In the movie “Tangled,” Rapunzel and Mother Gothel have a close relationship. While we all envy a close connection with our parents, sophomore Maeve McIlnay shares her own special bond with her mom.
“Since I can remember I have always been close with my mom,” McIlnay said. “I believe we have loved each other since birth.”
Although having three siblings, younger and older, can be challenging to build relationships with parents, McIlnay still manages to build a strong one with her mom.
“I think we’re close because of our similar personalities — we match really well together,” she said.
Having alike identities enhances the strong foundation the mother and daughter have built. Due to this, McIlnay feels it is really easy to communicate with her mother.
“One thing about my mom is she’s really funny, and she’s really outgoing,” she said. “She’s always in the mood to do something fun, which I love because sometimes I forget she’s my mom and not one of my close friends.”
McIlnay believes spending time with her mother helps build their relationship.
“I love to talk with my mom about anything and be around her,” she said. “We always run errands together and go shopping a lot, which is nice to have because not many people have a mom who will do that with them.”
While McIlnay cherishes her mother’s presence, she finds comfort in how her mom will go out of her way to show her love through her actions,
“One thing I really love is that she will surprise me with little gifts after I have told her I’ve had a rough day,” McIlnay said. “Sometimes she will also clean my room or help me out with my school work.”
At times, most mothers and daughters get into arguments — even McIlnay and her mother happen to have conflicts — but despite these differences, they always find a way to strengthen their bonds.
“We’ll get into a disagreement at times, like when I break one of family’s household rules, my mom will get upset at me, but then I realize what I have done and I’ll apologize to her,” McIlnay said. “We catch ourselves both apologizing and later laugh about it.”
Although McIlnay and her mom have differences, they choose not to focus on them and make their everlasting memories more of the focal point of their relationship.
“One of my favorite memories is when we went to Anna Maria Island, Florida — we spent the whole day just hanging out on the beach together,” she said. “It was really fun, and I love that I always have a best friend to hang out with on family vacations.”
