'In adversity, mother symbol of resilience'

In a heartfelt blog post, Prime Minister Narendra Modi recounts moments from childhood to express gratitude to his mother, who has entered her 100th year

Mother is not just any other word in the dictionary. It encompasses a whole range of emotions love, patience, trust, and a lot more. Across the world, irrespective of country or region, children have a special affection for their mothers. A mother not only gives birth to her children, but also shapes their mind, their personality, and their self-confidence. And while doing so, mothers selflessly sacrifice their own personal needs and aspirations.

Today, I feel extremely happy and fortunate to share that my mother Smt. Heeraba is entering her hundredth year.

This is going to be her birth centenary year. If my father had been alive, he too would have celebrated his 100th birthday last week. 2022 is a special year as my mother's centenary year is starting, and my father would have completed his.

Just last week, my nephew shared a few videos of Mother from Gandhinagar. A few youngsters from the society had come home, my father's photograph was kept on a chair, there was a kirtan, and Mother was immersed in singing bhajans while playing the manjeera. She is still the same-age may have taken a toll physically, but she is as mentally alert as ever.

Earlier, there was no custom of celebrating birthdays in our family. However, children from the younger generations planted 100 trees to remember my father on his birthday.

I have no doubt that everything good in my life, and all that is good in my character, can be attributed to my parents. Today, as I sit in Delhi, I am filled with memories from the past.

In Vadnagar, our family used to stay in a tiny house which did not even have a window, let alone a luxury like a toilet or a bathroom. We used to call this oneroom tenement with mud walls and clay tiles for a roof, our home. And all of us parents, my siblings and I, stayed in my it.