Mother's Day is a celebratory day that has been around for quite some time. Many countries around the world celebrate Mother's Day. Some celebrate International Women's Day instead, due to the commercial nature of Mother's Day.
In the United States, our modern Mother's Day was first founded in 1914 by Anna Jarvis. She held a memorial for her own mother in 1908, and led the campaign to create the holiday on our calendar. By the time 1920 rolled around she was already disappointed in the commercialism of the holiday.
Around the world different countries celebrate Mother's Day in many ways. some countries use religious dates of significance as Mother's Day. Other countries use dates of significance to women to celebrate moms, or women in general. In Roman Catholic countries the celebration is centered around The Virgin Mary, the mother of all mothers.
Some countries, like Germany and France, adopted a Mother's Day traditional celebration during times of greatly declining birth rates. This was in an effort to celebrate the meaning of motherhood and show a support for women to create families and raise children. They felt that by lifting mothers up, and showing support for them it would encourage more women to want to become mothers themselves. The birth rate did come up, but it remains to be proven whether or not the creation of Mother's Day had any impact on that.
In India, mothers are revered greatly by their children. Mother's Day for them is a day to thank their mothers quietly for their love and devotion. It is common in India for the cultural centers to have events to celebrate mothers, but their celebration is not religious in nature. It is a time to honor moms through praise and cultural arts.
The greatest irony of Mother's Day here in the United States is the fact that the woman who started it all, Anna Jarvis, was ultimately arrested for protesting the holiday. She became so enraged at the commercialization by the card companies and florists that she literally protested the whole holiday and showed regret for ever having supported the notion in the first place.
Mother's Day does not have to be filled with expensive gifts and flowers. As a mom to three girls, when my oldest two ask what I want for mother's day, I answer to them the same thing every year, "I do not need presents, your love, and appreciation are more than enough." This is true. The fact that one is making me breakfast, and the other is writing me a song, makes my heart just melt. They are putting so much thought and attention into their gifts. They have been planning for WEEKS!! It is just the sweetest, cutest thing ever. They started giving me my gifts the moment they started talking about them, because they have not stopped. It means so much to me to be so important in their minds.
I wish you all a Happy Mother's Day. This year, sit down and write your Mom a handwritten letter expressing your love and devotion. We have the power to take the commercialism out of this and every holiday, we just have to make it a priority. We have to take the commercialism out of our society first and foremost.
HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!!
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