'Every day she breathes, every day she stands strong, is Mother's Day,' notes Ishrat Perveen.
They say you only truly understand the meaning of being a mother when you watch your own children slowly grow up.
As a mother, I have played many roles in life -- at times a teacher, at times a principal. I have witnessed three generations closely. But today, my heart feels heavy with a different emotion.
I am here at AMU (Aligarh Muslim University), while my mother is miles away in Bihar. Ever since my father passed away, she has become quite lonely, yet she has never complained. Never once has she asked me to leave everything behind and come to her.
She is the very definition of self-respect and independence. I now notice a slight pause in her steps, moments when her body seems tired, yet the glow on her face remains exactly the same. Every smile of hers still says, 'I am not tired yet'.
Perhaps that is the purest meaning of a mother.
Many people celebrate Mother's Day with grand wishes and messages. I thought of wishing her too, but perhaps she would never really understand why there should be one special day for mothers. And, honestly, there shouldn't have to be.
A mother cannot be confined to a single day.
Every day she breathes, every day she stands strong, is Mother's Day.
Praying for her health and peace is perhaps the only gift she truly needs.
These words may not be perfect, but they are honest... They come straight from the heart.
Gher lene ko mujhe jab bhi balaayein aa gayin,
Dhaal bankar saamne maa ki duaaein aa gayin.
(Whenever problems threatened to surround me,
My mother's blessings protected me)
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