‘Hold Mom’s hands’ campaign warms social media

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“How long has it been since you held your mom’s hands?” During this Spring Festival holiday, this simple but thought-provoking question has been rife on Chinese social media since a campaign video to encourage people to give a hug to their mother was released through several China’s state media on Tuesday.

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The two-minute video starts with a voiceover describing the status quo of contemporary Chinese white-collar workers and recognized their achievements both in life and career, but the scene suddenly shifts to their parents. An aged woman is seen looking at family photos alone; another is having a dinner alone while a mother watches TV by herself.

President Xi Jinping holds his mother's hand for a walk. /Xinhua Photo

A photo of Chinese President Xi Jinping and his mother also appears in one scene with his voice reciting a Tang poem about mother’s love before the video concludes with the scene of youngsters coming back home during the Spring Festival and hugging their parents.

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Touched and encouraged by the online campaign, more than 1.21 billion people have joined in and shared their photos and stories with moms.

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Weibo @XiaohaitunV587 posted a photo of her hand holding her mother's and her baby's hands, writing in her post, “Go forward hand in hand.”

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@Aichicaomeidebuyanye shared a photo of her holding her ill mom’s hand. “Hope you can nag at me. I’m not bored,” she wrote.

A good many celebrities also unhesitatingly shared photos of holding their mother’s hands to show respect to their moms.

Zhang Jie posted his photo on Weibo. /Screenshot

Chinese singer and actor Zhang Jie posted a photo showing him holding his mom’s hand with another of his mother holding his. He wrote, “You raised me up. I am with you though you are aging.”

Angelababy's photo of holding her mother's hand. /Screenshot

Angelababy, a famous Chinese actress and model, shared three photos of her holding her mom’s hand while walking in the snow. She promised in the post, “Walk forward together and protect you all the way.”

A Chinese TV and broadcasting company in east China’s Jiangsu Province even asked passersby on the street questions mentioned in the video. Their answers have touched the Internet.

A woman interviewed in Jiangsu Province said with tears that she cannot hold her hand as her mother had passed away. /Jiangsu TV

“It’s really a long time. I cannot hold my mom’s hands. I remember I held her hands when I tended to her in hospital,” a woman said.

“I’ve been holding my mom’s hand,” a tourist from Shanghai said with his hands firmly holding his mom’s.

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Holding hands is a rather simple act, but it can bring about an instant intimacy and express a deep connection with someone else. Zhan Dan, a professor with Shanghai Normal University commented that for everyone, the mother is not only a person who gives birth but a heroine who carries the burden of a family.