Mothers-in-law, love 'em or hate them?

I hate my former bf' mom, she dislikes me too. She speaks a kind of dialect, so we can't talk with each other well. My former bf respect his mom very much. So i feel very angry when we have some quarrels with each other. Frankly, I often respect old people, because they contribute much to our country, especially moms.But I can't bear her. She has only one son and she is divorced, so her son is everything for her. I can understand her now,so I seperate from her son. But I love my mother-in-law. She is very mild and knowledgable. I respect her very much.

My mother in law is a very sweet woman. I, too feel fortunate to have her in my life. We have many differences that could become issues, but she never lets it get that far. She completely accepts me for me, and stops any arguments before they start. She is Filipino and I am Caucasian. I am Southern to the core! Even though she has been in the U.S. for over 20 years, she still feels most comfortable speaking Tagalog with her Filipino friends. Sometimes, she we have communication problems, but she is so sweet and just lets it go, or laughs it off.

i am also fortunate in having a mother-in-law who was very broad-minded and took good care of me. but somehow down the line, things became too complicated and our rapport was gone for life. my mom-in-law is originally from the village and has a very old-age look and understanding inside her. with this view, she welcomed me (a working girl)into her household with open arms. initially she never allowed me to cook or do any household work. while that was absolutely fine with me, i could not however reciprocate her rustic feelings and views towards many things. its not that i insulted her or threw my weight around, i just ignored her most of the time as her views and opinions were very outdated. but i also never interfered in how the house was run or what her son (my husband) contributed financially to the family. then came my son, their first grandson! to say they were happy is putting it mildly. i left my 2month old son to my mom-in-laws care and went to office happily. then gradually practical problems took over. she had her own methods of bringing up a child, while i, a first time modern mother, had my own views. our views and opinions clashed and to make a long story short, we are now no longer on talking terms. its really very sad as i genuinly care about her and am extremely and eternally grateful for whatever she has done for me. few mom-in-laws take so much upon themselves. i am truly sad at how situation had turned for the worse, but now there is no used crying over spilt milk!