Medical workers pose for selfies as the Gardenia Choir sings for them at a hospital in Damascus, Syria, on June 8, 2020. As the COVID-19 crisis is wreaking tremendous psychological havoc across the world, a Syrian choir decided to sing happy rhythms for the country's doctors who are doing what they can to keep everyone safe from the deadly virus. (Photo by Ammar Safarjalani/Xinhua)
DAMASCUS, June 13 -- As the COVID-19 crisis is wreaking tremendous psychological havoc across the world, a Syrian choir decided to sing happy rhythms for the country's doctors who are doing what they can to keep everyone safe from the deadly virus.
At the entrance of the Children's University Hospital in the capital Damascus, the Gardenia Choir sang an hour of traditional Syrian rhythms, drawing the doctors there to, at first, the windows and then the entrance for a better break from their daily stress amid the coronavirus outbreak.
Rami Abdul-Rahman, a doctor at the hospital, described this act of charity, which is supported and organized by the Syrian Culture Ministry, as an unexpected lovely gesture.
"The initiative is awesome, especially during the coronavirus crisis when doctors work silently without waiting for any word of gratitude," he told Xinhua.
Samir Mustafa, an organizer with the Culture Ministry, said the doctors have been working under pressure during the nine-year Syrian war in general and the coronavirus pandemic in particular.
Singing songs for the medical teams sends "a very important humanitarian message" about people's appreciation for what they have done, he told Xinhua.
After the folkloric songs, the Gardenia Choir started to perform cartoon songs for the children in the hospital who gave the choir a big round of applause and even joined it.
Ghada Harb, the leader of the Gardenia Choir, told Xinhua that her team's singing for the medical teams aims to send a message of appreciation for the efforts they've made.
Syria has so far recorded 164 COVID-19 cases, including 68 recoveries and six deaths.
The Syrian government has recently lifted most precautions against the COVID-19 pandemic, including cancelling a partial curfew and reopening businesses.
