This is so lovely. In a Glamour article, Wanda Urbanska candidly shares her mother’s last acts, wishes and words that link to the empowerment of women and the Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. Wanda’s heartfelt story begins...
"How did Hillary do?" Mama asked me on Monday, 15 days before the election.
At 94, bedridden in my home in Raleigh, North Carolina, Mama was going down quickly. Her heart was beating irregularly; just days before, she had lost the ability to walk. When she turned away her favorite strawberry rhubarb pie, I knew it was only a matter of time.
Wanda said her mother, Marie Urbanska Whittaker, had received her absentee ballot that morning. “It was a moment she had been living for since she was a girl: the chance to elect our first female president.” Wanda writes that her mother was rebellious young woman who moved to the “big city” to pursue her career early on. She married and later divorced raising her daughters on her own while earning a Ph.D. in American Literature. She taught at the University of Maine until she retired. Wanda writes:
“Growing up, I thought Mama was the most amazing woman in the world, and also the most aggravating. From my earliest days, she pounded into my consciousness that for women, the rules are different. The bar is higher. Women have to do more, know more, and avoid blunders—all the while looking presentable—to even have a shot. When I graduated from Harvard, the night before the ceremony I asked her to iron my gown and she refused... on principle. I wanted to kill her, but I had to concede that her battles commanded respect. When she learned that female athletes at the University of Maine were denied access to the weight room, she immediately challenged the system and won.”
Even at the age of 94, Wanda says her mother was still fighting the good fight for women and was appalled by the hate Republican nominee Donald Trump was allowed to spew. She had asked her daughter: “Where are the women standing up for Hillary, cheering on her courage, brains and tenacity?" Wanda knew her mother was right. When she returned that Monday afternoon with the post office receipt showing her mother’s ballot was cast, Marie Urbanski Whittaker asked:
"Did Hillary make it?" she asked once more, her words trailing, her voice almost inaudible. Looking at the fading light in her eyes, as her boney hand stretched out from her hospice bed, I considered how to respond. Do I tell her the truth? Hillary's poll numbers are looking positive, but the election is not in the bag.
"Yes, Mama," I told her. "Hillary made it."
That was the answer Marie Urbanska Whittaker had been waiting to hear her entire life, writes Wanda. Minutes after telling her mom “Hillary made it,” her mother slipped away and she was gone.
This is one of the most moving stories I’ve ever relayed. Many thanks to Wanda Urbanska for sharing such a personal story about her mom. Women like Marie Urbanski Whittaker dedicated much of their lives to get us here, right now—on the brink of turning the dream of millions into reality. Because of these women, we hold the power to win this election with just our votes. And the only way to repay them, is to do just that.