On New Year’s Day yesterday, I spent a lot of time thinking about my New Year’s two years ago. I had flown over to London to spend the holiday with Shaan. We had plans to meet up with a couple of his friends on New Year’s Eve, and that evening we were sitting at his family home beforehand getting ready to leave.

While at his house, I called my mom, who wasn’t feeling especially well at the time. I don’t really remember what we talked about, but I do remember at the end of our conversation she asked to speak with Shaan and his family.

My mom hadn’t met Shaan’s family — his mom, dad, and sister — before; I think she may have talked to Shaan’s mom and dad over the phone once prior, but she hadn’t ever spoken to Shaan’s sister. When she and I were done talking, she asked to speak, one by one, with Shaan, then his mother, then his father, then his sister, to personally wish each of them a happy new year.

This may sound very mundane — even though this memory was so present in my head yesterday, I toyed with whether I should post about it because I questioned whether anyone else would think there’s much significance to it. But then I reminded myself that on this blog, I write about what’s meaningful to me about my mom, and simply, this story holds a lot of meaning for me.

Why? Well, honestly it wasn’t much of a surprise to me that my mom or dad would ever make an effort with the parents of my, Sanam, and Nikhil’s significant others. I always knew they would do this because of the people that they are as well as the example that both sets of my grandparents set for them, in cultivating their own friendship. Even so, I thought it was a thoughtful gesture for my mom to take that step towards friendship with Shaan’s parents that evening, and I think it’s a beautiful example she set for me that night.

But what I was really moved by is when my mom chose to personally wish Shaan’s sister a happy new year that evening as well, despite the two of them never having had any kind of interaction before. With Shaan’s parents, there was more reason to speak; I was dating their son, and we were moving towards a future together — it just made more sense. It would’ve been totally normal — totally expected — for my mom to leave it at that. But no, she was more thoughtful than that. She desired to extend a hand of friendship, to be inclusive, to show love to Shaan’s sister… just because. Despite the fact that she wasn’t feeling well and had every reason not to. Just because.

Yesterday, as the new year rang in, this story was ever present in my mind. It may seem insignificant, but it’s not. We’re used to taking things, especially the smaller things, for granted; it’s just what we do. But this is one small act of thoughtfulness I don’t take for granted. I think my mom is amazing for it.

As the 19th century actor Edwin Booth once said, “Precious little things, seemingly of no value in themselves, can be loved and prized above all price when they convey the love and thoughtfulness of a good heart.” I couldn’t agree more.