Mother’s Day – Honoring our moms!

Mother’s Day – an Ancestral Celebration:

Did you know that a long time ago the ‘Mother Goddess’ was celebrated instead of mothers? The annual ‘Mother Goddess’ festivals originated in Egypt and were also popular in ancient Greece, where they became so wild and fun that they were eventually banned.

A later incarnation in England fell on the fourth Sunday of Lent and early Christians used the day to honor the church where they were baptized (their mother Church). Then something changed in 1600. A clerical decree in England expanded the celebration to include royal mothers; earning the name ‘Mother’s Day’. It was a compassionate day for the working classes who were allowed to travel back to their place of origin to visit their mothers. It was also a one-day postponement of Lent and the entire fast. Families from all over England were able to enjoy a family meal with ‘Mother’, the guest of honour, complete with cakes and flowers for her.

In 1907, Miss Anna Jarvis in the US started a campaign that made Mother’s Day a national holiday in 1911. Anna’s mother died when she was 41 years old. She felt that children should appreciate and celebrate her mother more while they are still alive. She hoped that this day would increase respect and love for her mother and strengthen family ties. She fought against the commercialization of her. In 1912 the International Mother’s Day Association was incorporated to further promote meaningful observations. Mother’s Day celebrations are now a tradition around the world. Australia along with the USA, Denmark, Finland, Italy, Turkey and Belgium celebrate the same day. Remember that the figure of the ‘mother’ today can be a man, a relative, a friend or another caregiver who has assumed the role of ‘maternal’. Please remember to honor them on this day as well.

Floral traditions:

White carnations were Miss Anna Jarvis’s mother’s favorite flower. This flower was chosen to represent the sweetness, purity and resilience of her mother’s love. The white carnation is now a tradition worn or placed in the home in honor of the mother who has died. Since then, a red carnation has become the symbol of a living mother and is worn on the lapel or re-clustered and placed in the home to honor the mother.

How to make your mom feel special without spending money:
Here are some suggestions to help your mom feel really good on her special day, remembering that the holidays are more meaningful if we refrain from buying gifts.

– Plan to do a secret act of kindness each day for the 7 days leading up to Mother’s Day. This can include secretly doing one of Mom’s chores for her every day. Imagine how good she will feel mom on Sunday!

– Leave a thank you note in a different place each day for 7 days leading up to Mother’s Day, for example, inside her slippers, on the bathroom mirror, on her steering wheel, on her bedside lamp, under her pillow etc

– On Mother’s Day, don’t talk about yourself, instead focus on your mother. Focus on her by asking her questions about her childhood, her favorite memories, her favorite subjects in school, her favorite hobby, her favorite food when she was young, her first job, her most memorable vacation, her most embarrassing moment, how she met her father , what life was like when you were born, your funniest and most endearing memories with your children, etc. By concentrating on her mother and her memories, he is expressing her love for her.

Teach an age-old cake tradition:

Simnel cake was originally a ‘Mother’s Sunday’ tradition. If you are a parent of children who are still at home, spend some special time with them to make this ‘Mother’s Day’ cake as a surprise for mom on Mother’s Day. You can have fun and be creative by decorating it differently each year. Just Google ‘Simple Simnel Cake’ to find an easy recipe.

Happy mothers day to all moms xx

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