This was published 7 years ago
What I know about women...
Matthew McConaughey, Actor, 47, married
By Jane Rocca
My mom, Kay, always made us tell stories around the lazy susan every night at 7pm in the living room. It was a family tradition and everybody had to share a part of their day. My dad, James, and my two older brothers, Michael and Pat, told the best stories – mostly about hanging at bars and drinking. I wasn't included in those sorts of stories until I turned 18. Mom's main thing was that we got to share a story and involve the family.
My paternal grandmother lived in Morgan City, near New Orleans in southern Louisiana. We would go down there for the Shrimp Festival. We had these big family gatherings, and my grandmother was always very nice to us, but it was Mom who was the biggest influence on my life.
Matthew McConaughey, Actor, 47, married
Mom was a schoolteacher until she retired. She taught me the power of storytelling and the importance of reading and having a passion to learn. I bring that skill to what I do now as the creative director of Wild Turkey bourbon and through my work as an actor. Mom was also my teacher in kindergarten and year 7, and rode to school alongside us on her bike.
Mom didn't have her teaching certificate when she was in the school system. She just made such a great impression and scammed her way in every time. She was such a good teacher that everybody loved her, so it probably didn't matter. When asked to show her teacher's permit, she would tell the school it was "in the mail" until they eventually forgot about it.
My parents met in Kentucky. Mom told her sister, "I'm going to marry that man one day." But soon after they started dating, Dad went off to practise football for the summer and she found they weren't spending as much time together as she would have liked.
Dad was living at his mom's house in New Orleans, so my mom went down there to introduce herself. She told his mother, "You don't know me yet, but I'm your future daughter-in-law." Mom then told Dad to "hold this". It was his invitation to his own wedding. I owe a lot to Kentucky.
I am the youngest of three sons. By the time I came around, Dad was a bit older and had already coached my brother's baseball team, so I spent more time with Mom. Dad and I became close once I turned 17 but he worked a lot, so my very early memories were mostly that Mom was the mainstay.
My parents were together for 39 years until Dad died in 1992 [from a suspected heart attack]. They married and divorced three times over that period. I guess it goes back to that old saying, "You can't live with him, you can't live without him." My parents loved each other very much and always made sure we knew we were loved, too.
Mom is 84 years old now and still a great role model, as wild and strong now as she was then. She is very present in my life and is close to my wife and children. We were down in Texas to watch a college football game recently and I noticed that she goes to bed an hour after me and still wakes an hour earlier. She is resilient, passionate and a real go-getter.
I moved to Australia as a high school exchange student in 1988. That was all thanks to Mom encouraging me to travel. She told me to choose between Sweden and Australia. I left with a handshake and a promise that I wouldn't return sooner than a year. I loved my time in Australia; it really opened up my world beyond what I knew.
My first kiss happened early on in my life, but I'm not revealing names or saying anymore than that. It happened long before I moved to Australia. I had plenty more kisses with girls before I turned 18.
My wife [Brazilian model, designer and television presenter Camila Alves] and our kids [son Levi, 8, daughter Vida, 6, and son Livingston, 3] travel with me all the time. Camila and I got married in 2012 and she is an amazing woman. She is very supportive, strong and a great mother. The family have come to Australia with me when I've visited. I love having them around.
I'm a family man, but when it's time for me to put the working hat on, I always remember what Mom told me growing up: "As soon as it's time to go to work, you get out of the front door and don't look in the rear-view mirror. A job has to get done."