I have always looked like my mom, and I love it. She's uniquely gorgeous, strong, smart, and super sweet, so I feel pretty honored to look like her. Plus, the feminist in me just thinks that it's really cool to be instantly recognizable as the daughter of my awesome mother. It’s like a family legacy is being passed on through me just because I look like my mom. In some small way, that feels like being part of a matriarchy to me.
Of course, my mom and I aren't identical, but we're honestly pretty close to looking like the same person. So much so that for as long as I can remember, the fact that I look strikingly similar to my mom is the first thing anyone who has ever known her ends up saying to me within seconds of our introduction. But I’ve grown to love these comments, and if you also look like your mom, you’ve probably grown to love them, too. Here are seven things only people who look like their moms can relate to.
1. You've Probably Heard The Phrase "Spitting Image" Quite A Bit
I'm not entirely sure where this expression comes from (and it honestly sounds kind of gross), but if you look like your mom, then you already know that you will never escape this phrase. I've heard "You're the spitting image of your mamma!" over and over again since I was a little girl. But it's OK. I don't think I'll ever get tired of it.
2. People Accidentally Call You By Your Mom's First Name
If you're nearly identical to your mother, then you know exactly what I'm talking about here. If people have actually gotten frustrated with you for not responding to their cries of your mother's name, or if you're just so used to being called by your mom's name that when you hear it you automatically turn to see if the person speaking is actually trying to get your attention, then you truly know what it's like to look crazy similar to your mom.
My mom's name is Donna (which, in my opinion, sounds nothing like Elizabeth, but whatever), and since I look so much like her, our family and family friends end up calling me Donna all the friggin' time. My grandma's probably the worst about it, but I really can't even blame her. Hell, I'd probably do it too.
3. You've Mistaken Old Photos Of Your Mom For Pictures Of Yourself
I promise that I'm not joking even a little bit about this one. I've 100 percent seen pictures of my mom from when she was my age and thought to myself, "There's another one of my unfortunate '80s-inspired haircuts. Thank you, brain, for blocking this one out," only to realize upon closer examination that I was looking at a picture of my mother from the '80s.
If you look like your mom, then you're no stranger to the complete and total mindf*ck of seeing yourself in old photos of her. But it's kind of fun, isn't it? We could totally time travel to when our moms were in their 20s and actually pull off impersonating them.
4. You're Not Afraid Of Aging, Because Your Mom Is Killing It
Seeing your mom age beautifully is awesome for a lot of reasons. But when you look a ton like your mom, it's even more awesome to see her age well, because you're kind of looking at your own future. My mom looks amazing at 59, and it makes me feel OK about my own aging. Because if I end up looking anything like she does when I'm in my 50s, then I'll consider myself a very lucky woman.
5. Random People Frequently Think They "Know You From Somewhere"
This happens to me whenever I'm back in my hometown for a lengthy visit, and I'm happily accustomed to it. If you can't go anywhere in your hometown without some rando tilting their head at you and saying, "I feel like I know you from somewhere," but "somewhere" is actually just your mom, then there's no question about it: You look so much like your mother that it's actually kind of freaking people out. Have fun with it.
6. You've Heard, "You Must Be A [Insert Your Mom's Surname Here]" More Times Than You Can Count
I look so much like my mother that I'm no longer surprised when people can guess my surname just by looking at me. They've been doing it for as long as I can remember, and I actually think it's really cool, because it's just one more way that resembling my mother feels like matriarchy at work to me.
If you too are basically your mother's clone, then you know exactly what I'm talking about. I love the last name I inherited from my father, and I don't plan to change it, but being identified with our mothers' surnames based on our appearances alone is super cool. So let's rock the hell out of it, okay?
7. You Seriously Hope You Can Carry On Your Mom's Coolness As Well As You Do Her Looks
Looking like your mom is fun, and it's actually really empowering if you think about it. But as fortunate as I feel to look like the stone-cold fox that is my mom, I care more about becoming the kind of woman she would be proud of. And I'm sure you feel the same way about your mom.
My mom's a registered nurse, she home-schooled my siblings and I from kindergarten though 12th grade, she was my first feminist role model, and she can out-party me. Additionally, she nursed my grandpa through three years of illness before he passed away, and she's done volunteer work in impoverished nations like Moldova. So basically, she's cool AF. If I'm half as cool as she is by the time I'm her age, I'll be even happier about that than the fact that, genetically-speaking, we're basically the same person.
Images: Warner Bros., Giphy/(7)
