Dec 23 2007
Mother’s Day
Saturday is my busiest day due to the tight teaching schedule I have this term: from 8am to 12pm, and from 14 to 16pm. I seldom go home during lunch break. I usually just go to one food stall close to my workplace to have my lunch.
December 22, 2007 I did my ‘routine’. A workmate greeted me, “Happy mother’s day, Ma’am.” I smiled widely. I asked her, “When is the children’s day?” She grinned hearing that question of mine.
I never consider mother’s day a special day in my life. It doesn’t mean that I don’t love my mother. Perhaps I am wrong to think that my mother just does her obligation toward her children so that I never think that I need to do a special thing to show my love to her on the day chosen by Indonesian government as “mother’s day”. There are 364 other days in one year I can “use” to do things I want to do to show my mother that I love her.
I myself never consider my role as a mother for Angie very important so that she needs to, let’s say, give me a special gift on this “special” day. Anything I have done (and will do) for and toward Angie comes from my own willingness because I am happy to do that so that she does not need to pay it back.
After teaching at 4pm, I dropped by for a while at one cyber café, checking my mailboxes, posting some writings in my blogs, including reading some writings on “mothers’ day” at some mailing lists, including at some friends’ blogs. I came to a conclusion that those writings still put women—especially who have become mothers, either because they have delivered some babies from their womb, or because they automatically become a mother after marrying men who have kids—at a pedestal position, I opine this situation often then traps women to be softly oppressed (such as: don’t do this or that because you are a mother; don’t make yourself very busy outside home because you have a very highly adorable role as a mother: to take care of children, and not as a breadwinner, don’t make yourself boss by having a higher paycheck than your husband because men don’t want to be under you, so please focus only on your DESTINY, a mother, etc).
At 5pm I left the café because it was going to close.
Arriving home, entering my shared bedroom with my Lovely Star, I found it a bit cleaner and tidier than the morning when I left it (NOTE: ONLY A BIT CLEANER AND TIDIER LOL). Aha … what did Angie do when I was busy at the office? FYI, she had some days off from school, from December 20, Idul Adha holiday, until December 25, Christmas. When I went to the dining room, I didn’t find the pile of clothes waiting to be ironed. Instead, some were hanging neatly in the clothes hanger, some others were folded neatly in one pile. Hohoho … my spoilt Lovely Star has eased my household chores, eh? LOL. I believe she wouldn’t agree if the whole days in one year is Mother’s Day. LOL. LOL. (Ssssstttt… this is the first time she did it. LOL. LOL.)
PT56 13.25 231207
