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*What If Mom Took a Day Off?*
One day, the Principal suddenly called a mother to the school and said,
“Your son has written an essay on the topic, ‘What if my mother took a day off for one day?’ When we read it, the entire staff room fell silent. At first, everyone laughed… and then, everyone cried.”
The mother nervously sat down on the chair. She thought perhaps her son had done something serious.
The Principal smiled, handed the notebook to her, and said,
“Don’t read this after you go home… read it here.”
On the first page, it was written:
“What If My Mom Took a Day Off…?”
“Earlier, I used to think that my mother was the most short-tempered woman in the world.
She wakes me up at 5 in the morning and makes me study. If I don’t finish my lunch, she scolds me. If I spend too much time on my mobile phone, she takes it away. Even on holidays, she tells me, ‘Clean your room.’
Oh God! I used to think it would be nice if my mother went somewhere for a day.
Then, last Monday, Mom fell sick. The doctor told her to take complete rest.
That was the first time I saw Mom actually stay in bed and not get up.
The alarm rang in the morning… but no one gently stroked my head and said, ‘Son, you have to go to school, don’t you?’
I woke up late.
My uniform wasn’t ironed. One sock was in one room and the other was somewhere else. My shoes were not ready. My lunch box was empty.
Dad was standing in the kitchen. For the first time, he tried to make rotis.
The roti didn’t turn out round… it looked like some island 🏝️.
That day, for the first time, I understood how many things Mom does at the same time.
When I returned from school, there was no one waiting at the door.
Mom was lying in bed. Yet she smiled and said,
‘My prince is back?’
I said, ‘Mom, I’m hungry.’
She tried to get up.
But she groaned in pain and lay back down.
That day, for the first time, I served myself food.
The food was cold… but the house felt even colder.
That night, Mom had a high fever. Yet she was still asking Dad,
‘Did our son drink his milk?’
‘Did he finish his homework?’
‘Don’t forget to keep his drawing notebook ready for tomorrow.’
Her concern for me was greater than her concern for her own medicine and health.
The next day, I picked up Mom’s phone.
I thought there might be games on it.
But there were mostly pictures of me.
My picture from my first day at school.
My picture from the first time I rode a bicycle.
My picture when I had a fever.
There wasn’t even one good picture of Mom herself on her phone.
Almost every picture was of me.
That day, I understood something:
Mom doesn’t really live her own life… she lives ours.
On the third day, I massaged Mom’s feet.
She smiled and asked,
‘Did the sun rise in the west today?’
I laughed, but my eyes were filled with tears.
So many times, I had told her,
‘You don’t know how to do anything… all you ever do is scold me.’
But the truth was that I didn’t know how to do anything.
I didn’t know that my shirt wouldn’t put itself back in the cupboard.
My lunch wouldn’t pack itself.
My bed wouldn’t make itself.
My favourite food wouldn’t cook itself.
Behind all these things were Mom’s sleepless nights, her time, her effort, and her entire life.
Now, if God were to ask me what the most difficult job in the world is, I would say:
‘Being a mother.’
Because a mother cannot take a holiday.
Even when she has a fever, the house keeps running.
Even when she is in pain, she worries about her children.
Even when she feels like crying, she serves food with a smile.
Now I will never ask God,
‘Please let my mother go somewhere for a day.’
Instead, I will say:
‘O God… give my years of life to my mother too.’
‘Because when Mom is at home… even a small house feels like heaven.’
The essay ended there.
The mother’s hands trembled as she held the notebook.
Tears fell onto the pages.
She remembered how, just last month, her son had angrily told her,
‘All you know is how to scold me.’
That night, she had cried for hours.
But today, that same son had unknowingly understood and written about her entire life of sacrifice.
The Principal gently said,
‘Children may not understand our words… they understand our sacrifices. They just need a little time to realize their meaning.’
The mother returned home.
Her son ran towards her and hugged her.
This time, he said nothing.
He simply held his mother tightly.
Mom gently stroked his head.
Both remained silent…
But that silence spoke a thousand words.
That day, for the first time, the boy picked up his own plate and put it away.
He cleaned his own shoes.
Before going to bed, he went to his mother and said,
‘Mom… from today onwards, I won’t give you a day off… but I won’t leave you alone in your work either.’
Mom smiled.
All her tiredness disappeared with those one sentence.
Remember…
Children may not understand the value of their parents while their parents are doing everything for them.
They understand it when those same hands become tired one day.
So, don’t wait.
Sit beside your parents today, hold their hands, and tell them:
‘Mom, my world exists because you are in it.’
And if this touched your heart and brought tears to your eyes, call your mother right now and tell her that you love her.
Source: received through WhatsApp message.