It’s Mother’s Day in the Middle East and northern Africa. This unofficial holiday started in 1956, introduced by Mustafa Amin, Egyptian journalist, and was gradually adopted in about twenty other countries. It coincides with the beginning of spring, which I think is an appropriate day to celebrate birth and motherhood.
This year, in celebration of Mother’s Day, there will be no large assembly, no cards made in art, poems written in English and Arabic, and no flowers passed out to those sweet moms in the audience.
This year, in celebration of Mother’s Day, our sweet moms are home with their children–teaching, entertaining, feeding, and caring for them. Many of these moms are also still going to work.
In 2020, they really need a day to honor and bless them. I hope my students do so. God bless them!
Sounds like they won’t get any quiet on this Mother’s Day, but I don’t think any of us ever do! Thanks for shouting out those Moms.
Yes, we have to remember them at such a time as this. My children are grown, but I think it would be fairly impossible to teach and help them with their lessons AND teach my own students virtually. It is a miracle for those teachers who are doing both. We have a few of them in our school. I pray for them all!
Denise, Happy Mother’s Day! I never knew that in the Middle East it is celebrated on a different day than in the USA. I see your mall is festively decorated while our malls are shut down. Life is so different now here on Long Island, New York.
Thank you, Carol. Happy Mother’s Day to you too. I believe most of the shops in the malls are closed. Restaurants are closed, too, except for take-out. The grocery store is in the mall, so it remains open. I went last Wednesday and it was crowded, so I think I am going to clean out my cupboards and try to stay away for as long as possible now.
Happy Mother’s Day! I hope the moms still get cards and hugs and a little cake, even when there is no assembly.
Yes, I hope they will bless their moms too! Thanks for stopping by.
Happy Mother’s Day, Denise!
Thank you, friend! The same to you.
Happy Mother’s Day! I can feel your sense of sadness with how the external changes impact sweet traditions and celebrations. I hope your students’ families are finding new traditions and ways to celebrate their much deserving moms. Your post reminds us all that those traditions, even if they’re not from our home country, help us feel normal and when they’re interrupted, we feel different. Lots of love to you and all the moms today.
Meg,
Thank you for your comment and concern. Yes, you are right. Whatever the culture, the disruption of the Coronavirus has put us all on the same page. The concerns I read about in the U.S. are very similar to the concerns here. It seems like it might be just starting to spread in our community now. So more to get used to, and more restrictions, I suppose are imminent.