I feel that it would be appropriate to reference the foundations of communication in my relationship with my mother, who taught me how to communicate. My mom and I have always had a good relationship, but never a great one. What makes our relationship good are the moments of love. I enjoy going on hikes, planning trips, making food, and spending time outside with my mom. She has always been there to take care and love me. What stops our good relationship from being great is in the way we communicate with each other. I grew up slightly envious of my friends who were super close with their moms. Though me and my dad are pretty close, I have always felt some sort of barrier between my mom and I. That barrier is again, without a doubt, in the way we communicate. 

Whether it be verbally or nonverbally, a lot of our conversations end up in some sort of argument. Truthfully, my mom and I think very differently so it does require good listening and understanding when we talk to prevent negativity. The action-reaction principle is something I have noticed to be accurate in the relationship I have with my mom. Our moods seem to feed off each other, along with our actions. If my mom is cranky, I become cranky. If I am smiling and happy, my mom reacts with a similar energy. Overall, I see lots of things we can work on together, but that does not mean there are lots of great things about our relationship too. I do love my mom a lot and hope to continue to strengthen my friendship with her.