i am indispensable

to one person at least.
and i realised that -- or rather, it hit me real hard -- after my last biz trip.
i came back home with a bagful of goodies for her. as excited as she was by those, she was totally thrilled to see me. and it was the small, everyday things that she missed me desperately for. things that give a structure and definition to her day.
snacks in her box, two neat pig tails, checking her homework, making sure her stationery was packed, calling her friends over to play, allowing her to sleep the whole night in the crook of my arm, and most important of all... listening to her talk about her day at school and with friends. nearly a week after my return, she still has not totally filled me in on the days i missed. she is updating me one day at a time.
not to take credit away from R. He is a wonderful father... and i know of only one other who does as well as him: P.
i can't but feel a little gleeful that despite having him around, she still thought my presence was so indispensable to her.
what really drove the message in was when I told a friend, on the phone, that O was fine when i wasn't around, she immediately interrupted me and said: "Of course I was not fine. How can I be? You were not here."
as much as i would like to put this down to my superior maternal skills... i know it's just a thing about mothers.
that 9 years after moving away from home and despite being pigheaded for much of my life, my mother is the only one who can really influence me...