Nothing in life prepares you for the loss of your mom… My beautiful mom passed away peacefully, in Gaza, but she will live on in my heart till we meet again… she was a woman of style, beauty, warmth, spirituality and unconditional love.   she was a woman of the world, generous, loved music, song and flowers … she was my backbone & of our family, independent & strong for others…
She made me feel very young with her love, humorous wit and youthful spirit …

She was an incredible mum – my refuge when my aching heart needed healing … she’ll certainly be missed but she now lives in my heart for good…

I will miss you, mom, enormously… rest in peace sweet mom 🙏… These were the first words I wrote after getting the news of the passing away of my mom, few days ago …

As the loss of my mom sinks in, I am realizing that everything I own means very little or nothing … I realized I just lost the most precious thing in my life … and although life will go on, as it should, a new perspective begins to shape the rest of my life … mom till the end was always optimistic, she saw love in everything & everyone – one sure thing she gave me is unconditional love and tons of it & that will shape whatever days left for me on this planet … People around me are often surprised if not suspicious of my optimism but it’s real, a gene I inherited from my mom to which I’m eternally grateful…

I’m lucky to have had the chance to cross a war zone and see her recently and we spent a fabulous month together going to Gaza beach, eating Shawarma & Falafel sandwiches, ice cream and watching Gaza colourful city lights … my father left us, a wealth to eat the most expensive meal in the world but my mom & I enjoyed the least expensive sandwiches, Falafel, the main staple sandwich of the poor. … but watching my fashionable mom eat Falafel, transforms it to Falafel chic … but as all good things must end, leaving her behind as we said our goodbyes for the last time, was then the most painful act of my life 😢… I had enough life in me to tell her, this deep pain we both feel is equal the depth of our love but with time, the pain will lift but the love will remain…

She loved fashion, design and perfumes, I used to get a kick out of her gentle remarks re my challenged choices of shirts and matching pants & shoes, always softly & with love… She’s as comfortable with royals as with servants, but always grounded in reality and helping others…

I will end this blog with a song, my mom loved to sing, and she could hold a tune beautifully, a gene I did not inherit, a woman of so much talent, I’m lucky to inherent some of them but the greatest gift she gave me and taught me is to forgive more, take less, give more and above all love more every day…

So, till we meet again, but not yet mom, I will honour your wishes of being a better man, every day, with love ❤️ ❤️ ❤️

Song by Marcel Khalifa: Titled Ommi (my Mom) .. you don’t need to understand Arabic to enjoy this delicate melody … (Mother I long for your bread and coffee …)