Although pop icon Taylor Swift won big at the Academy of Country Music Awards, her mother's heartwarming speech about her daughter and the importance of self-worth was perhaps the most touching moment of the night.
The 25 year old "Style" singer received a Milestone Award from her mother, Andrea Finlay, at the ACM awards which were held in Dallas, TX on Sunday night, less than two weeks after Swift publicly revealed that her mother had been diagnosed with cancer.
"I've watched this milestone artist from the time she was a tangle-haired little girl growing up on our farm full of imagination and creativity," Finlay, who often accompanies her daughter while on tour, told the audience.
"Ever since then, her favorite thing in the world to do has been to write a song, tell a story, play a guitar or piano - and I've seen those things carry her through every emotion, every experience in her life, good or bad," she continued.
"For many years, I was her constant companion," Finlay added. "And I witnessed a young girl with few friends become a young woman with many, learning to stand up for herself and the things she believes in."
Later, Finlay emotionally declared herself "a very proud mom."
"I'd like to thank the ACMs for honoring her in this way," she said. "But I'd also like to thank the entire music community for taking such good care of her."
After sharing a tender embrace with her mother as she received her award, Swift also gave a heartfelt speech, thanking the country music community for their support and encouragement.
"Somebody once told me you truly see who a person is when you tell them something they don't want to hear," she said. "So, to the country music community, when I told you I wanted to make a pop album and wanted to explore other genres, you showed me who you are with the grace that you accepted that with. I will never forget it."
She also graciously thanked her peers for teaching her how to be a kind, confident woman.
"I'm so happy that I learned to write songs in a town like Nashville," she said. "I'm so grateful that I learned what hard work is from my heroes who are all sitting here. I am unbelievably proud I learned to treat people with kindness and respect from country music."
Swift, who sometimes includes religious themes in her music, was raised in a Christian home and attended an Evangelical Christian school for several years. She also attended church throughout her young life, and has previously discussed watching her grandmother sing in the church choir as a little girl.
Swift's mother has every right to be proud of her daughter; although she doesn't blatantly discuss her beliefs, the "Shake It Off" has acted in accordance with her Christian upbringing throughout her short, but impressive, career. Last month, Swift purchased two domain names - TaylorSwift.porn and TaylorSwift.adult - as a preventive measure against Internet users who might use her name to promote adult-related content, according to the BBC.
Because she strives to be a positive role model for girls, Swift has long championed the idea of not showing too much skin in the media and frequently discusses the importance of embracing a modest lifestyle.
"I wouldn't wear tiny amounts of clothing in my real life, so I don't think it's necessary to wear that stuff in photo-shoots," she previously explained to the Telegraph.
She later told Billboard, "The reality is what you wear matters. If you're a singer and on TV and in the living room of some 12-year-old girl, she's watching what you're wearing and saying and doing ... For me, when Faith Hill performed on an awards show, everything mattered -- everything she said, did, wore, I tried to copy it. That's what little girls do, so there is a big responsibility and I take it very seriously."
The "Love Story" singer also has publicly turned the other cheek when others mock or abuse her: when asked about her rumored feud with former Christian artist Katy Perry earlier this year, she chose to take the high road.
"I'm not giving them anything to write about," Swift, she told the Telegraph. "I'm never going to talk about her in my interview. It's not going to happen."
Taylor Swift's "1989" world tour will kick off next month.
