The lady is a champ: for Mother's Day

"She was as strong, and steadfast, and generous as the sun. She could be as swift as a white whiplash, and as kind and gentle as warm rain, and as steadfast as the irreducible earth beneath us." - D.H. Lawrence

D.H. Lawrence writing about his mother, Lydia, could be talking about most mums. Certainly it was a whole other era when she was alive - she died in 1910 - yet 101 years later, a week out from Mother's Day 2011, Julie Jacobson finds mums still mean the world to their sons and daughters.
Tauranga MP Simon Bridges on his mother, Ruth.

By the time my Mum and Dad had me, they already had five children ranging from 6 to 15 years of age. I was a serious after-thought and because my Dad was busy working and my Mum was frantic looking after all of us, in a sense I had seven mums and dads looking after me: my parents and my older siblings combined. As often seems to happen, by the time I came along my parents had developed a "relaxed" parenting style. I remember roaming the streets by bike and barefoot from a relatively young age and at all hours. Sometimes this was with an older brother, but not always.
This isn't to say my Mum neglected me. She didn't. Indeed, I have nothing but fond memories of growing up. I recall my mother introducing me to many things that I still appreciate today. While we certainly didn't have much spare money, Mum made the effort to ensure we did special things together. I recall the two of us catching the bus to go to the movies, classical concerts and the opera. Mum thought it was important that I experience these cultural things, and I'm really grateful that she did.
I also recall a lot of self-sacrifice by my mother for me. I loved debating at school and though I enjoyed writing the speeches, I used to hate transcribing them on to small prompt cards. So Mum would stay up late on a regular basis to do this for me. While I expected her to do this donkey work at the time, looking back I am exceptionally grateful for the way she helped me to achieve.
As was the case then, Mum still helps me keep a scrapbook of my achievements now. If she likes this piece, no doubt it will go in it. I still rely on her in funny ways, as I did growing up, hoping she approves of things I do and that she's proud of me. Sometimes she lets me know she is - but not too proud, mind you. She wouldn't want my brothers and sisters getting jealous or my head to grow too big. My Mum is a wonderful woman - humble, self-sacrificing and there whenever I need her.
Irene van Dyk, BoP Magic and international netballer, on her mother, Irene.

I was named after my Mum. She was a young mother. I've got an older sister and two older brothers. My oldest brother, Gerrit, is 10 years older than me and she had me when she was 34, so she was only 24 when she had him. She was the head of the local hospital at Meyerton [South Africa] where I grew up. She worked night shift for 32 years. Between them, she and Dad always made sure someone was home for us kids. That's how they made sure everything was ticking along, that the kids weren't killing each other.
When you have your own children, you look back at what your mother did and wonder how on earth she did what she did. Where did she get the time? Where did she get the energy? I did a lot of sports after school and even though she was working at night, she would pick me up from the bus station, take me home, feed me and take me back to school, which was about 20 minutes away from the farm we lived on. Then she would go back home and cook dinner for us all before she left at 7pm. We had cooked meals every night and we had our lunches packed and in the fridge ready for us in the morning. The house was always immaculate. You know, she worked her butt off and I don't think we ever thought to say "thanks Mum" or "hey, go and sit down and relax, we'll do it".
My Mum is really tiny. My Dad always reckoned I should have been the third boy. My sister was the one who sat inside and cross-stitched with mum, or cooked with her. I was a tomboy; I would be out with my brothers with a slug gun chasing the dogs. Sometimes I do think I'm turning into my Mum. I always said that would never happen, but now when I'm cleaning the house it's like, holy moley, I'm turning into my mother. Everything has its place.
Our family never had a camera. I have school photos of when I was growing up, but nothing else. Now, whenever I have the opportunity I take as many pictures of my daughter Bianca as I can. They give you something to look back on and remember.
My Mum had a few sayings - practise what you preach, if you can't say something nice about someone then shut up, stand up for what you believe in. She taught us common courtesy - things like saying thank you and please, and opening doors or standing up on a bus for someone who was older. Honestly, we would get the biggest telling-off if she saw us do anything that wasn't appropriate. I was a "yes" and an "Amen" girl. I saw what my sister and brothers did - the backchatting, the sneaking out at night, the stealing cars - and I saw the hurt they caused Mum and Dad. I swore I wasn't ever, ever going to do that. My Mum still lives in Meyerton. Her family's there - her eight sisters and a brother.
Mahe Drysdale, world champion rower, on his mum, Robin Owens.

