Mother's Day

The nation sets aside Sunday May 13^th as the day to honor those women who have loved, disciplined and worried about us our entire lives.  Those women who will always think of us, no matter what our age, as “kids”, and who, no matter how important we think we are, will wipe a spot off our face with spit and a hanky; our mothers. 

Where did Mother’s day come from?  Is it just a Hallmark holiday as some say?  Let’s see.

The earliest Mother's Day celebrations may have been the spring celebrations of ancient Greece in honor of Rhea, the Mother of the Gods.

During the 1600's, on the fourth Sunday of Lent, England celebrated a day honoring the mothers of England called "Mothering Sunday".  

On that day the wealthy would give their servants the day off, and they and were encouraged to return home and spend the day with their mothers.  They usually brought along a special cake called a “Mothering Cake” to add a special touch to the festivities.

As Christianity spread throughout Europe, the celebration changed to honor the "Mother Church", commemorating the belief that the church gave them life.  Over time, the church festival blended with the Mothering Sunday celebration, and people began honoring their mothers as well as the church.

In the United States, Julia Ward Howe (who wrote the words to the Battle hymn of the Republic) suggested the first Mother's Day in 1872 as a day dedicated to peace.  Every year, Ms. Howe would hold organized Mother's Day meetings in Boston, Massachusetts.

In 1907, a woman from Philadelphia, Ana Jarvis, began a campaign to establish a national Mother's Day.  Ms. Jarvis persuaded her mother's church in Grafton, West Virginia to celebrate Mother's Day on the second Sunday of May, the anniversary of her mother's death. By the next year, churches in Philadelphia were also honoring mothers on that day.

Ms. Jarvis and her supporters started a letter writing campaign to ministers, businessmen, and politicians in their quest to establish a national Mother's Day.  They were amazingly successful.  By 1911, almost every state celebrated Mother's Day.  President Woodrow Wilson, in 1914, made the official announcement proclaiming Mother's Day as a national holiday held each year on the 2nd Sunday of May, the anniversary of Ms. Jarvis’ Mothers death.

     In 1911, Joyce Hall and his brothers formed a wholesale postcard business that they named Hall Brothers, the forerunner of Hallmark.  They introduced the Pansy Card, the first Mother’s Day card in 1939, long after the establishment of Mother’s Day.  So, it seems that Mother’s Day is not a holiday created by Hallmark to sell more cards. 

I’d like to close with a few “Motherisms” that I’ve seen on the internet.

Mother taught me about logic….”Because I said so, that’s why!”

Mother taught me genetics…”You’re just like your father!”

Mother taught me about religion…”You better pray that will come out of the carpet!”

Mother taught me about my roots…”Shut that door.  Were you born in a barn?”

Mother taught me about anticipation….”Just wait until we

get home!”

Happy Mother’s Day!