CAROLYN HAX

(Nick Galifianakis for The Washington Post)

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By Carolyn Hax

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Adapted from a recent online discussion:

As many of you know, I lost my mom, Liz Hax, to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in 2002. Every fall, I participate in the Walk to Defeat ALS to raise money and awareness to fight this horrific illness.

Dear Carolyn:

[Your campaign in your mother's memory] made me wonder, off and on all week, what in your personal opinion made your mom so very special? Many of us reading your column have difficult and sometimes downright unhealthy relationships with our parents but want very much to rise to the occasion for our own children. How did your mom pull it off?

I have a little girl and I want to do my best by her.

Pittsburgh

That you care so much to get this right probably will go a long way toward making you an excellent parent.

But it's a great question, and it's something I have in the back of my mind often. It would probably be good for me to bring it to the front.

Things I really liked about my mom:

She was there. She listened to our stories, knew our friends, came to our games.

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