Gratitude For The Home That Forged Me: What Madagascar Means To Me

What does Madagascar mean to you?

Madagascar has many meanings to each of us that we hold dear to our hearts. We asked members of our MadaLiving community to tell us what Madagascar means to them.

In today's MadaLiving snapshot, Océane is a Malagasy student living in Canada and teaches us new Malagasy proverbs for gratitude to our family and parents for helping us to achieve our dreams. You can read the Malagasy version below!

🇨🇦: My name is Océane.

Malagasy dad, Malagasy mom, born in Madagascar. Currently, I’m continuing my studies in Canada, at the University of Moncton, Moncton Campus. I’m in the Business Administration, Organizational Information Systems program. It’s a “dream come true“ for me thanks to my parents «angady nananana sy vy nahitana» meaning iron source of goods, spade source of wealth.

Background of the proverb:

Angady nananana sy vy nahita is a Malagasy proverb: The iron (fer in French and vy in Malagasy) that was used to find is the spade (brèche in French and angady in Malagasy) thanks to which one possesses, one must be grateful. This proverb, which had a general sense of gratitude and gratitude, was said of in-laws to whom we owed good care out of gratitude.

In my case, my «Angady nananana sy vy nahitana» are my parents. I’m grateful to them for giving me this opportunity to study in a country like this and whom I’ll never stop thanking. When we’re young, it’s very difficult to stand on our own feet, to leave the country where we grew up, the family nest for a bright future.

However, Madagascar is where I come from. The home that forged me to become the woman that I am today. A culture that allowed me to know how to share what I have with the people around me, to socialize with people, to understand that in fact “fihavanana” is always essential wherever we go cause we can meet people of the same origin as us.

One sentence from a Malagasy song always marks its presence in my heart : «Tsaroavako mazana ilay salovanao» meaning your presence will be anchored in me ❤️.

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«Ny fianarana no lova tsara indrindra». It’s with this Malagasy adage that I want to include my little story and encourage young people to always believe in their dreams and to seize every opportunity that seems promising to you.

‍🇲🇬: Océane no anarako.

Malagasy ray, Malagasy reny, teraka tao Madagasikara ary mizaka feno ny zom-pirenena Malagasy aho.

Amin’izao fotoana dia manohy ny fianarako aty Canada, ao amin’ny Université de Moncton, Campus de Moncton aho. Ao amin’ny taranja Administration des affaires, Systèmes d’information Organisationnels no misy ahy.

Nofinofy lay izy tamin’ny voalohany ary lasa tanteraka ilay izy ankehitriny, ary tsy haiko ny tsy hisaotra ny ray aman-dreniko ombieny ombieny noho izany.

Amin’ny mahazatovo ny tena dia sarotra dia sarotra ny mandeha mikopak’elatra, mandao ny tany nahalebiazana, indrindraindrindra ny loharano nipoirana, mba hikatsahana izay mahasoa.