This is a terrible shock.
Well, I barely know how to go on. My Mom, my beloved, kind sweet MOM, whom I looked to for the most important guidance of my life….that woman actually and deliberately TOLD ME A LIE.
It was a bad one, too.
Sure, she raised me in safety and love. Sure, she fed us and kept us clean and entertained us. Yadayada.
She still LIED.
I remember it so very clearly. Mom and I were standing in the bathroom in the house where I grew up. I was looking in the mirror. I was HORRIFIED, I tell you, just HORRIFIED.
I think I was thirteen. I had big brown eyes and nice thick dark hair. I was, to be honest, kind of cute. But: I had my very first ZIT.
There it sat, right on my chin. Big, and red and ugly. How, I asked Mom in despair, how can I ever go to seventh grade tomorrow with THIS on my face?
It is hard to describe the panic and disgust that I felt as I stood looking at my horrifically deformed face?
My Mom, she of all wisdom and grace, put her hand on my shoulder. I remember her chuckling a bit, and telling me this:
“Don’t worry, honey. People have acne between the ages of 13 and 19. Then it’s all fine.”
Hahahahahahaha.
Sure.
That was true for HER. Her skin was perfect. Her hair was perfect. Her freakin’ fingernails were perfect. She probably had two zits in her entire life.
I, alas, was not so lucky. I remember trying desperately to pop a zit on my cheek when I was about 16. I failed. I was left with a HUGE, red, pulsating, crater on my face. I tried to cover it with makeup, but I remember that when my family arrived at my Grandparents’ house, my Grampa took one look at me and asked, in his Italian accent, “What happened? Did a cat scratch you?”
I have yet to live that moment down with my sister.
So.
Here I am. I am sixty-six years old. My mom died in November, and I am still missing her every day.
This morning I went into the bathroom, and looked in the mirror.
WHAT THE ABSOLUTE FUCK IS ON MY FACE?
There it was, right next to the wrinkles, the dry spots and the gray hair. A giant, pulsing, red ZIT.
I am old. I have arthritis and fibromyalgia and back pain and not one, but two brain tumors. All of that sucks, but not as much as HAVING A GIANT ZIT AT 66!!!!
I am enraged. I am furious.
Mom said they’d go away at the age of NINETEEN!!!!
I am not happy.
Can you seriously be in the hospital for your old lady brain disorder and have a young intern say, “You know, I have something for that huge zit.”?
Gah.
Empty Nest, Full Life 
Your mom was beautiful. And you are, too, zits and all.
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But….she LIED to me!!!
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No she didn’t. Everyone said that. Zits were a teen problem. It wasn’t until I was pregnant that some doctor said “Oh, yeah. Hormones can mess with your skin now, too.” Besides, would you rather she said to you that you would get big, honking zits for the rest of your life? Is that what you told your daughter?
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Well, to be fair, since I still had zits at 45, I told my daughter, “you’re probably gonna have them forever.” And she has perfect skin, go figure! You know I am joking about being mad at my Mom, right? We used to laugh about this when she was alive. I’d say, “Ma! You lied!” She’d laugh and say, “Well, mine were gone by 19!”
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Yeah, I know you are joking. Here’s my “lying” story:
Every once in awhile my largely Latino class would accuse me of lying. “You lie'” one of my favorite students would say. My response was always, “Yup,” with a smile and we would move on, avoiding the exchange they were hoping for. Then one day the opportunity to use the line on this student occurred. I don’t remember the actual situation, but I do remember the flash of anger in his eyes until he saw the grin on my face. (You do not accuse a teenager of lying, especially a Latino one.) This was a student who came to my class twice because he had a free period. I guess I did some things right. It is obvious from the way you talk about your mother that you adored her. I totally get it.
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What a great story! Thanks!
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Hahahaha… you are too cute!!! I’ve got a chin zit going on right now😝 Recently I had a skincare lesson with my beautiful, smoothed, clear skinned 37yr old daughter and I’m trying to keep up with all the steps but still got this damn zit!!!! We can’t win, pimples come at any age☺️ 🤗🤗
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Seriously. I just think that once I started dealing with wrinkles, I should be able to skip the zits!
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Hilarious- the story not the zit Karen. I get quite a few of those white head things- like clogged pores and of course I have to pick at them which then makes me look pimpled. I think being female means you will always have some irritating and embarrassing body issues to deal with.
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Thanks for getting the humor! My Momma was a beauty and we used to laugh about this all the time. She had better skin, I had better hair. I miss her……..
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