Mum and dad split up when I was 10 and mum moved us to Tauranga [from the UK]. As a single parent with four kids living off the DPB, she was obviously short of money, but as children we were blissfully unaware of our situation. Mum made sure we had everything we needed and were able to do any activities we wanted to.
Mum and I are both strong-willed individuals. We were both eldest children so we both always knew the best way to do things and weren't too keen on listening to each other. It led to numerous disagreements throughout our lives - especially during my teenage years. We argued over the correct way of doing the dishes or how I was going to live my life. I guess Mum had to deal with a lot, but I would never give in or give her a break, even if I realised I was wrong.
Things changed once I left home at 16 and I moved to Auckland to live with my grandfather and finish school. A bit of distance certainly made me appreciate what a great mum she was. It wasn't the end of our disagreements, though. I remember one big fight halfway through my sixth-form year, when I told Mum over the phone that I was going flatting with my friends. I managed to convince her it was a good idea - after I threatened to leave school and work at McDonald's. Now, I suspect she just let me win. Then (after financing me through University so .
I managed to convince Mum it was a good idea [to go flatting] - after I threatened to leave school and work at McDonald's.Mahe DrysdaleErik and Barbara Thomson, 1992.I didn't need a student loan, thanks Mum) I dropped the rowing bomb on her. I was having to decide between my job or rowing. Her first response was tears - why would I even think of going rowing? But again she supported me unconditionally, and without her love and support and endless hours of help - helping me move house, cooking me dinner when I was too tired, cleaning, filing my paperwork and travelling the world as lead NZ rowing supporter - it would be very hard to have achieved what I have.
More than anything Mum has taught me what unconditional support means and always to look for the good in people. Thanks Mum and Happy Mother's day to you and all the wonderful mums out there.
Lauren Bangs, Tauranga's first NZ Next Top Model contestant, on her mum, Helen.

Despite a crazy, carefree attitude in her teenage years, Mum has always been incredibly level-headed and seriously hard-working. She was born and raised in Hamilton with her three sisters, and began working part-time in her early teenage years, before moving to Auckland where she worked as a nurse. She saved like mad until she was finally able to go travelling through Europe and America.
Raising my younger brother and me, Mum was quite the overprotective parent. I remember giving her a cardiac arrest after wandering off down the road when I was 2 years old. I was at the retirement village being gushed over by a group of elderly ladies. From that day on, she tied bells to my shoes so she constantly knew where I would be. There's lots of little stories like that that show just how much she cares for us.
Although mum sometimes sees herself as "nagging", I see it as something totally different - if we don't have that discipline and reminding from our parents, we're not being encouraged to be responsible or to grow and improve. To have a parent who is concerned about their child is far more important and reassuring than to have one who couldn't care less, so I am always appreciative of the guidance I have from Mum. There has never been a day that I can remember where Mum hasn't put others first, or had a full day to herself. Mother's Day is the perfect way of showing how much we value everything she does - and has done - for us.
Erik Thomson, star of Packed to the Rafters, who grew up in Tauranga, on his mother, Barbara.

Mum had quite a remote childhood. She was born in the Shetland Islands, in a little place called Snaraness. She had to walk two miles to school in the morning and two miles home every night. I mean, this is Shetland, where much of the time it's raining or dark in winter. She often reminded us [Erik, older sister Helga and younger sister Ingrid] of that if we complained about something. Her father was a seaman, then a carpenter. Her mother ran the house really, and the kids were expected to pull their weight. That was passed on in our family. Both she and Dad - he is a "mainlander", also with a seafaring background - were the first generation to move up into the middle class, have a professional training, I suppose.
We moved to Tauranga when I was 7. I started doing paper rounds when I was 10 and milk rounds when I was 12, and when Foodtown opened opposite Tauranga Boys', Mum was the first one to tell me I should get a job there. She really instilled that work ethic in us. In our early teens we were all earning our own money and managing our own finances. Even though Dad was an obstetrician and Mum was a nurse, we didn't feel that we had any privileges. That said, we never went without. Mum was a great mother. There were strong boundaries, but there had to be be with Dad working such erratic hours.
Mum has always, and still does do, a huge amount of volunteer work. She has a real sense of compassion about her - if the neighbours needed anything, she would be the first to help out. She's an incredibly capable woman, and she's driven. There's a touch of stoicism, an acceptance that things are just the way they are and there's no point dwelling on hardship. She's a realist, yes, but she's also very sensitive and she's got a really strong sense of what's right and wrong. Mum's probably the most dependable person I've ever met. How old is she? Um ... I could tell you exactly how old she is...but...