The mother, fount of true love, affection and care, is the first teacher for every child. There is no replacement for her on planet earth. It is the mother who bestows strength and encouragement, enabling children to grow and move ahead in life with confidence. It is the mother who loves and cares for her children the most in the world. She is the one who loves unconditionally. However, sometimes her effort goes unnoticed, even though she is a giver who does not expect anything in return.
The bond of love between a mother and child is so special that it cannot be found between any other two people. The mother’s affection fills a child with human values and empathy. A mother is not an individual or a personality; rather, motherhood is a quality. Mothers teach us to have confidence and belief in ourselves. From their experience, mothers knew how important it is for children to believe in themselves, in order to be strong and confident. Let us learn from our own mother the lessons of courage, strength and hope. She is the one who plays a divine role not only in our lives but also in our society and in the world.
Islam has given a higher status to the mother. The noble Qur’an speaks of the rights of the mother in a number of verses. It enjoins Muslims to show respect to their mother and serve them well even if they are still unbelievers. The Prophet (Pbuh) states emphatically that the rights of the mother are paramount. He instructed his Companions to take good care of their parents: talk to them gently, make time for them, take care of their needs, and pray for them. Mothers are God’s precious gift to the world; they should be treated with love and kindness and obeyed in all circumstances. In Islam, she is valued so much that “Paradise lies at the feet of the mother” (Tirmidi).
It is no coincidence that in Arabic, the word for mother, Umm, is oftentimes used to refer to the source or essence of a particular thing, or it could also be used to mean its abstract, unchangeable origin. For instance, in the noble Qur’an, the phrase Umm al-Kitab (literally “Mother of the Book”) refers to the preexistent, heavenly pattern of the Qur’an itself. For the Arabs, the brain is referred to as the “Mother of the Head” and the Holy City of Makkah is referred to as the Mother of the Cities (Umm al-Qurra).
There is no one on this planet I respect and love more than my mother. She’s the person who always has my best interests in mind. She always pushes me to be the best I can be. My mother is devoted to her family and fulfills her duties with sincerity and devotion. However, she is not aided, acknowledged, or thanked as is her due. She is often reduced to the status of an unpaid domestic helper in her own home.
The idea of celebrating Mother’s Day first came up in the early 1900s. It was in the year 1908 that a woman, Anna Jarvis, in the USA decided first to commemorate this day in the memory of her mother, who had passed away three years ago. Within a few years, several parts of the USA began to celebrate this day as Mother’s Day. In 1914, US President Woodrow Wilson declared Mother’s Day as a national holiday.
I believe (and I am sure everyone will second it) that a day isn’t sufficient for the mothers. Just celebrating Mother’s Day should not encompass all the thanks a mother should receive for everything she does. We should make every day as special as Mother’s Day to show and shower our love upon our mothers. We should acknowledge all the little things that our mothers do for us every day. No other gift can be more special to a mother than her child’s love and respect. We all know of our mothers’ roles, but what about our roles? Our mothers deserve all the love for risking their life in childbirth, raising us through difficult times, and constantly guiding and loving us. For all these, we should give them our gratitude, our respect and our trust. We should listen to them and constantly help them in whatever way we can.
In this context, I want to dedicate a few lines to the best woman on this planet:
Mom, it is You and only You,
There is nobody like You!
Oh Mother! You work so hard
But never get any reward
You expect nothing
But do everything
You are so selfless
And that is your greatness!
Let’s pledge to make every day special for our mothers and fill their days with warmth and joy.

The writer is a BA student at Govt Degree College Sogam (Lolab), Kupwara. [email protected]

SAQIB SARWAR MIR