We all need someone who encourages and supports our interests. Someone who believes in our ability to follow a dream. Someone who shows us there is more than one way to get where we want to go. I am fortunate to have a mother who has done all that, and more.

My mom bought me a spiral notebook to write poems in when I was in second grade. She always encouraged my love of reading and writing. And this weekend, I will place an advance copy of my published book in her hands.

Eleven years ago, I started writing about my experiences with sports. I had no goal beyond documenting my memories. And then I tried to write about them in a more interesting way. As the years progressed, my mom encouraged me to keep writing, to turn my work into a book, and to consider the self-publishing process when other options didn’t work out.

And now, I can hardly believe that my book, 50 Years in the Bleachers—What modern sports parents can learn from a Title IX pioneer, will be available for purchase later this month.

Grazie. Ti voglio bene. Buona festa della mamma, mamma!

Read last year’s Mother Day post: Mama bears prepare their cubs for the real world

Learn more about 50 Years in the Bleachers