I can’t remember the last time I gave my mama a gift or treat for Mother’s Day. Maybe it was when I was still single and working far away from home. It has been a while since, indeed. For several years, Mother’s Day celebrations passed by with just simple greetings or social media posts of appreciation. For sure, my mother appreciated those soulful messages, but it would have been different if I had given anything special for her.
And so to break the ice, I made a game-changing move this weekend – I brought her to an Optical Clinic. Yes, you read it right – an Optical Clinic! It was because she had been complaining about her blurry vision since January this year. I heard her whispering wistfully about how clearly she used to see the stitches when sewing and the messages on her cellphone for the Church’s Daily Journal. I could sense her disappointment and longing to see things clearly again. I pretended not to hear her sighs but I was just actually listening and in my heart, I really wanted to take her to the optical clinic for a checkup.
At first, I asked mama to accompany me to the town center for the usual pay day shopping. I also took my son with us, which we commonly do every time we go out together. But she was surprised when we didn’t stop by the shopping center and went straight to the optical clinic instead, the clinic she had been telling me about before. She even asked me why we were there. I just grinned and told her to get inside the eye screening room because the doctor was waiting for her. Puzzled, she then entered the room. And so the eye screening went on. It lasted for more than half an hour, then she finally came out smiling, and almost teary-eyed.
Then I told her to choose the design for the frame of her lenses. The clinic attendant assisted us until mama chose the best frame that suited her – it was a pink and elegant-looking design.
We waited for another 15 minutes for the lenses to be fitted to the frame, and then finally, Spectacled insight! Her eyeglasses were done.
She couldn’t contain her happiness especially that it was really unexpected. I told her that I planned everything and I heard all her sighs about her blurry vision. I greeted her, ‘Happy Mother’s Day’ and I could see in her eyes that she was really moved and thankful.
We then went straight to the nearby snack house serving special ‘lugaw’, a Filipino rice porridge commonly eaten as a snack. While enjoying the snack, I also bought cups of ice cream for mama and my son. I couldn’t contain the joy in my heart seeing them enjoying these simple things in life.
Finally, we headed to the grocery store where we bought the usual food items, cooking and pantry essentials, and milk and snacks for my son. We also bought fresh watermelon from the street hawkers in the market before we headed back home.
There’s no greater joy than seeing my mother that happy and my son that full after our food-filled afternoon in the town center. Mothers are indeed enduring – quietly and selflessly carrying the weight of house and family responsibilities along with love and undying sacrifice for the whole family. So it wouldn’t take so much of our time to check on them once in a while.
Thank you for dropping by my corner. Happy Mother’s Day to the wonder moms out there!
(photos are mine, edited in Canva)
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