Video- On Mother’s Day .. Mary sings to her dumb, deaf mother in sign language

Juman Abu Arafa - Occupied Jerusalem

For Eid Salem, 36, Mother’s Day or Mother’s Day this year was different. Her wish was fulfilled by hearing the Mother’s Day song she was deprived of throughout her maternity. She did not hear the song immortalize with her ears, but she saw it through the fingertips of her speaking daughter, as Mariam Abu Ramz, 18, translated the song into the sign language to bring back her deaf mother, pointing to the tip of her mouth smiling with the index finger, saying, "All the languages ​​of the world pronounce my mother's name."

At that moment, the mother sign language betrayed Kholoud, as her hands were busy scanning her tears pouring joy and pride in her daughter who succeeded in raising her to be the youngest certified translator for sign language in Palestine, and the owner of the "speaking fingers" initiative to teach the sign language.

Kholoud's current travel did not prevent her daughter from greeting her from Jerusalem through a video call, and without answering her with air kisses and written messages constantly to Mary to inform her of her longings.

Khulood lost hearing at the age of two years after falling to her ear, but she was able to complete her studies until the high school in a deaf and dumb boarding school, and began her university career, which ended early due to academic difficulties and the lack of educational capabilities consistent with the deaf class, but she did not give up and enrolled in many courses and focused on Reading until I became a teacher at a deaf school.

Education challenge
Kholoud spoke to Al-Jazeera Net with the sign language that Mariam translated with a trembling voice. Kholoud says that she worked 14 years as a deaf and dumb teacher, during which she gave birth to Mary, as she was taking her with her to learn sign language, and she added that she was always thinking about raising Mary and how to communicate with her.

Maryam's father was also a deaf person, so the mother merged her with her peers and relatives to learn to pronounce, after the sign language became her primary language and her only means of communication with her parents besides lip.

She also strengthened her pronunciation after going to school and her mother's relentless pursuit of her listening to the Quran, chants, children's stories and cartoons.

Kholoud says that the task was arduous, especially with the advancement of classes and the need of Mary for those who study her, but the support of the grandmother Afaf Salem was great as Mary embraced her as a second mother and always supported her.

Kholoud always dreamed of her daughter becoming a doctor, engineer or translator, to prove to those around her that the deaf are able to raise successful children, and her dream has already been fulfilled, as Mary has become a great support for her parents, and a bridge for communication between them and society.

Nassira Deaf
After she finished translating what her mother had indicated, Maryam told Al-Jazeera Net that she was bothered by the looks of compassion and sarcasm while she was with her parents.

This position and similar situations pushed Mary in 2018 to create the "speaking fingertips" initiative to teach sign language for speakers and end isolation between them and the deaf and dumb, as the initiative included translating surahs from the Holy Quran, translating lectures, stories and songs for sign language and publishing them on communication sites, in addition to periodic awareness visits For school students of all ages.

Maryam is currently studying pronunciation and hearing in her first year of college, and despite her new age, she obtained a certificate practicing the profession in translating sign language from the Palestinian Translators Syndicate, which qualified her to teach in several institutes and centers and give private lessons in that language.

She was also appointed as an official sign language interpreter in numerous exhibitions at the level of the West Bank and occupied Jerusalem, in addition to her appointment as a certified translator at the Palestinian Museum at Birzeit University, north of Ramallah.

Two weeks ago, Maryam crowned the title of "Ambassador of Humanity" at the "Make Hope" conference in Dubai, where she participated in many conferences and competitions in which she won the first place for her initiative.

“I often encounter people who are deaf people who cannot express themselves in public places and sometimes humiliate. I want to end this matter, we are the obstacle on their way, no matter. To become a global translator and open a model school for the deaf and dumb.

Maryam refuses to call the deaf and dumb category with the term “deaf and deaf” and says that they are disturbed by that as much as the view of mockery and disdain for them and their feelings, stressing that they have high mental capabilities, but some of them are of a severe nature because they are unable to express themselves.

Looking at her mother, she concludes, "It is sufficient that they were able to raise me and connect me to who I am," and then her palm came out with my middle finger and finger ringing in a sign that means "I love you", her mother exchanged the same signal and the video call between them ends.