Judaism is a communal religion that stresses the values of togetherness and friendship. My mother did a great job of exemplifying  these values for her children. And she continues to represent these values for her grandchildren (my three children).

2. Take care of the vessel: my mother was an aerobics teacher in the 80s with funky aerobics get-ups and everything.  She used to put her cassette in the cassette player (I’m old) at home to practice and sometimes I would dance around the room trying to do the routines with her.

Despite what some may think, Jews are required to take care of their bodies via proper nutrition and exercise. Jews who are in shape and pain-free are better able to study Torah, perform mitzvot with enthusiasm (“run to do a mitzva”) and generate positive energy for doing good.

To this day, my mother is in excellent shape (until 120!) and serves as an inspiring example. I need to follow her example more closely, actually (I’m working on it).

3. Believe in yourself:  my mother always believed in me, even when I didn’t believe in myself.  From as early as I can remember, she was constantly praising me and telling me that I could and would succeed. When I played high school basketball, my mother decided she would keep a scrapbook of the team’s exploits.

Every time we were mentioned in the local newspapers, she would clip the articles and pictures. At the end of each year, my mother photocopied (did I mention that I’m old?) all of the articles and pictures and turned them into a beautiful album (each player on the team got his own scrapbook).

In his foreword to the book Bring Out the Best by Rabbi Yisroel Roll, Rabbi Dr. Abraham Twerski, M.D., writes, “The pursuit of happiness is universal, and if there is any one thing that is an obstacle to achieving happiness, it is the lack of self-esteem.”

My mom worked hard to make sure I wouldn’t encounter that obstacle. Now I enjoy listening to her pump up my children during weekly Skype calls.

4. Speak the truth: on the other hand, my mom didn’t sugar-coat things and I knew I could go to her for an honest appraisal. During high school I once complained to her that girls weren’t interested in me and I theorized that it was because of my looks. She looked at me and said, “No, you’re handsome…it must be your personality.”

I still smile when I remember that. Because she showered her kids with so much love, it didn’t hurt to receive her critiques (it almost always helped, in fact).

Our tradition teaches that giving and receiving criticism is vital. The giver should only critique if s/he knows how to do so and it is likely that his or her words will be received positively. My mom was and is a good role model in this regard.

5. Be present: “Make each day, each moment count. Find time for your family. Create memories that will endure,” says Slovie Jungreis-Wolff in Raising A Child With Soul (page 259).

My mother was so involved in the lives of her kids when we were growing up. She shuttled us to a million activities, spent all summer with us, knew every one of our friends, helped us with homework, etc., etc., etc.

She’s still the glue that keeps our family connected. For that reason, and all the other ones I mentioned above, I’d like to take this opportunity to wish my Jewish mother a happy Mother’s Day!