Today is Mother’s Day here in the U.S. For many, it’s a day of joy and celebration; a day to honor the woman (or women) who raised them. For many others, it’s a day of sadness and loss.

To those who have lost their mothers  to illness, sadness, or war; to those who have given birth to angel babies and those who have lost children to senseless violence, stupid online challenges, overdoses, and bullying; to the stepmothers, foster mothers, and single dads struggling to raise their children alone; to the grandparents left to pick up the pieces; to all the non-traditional families who face close-minded judgment; to the women in refugee camps struggling to keep their children safe, and to those who couldn’t; to the mothers of fur babies; to the women struggling to conceive, and the surrogates who volunteer; to all of those and many others who embody what it is to be a mother, I send much love and aloha today.

Know that no matter your situation, struggles, and hardships, you are loved and appreciated for all that you are and all that you do. Aloha nui loa.