A lot of people say “I have the best mom ever.” But I actually think I might have the best ever. She smells like holidays and comfort.

Her confidence in me is a warm blanket that envelops my soul, reminding me that I am OK, and never anything worse. And she provides for me in more ways than no one else can.

My mom, Paula Lustbader, works at Seattle U. She is a SUperhero. She is a law professor. She reads through the remaining applications after the law school has accepted all of its students and invites hopeful applicants who didn’t make the first cut. These are students—many with complicated pasts and the odds stacked against them—that she feels have a real shot at succeeding in the field. She then invites them to join a summer camp of sorts, getting them caught up for the initial session in the fall. By the time September rolls around, many of her students are ahead of the ones that had been accepted before them. Her students go on to do amazing things—some become judges, one headed the Seattle branch of the NAACP, one was on the Board of Governors of the Washington State Bar Association, and one even became a clerk to a Supreme Court justice. I suspect part of their success is because mom’s been a warm blanket for them, too.

No matter where they end up, they don’t stop thanking her. I thank her but not frequently enough. I thank her now for the help and support she has given to me. When success feels foreign, she serves as a bridge to the other side.

Thank you for everything, mom.
And to the rest of you: Call your mothers!

–Joseph Brand, Designer