Driving past my old job the day before,i was once again reminded of a common scene that i had often seen there.
Many times,as i was hurrying not to be late for my lessons at the school i worked in, i would notice a woman in her early sixties,holding over her shoulder a young man. The first time i saw her,i didn't get a very good look at her or of him. They were just getting into a taxi and i was just left with the scene and a few open questions in my mind.
A few days after, again i was in a hurry for the same reasons (some things never do change) and i again noticed the woman waiting at the side of the street,holding a young man over her shoulder. This time curiosity got the better of me and i stayed at the entrance of the building and observed the woman.
The woman was indeed in her early sixties. She was quite short,with hair that had gone grey that was pulled back into a tight knot at the back of her neck. She was dressed in black from head to toes. She was patiently looking up the street and waiting for the taxi to once again come (this i saw later on) Her face had deep cracks in it but her eyes were attentive but impatient. She was mumbling something. The boy she was carrying was around twenty years old and was moving his arms around but no voice could be heard. Besides the constant jerking movement from his arms and from his head,he was quiet and patiently laid there,across this woman's shoulder. Soon enough, the taxi came,the driver got out,opened the door and the woman placed the young man in, got in herself and they all drove away.
I remember standing there,by the entrance of the building,thinking and wondering about what i had seen.
A few days later,the scene was again repeated.
The next time it happened though i stopped right next to the woman and asked her if i could help her and take her somewhere. She looked at me and politely smiled and told me there was no need since she was waiting for a taxi to come pick her up. The young man was still over her shoulders and mumbling something very softly to himself that was not at all clear and the woman held on to him strongly and firmly. I offered again and she once again refused with the same politeness and soon enough the taxi came again and the scene i had seen the other days before was once again repeated.
As i was referring to this with a colleague of mine i found out the details that were missing from the story. The woman that i had seen was in fact holding her son over her shoulders. Her son suffered from cerebral palsy (εγκεφαλικη δυσλειτουργια)and had very little control over his arms and was confined to a wheelchair, as well as being mentally retarded to a very large extent. In other words, he was completely dependant on his mother for his basic survivor.
In order to help him keep his limbs in some kind of shape,his mother took him every other day to have some kind of physiotherapy to keep whatever limited movement he did have. Since the wheelchair that the young man had was not portable,the mother was obliged to carry him every time they had to take a cab to go for therapy and then carry him back home when they returned and since money was an issue,the woman couldn't afford to have the taxi come to her house and pick her and her son up, so she would carry him to where they had decided to meet.
Today is mothers day. All of us will either buy our mothers some flowers or wish her a happy mothers day with a kiss. I don't like these kinds of holidays. They are made to take advantage of all of us and our sentiment for profitable reasons but if i don't wish my mother tomorrow, even though she knows my stand,shell get upset and not talk to me for a week. So to avoid all of this i do what every child would, but i always remember the woman who i just described to you and all the others just like her.
Shell never hear the words 'Χρονια πολλα μαμα" because her son can barely even keep his head up by himself but she deserves to hear it so much more than my mom does.It may sound hard but this is the truth. I show my mom in different ways i care for her and she knows that.This mother though doesn't have the same opportunity.Shouldn't she though?
Since I've become a mom..since i had the privilege of becoming a mother fifteen plus years ago, i see things so much more differently. i really could care less if my children don't say happy mothers day to me tomorrow. i really don't. i don't wait for a special day to come to wait for them to tell me how much they love me. I get it from them on a daily basis. Besides, the way i see it,I'm the one who should be grateful that i have these three individuals in my life, that have taught me and will still teach me so much, that they have given me so much love and i have felt myself so full of love that nothing else in the world could ever compensate for..mothers day should remind us mothers of the precious gift we have..not the other way around.
For all the mothers who go through a daily battle to keep their children's self respect intact.. for all the mothers that have a daily fight to win because of all the difficulties that life has unfairly given to them.. to all the mothers who are mothers in all the sense of the word but who few of us have the chance of meeting,much less acknowledging.. happy mothers day. These mothers have showed all of us what it is to be a real mother and being a real mother means to be selfless. to be completely selfless.
So if you happen to know any mother who is in any kind of similar situation,or even if you see her in the street,take a few minutes out and say happy mothers day to her. You can not imagine what pleasure you will give her. trust me. i know from personal experience.
