldn't take it anymore.
We were too young tuh realize what exactly had happened, so Granny fed us some bull-honkie about Momma gettin' off the farm tuh go see the world.
When Daddy came home from the opposite end'o the acre, Granny took him intuh another room an' told him what had happened.
Now, don't you go thinkin' mah daddy wasn't a strong-hearted stallion! Why, if here were here now there ain't a darn thing that'd be able tuh bother him.
But my, oh my, did the news about Momma make his heart crumble like it was jus' a clump'o dirt...
He didn't believe Granny at first; couldn't, rightfully. How the hay was he supposed tuh believe that his wife just all'o the sudden kicked the bucket?
Granny, surprisingly, managed tuh keep him from seein' her body tuh keep him from breakin' down in front'o us. We still had no idea what was goin' on, but Granny convinced him that he needed tuh stay strong fer us; an' that was enough tuh set him on the right track.
Well, he tried his hardest, that he did, but in the end he jus' couldn't cope with the loss.
When Big Mac' an' I were old enough tuh take over the farm, Daddy tried enlistin' in the Equestrian Guard tuh get away from everythin'.
Don't know what was goin' through his mind; the fool knew we were havin' trouble with Gryphons at the time...
Not a month'r two after he left did we get a letter from the Guard sayin' our Daddy had been killed in action.
Big Mac was seventeen at the time.
Ah was fourteen.
Ah'd say it was especially hard on Granny. Mah Daddy was her son, and she had tuh watch as he teared up in front'o when she broke the news to him about Momma. Wasn't a darn thing she ever could'a done tuh make him feel better.
Granny don't like tuh talk about it, but Ah know the hardest part was when she got that letter after Daddy had enlisted. Don't take a genius tuh figure out why she wouldn't come out'a her room fer days, even though we didn't know what the letter said yet.
...But Apple Bloom... Apple Bloom got the worst end of it out'a all'o us. How many'o ya'll can say that you ain't never met yer Momma or Daddy? Not a single memory'o them even kissin' you on the head when they tucked you in at night?
Apple Bloom can.
Poor filly's got enough trouble as it is, with her not bein' able tuh find her cutie mark... Ain't nopony on the farm got the nerve tuh tell her that her Momma an' Daddy ain't ever comin' home from their campaign'o plantin' apple seeds around the world.
Now, Ah don't want none'o ya'll runnin' off tuh say Applejack's jus' lookin' fer sympathy.
That ain't the point'o me tellin' ya'll this.
The point is this: Ah never got tuh know mah Momma, an' Ah barely knew mah Daddy.
But Ah know, from mah friends, how a Momma an' a Daddy are supposed tuh act.
A Momma's supposed tuh love you no matter what.
Why, ya'll could be the most evil serial killer in all'o Equestria, and yer Momma's still gunna love you. She may be disappointed in you, but deep down... Tuh her, yer still jus' that little bundle'o blankets she carried out'a the hospital one day.
An' that ain't ever gonna change.
A Momma's supposed tuh protect you from things that yer afraid of. Ya'll remember bein' afraid of monsters at night? Who came intuh yer room to hold you an' fight back the fear? Who told you none'o it was real and even walked in an' out of yer closet tuh prove it?
I know mah Momma would've, if she ever got the chance.
...
I don't wanna keep any'o ya'll any longer than Ah have tuh, and yer all probably tired'o hearin' me blab anywho, but Ah just wanna say one more thing; tuh ya'll, an' tuh any Momma's that can't be here tuhday:
Be thankful you had a Momma tuh come home tuh every day after school, when the bullies were hittin' all the soft spots. Be thankful you had a Momma who was there tuh kiss yer boo-boo's from when ya fell off yer first scooter. Be thankful you had a Momma who cared enough to give you a big'ole hug when ya needed one; fer whatever reason!
Tell yer Momma you love her every day, because you never know when you might not get the chance tuh do so again.
And fer those Momma's who can't be here tuhday, mostly mahn...
Happy Mother's Day...
Author's Note
Keep an eye out for a Father's Day story, also by Applejack, when Father's Day rolls around!
