Pre slovenskú verziu článku si v okienku vpravo zvoľte 'Slovenčina' (namiesto English (United Kingdom))
Before I get into the Slovak school children Mother's Day performance on May 13, 2012 at Ottawa's St. Hyacinth Parish, let me tell you about a great little saying I stumbled upon (on Facebook actually) about mothers. It went like this: around age 6 children say "Mommy, I love you", at age 10 they say "Whatever mom", at age 16 it's "My mom is so annoying", at 18 they want to move out... but around 25 it's "Mom, you were right", at 30 it's "I want to go to mom's house" and by 70 they will say "I would give up everything for my mom to be here with me". I thought this was quite true and realized how hard it is for a mother to experience all these changes in perspective her children have of her.
So I send a big thank you to all the moms for loving us through it all.
There were people of all ages at the mother's day performance going through their own stages. The young children sang songs, cited poems and displayed posters of different parts of Slovakia. Some were shy and ran away from the microphone with pigtails dangling behind them, and some stood tall and raised the microphone to match their confidence.
After their performances they ran around freely and were interviewed for the next monthly Slovak Spectrum program. The adults moved around the hall, chatting and enjoying their beverages and homemade desserts.
And the seniors sat at the tables sharing their life experiences and seemed immersed in each other’s company. Maybe with all the wisdom they acquired comes this perspective of "Been there, done that. Now I just want to relax." All in all, it's always a pleasure to see our Slovak community come together with such support, peace and cheerfulness. A special thank you goes out to the Ottawa Slovak School teachers and the members of CSL Branch 63 for all their efforts into making this day happen. And thank you to everyone who came, parents and children included.
Barbora Dej
Co-chair, Special Events and Youth Activities Committee
Canadian Slovak League, Ottawa Branch
Photos: Tibor Dej
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