"But this year, I feel lucky to have my daughter, because telling her stories about her grandmother is a great distraction," wrote Mindy Kaling on Sunday
Mindy Kaling is still grieving the loss of her mother Swati eight years after her death following a battle with pancreatic cancer, but her memory lives on in the stories the actress is passing on to her baby girl.
“I always used to dread Mother’s Day because of how much I miss my own mom who passed away 8 years ago,” Kaling, 39, captioned a Mother’s Day card on Sunday that featured a drawing of Snoopy holding a bouquet of flowers. “Going to brunch and seeing all these women laughing and talking to their moms made me so jealous!”
“But this year, I feel lucky to have my daughter, because telling her stories about her grandmother is a great distraction,” she continued of 16-month-old Katherine Swati — whose middle name likely honors her late grandma. “But I will always feel that hole in my heart.”
“So I want to send lots of love to those out there who are missing their mothers,” Kaling addressed her followers. “What’s a memory you have about your mom that makes you smile?”
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The Mindy Project star and creator has opened up in the past about the difficulties she has endured without the presence of her mom as a guiding force.
In June of last year, Kaling delivered an empowering commencement speech at her alma mater, Dartmouth College, where she revealed the trepidation she felt when first bringing Katherine home without having her mom there.
“After my daughter was born in December, I remember bringing her home and being in my house with her for the first time and thinking, ‘Huh, according to movies and TV, this is traditionally the time when my mother and spouse are supposed to be here, sharing this experience with me,’ ” said the mother of one.
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“And I looked around and I had neither. And for a moment it was kind of scary, like, ‘Can I do this by myself?’ ” she continued. “But then that feeling went away because the reality is, I’m not doing it by myself. I’m surrounded by family and friends who love and support me.”
On Kaling’s first Mother’s Day last year, she posted a heartfelt tweet about how much she felt the absence of her own mom even with her then-4-month-old daughter by her side.
“Happy Mother’s Day to those of us who miss our moms,” The Office alum wrote. “I have a kid now who is the joy of my life, but each year that goes by there’s even more I want to tell my mom about! What’s one thing you wish you could tell your mom? ❤️”