Mama

Nicole Jeffords (2021)

I have known Lizzatte Sanchez, the thoughtful and somewhat guarded-looking person depicted in this drawing, for over a quarter of a century. The first time I saw her she was wearing dowdy glasses that made me think of a nun. She had responded to an ad I’d put in the paper for a housekeeper — someone, really, to help look after my son who was very hyperactive. Well, she not only assisted me in raising Julian (she was the only one he’d listen to), but she smoothed the way through every sort of crisis from problems with sneaky, marijuana-smoking adolescents to soothing love-lorn daughters to calming me down when I thought I’d totally screwed up a painting. She is an amazing problem-solver and advice-giver. I would not embark on a single endeavor whether it be remodeling a bathroom or buying a new dress without consulting her first. Plotting a novel… Lizzatte is my go-to person, a specialist in building sizzling drama my dull brain could never conceive of. I have been so fortunate to have her in my life. From early in our relationship, she started calling me “Mama,” with me calling her the same back, and I have to tell you I am so glad, at this point in my journey, to have someone to mother me.