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There’s one day a year when I wake up to the smell of freshly brewed coffee brought to my bed. There are also hugs and kisses from my children, greeting cards, poems, flowers, and gifts. Mother’s Day! Oh, if only every day could be like that…
Though my hands are small
and I can’t do much,
I’ll help mommy,
so she can rest…
The tradition of celebrating Mother’s Day originated in ancient Greece. With the blossoming of spring, the Festival of Mother Nature was held – a celebration of fertility and abundance. At that time, homage was paid to the goddess Rhea, wife of Cronus, mother of the universe and all deities. In ancient Rome, during the Ides of March, it was customary to celebrate the festival of the goddess Cybele, also considered the mother of the gods. This festival was called Hilaria and lasted three days from March 15 to 18, accompanied by mysterious rituals and boisterous, unrestrained revelry.
In Catholic European countries, Hilaria was “adopted” in later times by the patriarchs of the early Catholic Church and transformed into the feast of Mary – the Mother of God. Especially in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Iberian countries, and Orthodox countries, a strong Marian cult developed, which is still cultivated today.
“A mother is not someone to lean on, but someone to make leaning unnecessary.” Dorothy Fisher
The tradition of Mother’s Day is also linked to the history of the so-called “Mothering Sunday” celebrated since around the 16th century in England and Scotland. On every fourth Sunday of Lent, young maids and farmhands were released from service to spend the day with their mothers. The symbol of this holiday was the mothering cake, which daughters baked and brought home as a sign of respect and love. Children gave their mothers gifts, mainly flowers and sweets, in exchange for a blessing. This holiday survived until about the 19th century, and its celebration returned after the end of World War II.
In the United States, the history of Mother’s Day is the story of Miss Anna Jarvis of West Virginia, who adored her mother to the extreme. Anna, the ninth of eleven children, dreamed of fulfilling her mother’s wish – the wish that one day all mothers would have their own holiday. Two years after the death of the elder Mrs. Jarvis, in 1907, Anna Jarvis and her circle of friends began a campaign to establish an official Mother’s Day. Miss Jarvis, who never married and cared for her blind sister until the end of her life, believed that this was the best way to pay tribute to her mother. The establishment of this holiday was intended to draw attention to the responsible and difficult role of a mother, to strengthen the bonds between parents and their children, and to highlight the effort mothers put into nurturing their families. By 1909, 45 states, as well as Puerto Rico, Hawaii, Canada, and Mexico, were celebrating this Day. As a sign of respect for mothers, people pinned white and red carnations to their clothes: red for living mothers, and white for deceased mothers. This tradition was started by Anna Jarvis herself. She chose carnations because they were her mother’s favorite flowers. Just 4 years later, Mother’s Day was already a widely known and accepted holiday. President Woodrow Wilson declared it a national holiday and set its observance for the second Sunday in May.
On the occasion of Mother’s Day, it is worth mentioning the “mother” of another holiday – Father’s Day. Sonora Luise Smart Dodd, listening to a sermon delivered on Mother’s Day, thought of her father, who raised six children alone after his wife’s death. In 1910, on June 4, on the anniversary of Sonora’s father’s birthday, a mass was to be held in honor of fathers, however, more time was needed for solid preparations, and the ceremony was postponed by two weeks. And so, for the first time, on June 19, 1910, Father’s Day was celebrated in Spokane, USA. Fathers present at the mass were given red roses as gifts, while white roses honored the memory of those fathers who had passed away. The story goes that Sonora, in a two-horse carriage with her small son in her arms, deeply committed to her role, personally delivered baskets of roses to nearby churches. And although for many years this day was marked by roses, in 1931 roses were replaced by the common dandelion. The dandelion “fit” the image of fathers better, claimed supporters of this change, because “the more it is trampled, the better it grows.” Sonora long tried to have this Day permanently entered into the calendar. In 1924, a few years after her father’s death, President Calvin Coolidge finally accepted it, and in 1966 President Lyndon Johnson named Father’s Day a national holiday and set its observance in the United States for the third Sunday in June. In Poland, since 1965, this holiday has been celebrated on June 23.
Today, Mother’s Day is celebrated in over 40 countries worldwide. Most often, mothers celebrate on the second Sunday of May, but there are also other dates: in Armenia on April 7, in Mexico on May 10, in Bolivia on May 27, in Thailand on the birthday of Queen Sirikit Kitiyakara on August 12, and in Indonesia on December 22. Mother’s Day in Poland was first celebrated in Krakow in 1923. Traditionally, we celebrate this holiday by giving mothers cards and bouquets of flowers, reciting poems, and inviting them to academies specially organized for them in kindergartens and schools. In Italy, heart-shaped cakes are popular during La Festa della Mamma. What’s more, on this day the whole family takes care of the house, allowing mom to rest. In Yugoslavia, on Mother’s Day, children sneak into their parents’ bedroom and tie their mother to the bed. After waking up, the mother tries to bribe the children with sweets she has prepared especially for the occasion. In Sweden, on Mother’s Day (May 25), a large charity event is organized – the proceeds from the sale of plastic flowers are used to support the poorest families.
– Mommy – asks three-year-old Kasia – why do you have such a big tummy?
– Because I have a baby in it – answers mom.
– Mommy, do you love him?
– Of course. I love him very much.
– Then why did you eat him?
I wish all mothers a pleasant and smiling day.
Iwona Sikorska – Szczupak. Mom.
photo by pixabay.com
