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Stephen Colbert pays tribute to his mother on "The Colbert Report"

Stephen Colbert returned to "The Colbert Report" on Wednesday night after a hiatus following the death of his mother, Lorna Colbert, who died last week at the age of 92.

Before starting the show, Colbert delivered an emotional, heartfelt tribute to the mother of 11, telling the audience, "If you watch this show and you also like me, that's because of my mom."

"She made a very loving home for us," he recalled. "No fight between siblings could end without hugs and kisses, though hugs never needed a reason in her house. Singing and dancing were encouraged, except at the dinner table. She had trained as an actress when she was younger and she would teach us how to do stage falls by pretending to faint on the kitchen floor."

He spoke of her coping with tremendous tragedy, losing a brother, husband and three sons. But, he added, "her love for her family and her faith in God somehow gave her the strength not only to go on but to love life without bitterness and to instill in all of us a gratitude for every day we have together."

Fair warning: Watching the man (Colbert himself, not his "Colbert Report" character) remember his mother may move you to tears, or make you want to call your own mother, or both.

Watch it below:

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