Manama: A Saudi father has offered his daughter a car and gold bangles after she completed her elementary school education.
Saudi daily Al Madinah reported that the father was keen on expressing his happiness for the “graduation” of his daughter Jenna.
He parked the car carrying emotional messages of congratulations in front of her school in the Red Sea city of Jeddah and then surprised her, Al Madinah reported.
A picture of Jenna standing on the car seat went viral on social media, prompting a wide variety of comments.
The concept of gifts, regardless of how lavish they may be, is a strong feature of the Saudi and Gulf societies in general.
Last year, Saudis applauded a husband for publicly gifting his wife with a car on her graduation from college.
The elated husband adorned the new car with a congratulations message and drove it to the Northern Borders University to pick up his wife, telling her it was his gift to her.
The public gift to the wife in a highly conservative area prompted Saudis to start a hashtag to pay tribute to the compassion between the spouses and to have an online conversation among social media users.
“There is no limit to the support a wife can get from her husband,” one tweet said. “Celebrating graduation together is a health indication of the love between them.”
In July, a Saudi woman who planned to surprise her father with a gift got her own surprise when he offered her a bigger present.
Umm Fuad said she had decided to offer her father a car on Eid day as a gesture of gratitude for helping her throughout her life.
“I wanted to express part of my profound gratitude, so I decided with my husband to surprise my father with a new car,” she said. “He has been always there for me, supporting me morally and financially even when I became independent and started my own business and I wanted to show part of my appreciation,” she said.
As Umm Fuad, in her 40s, and her husband went to her father’s home to present their wishes on Eid and offer the car key, the father surprised them by telling them he was offering them a plot of land in appreciation of their gesture.
“It was such a big surprise. I wanted to surprise him, but he is the one who made the greater surprise. I will never be able to match his generosity and I am so grateful,” Umm Fuad said.
Comments by online users were highly appreciative of both father and daughter and highlighted their generosity and dedication.
