As early as the 1850s, West Virginia women’s organizer Ann Reeves Jarvis held Mother’s Day work clubs to improve sanitary conditions and try to lower infant mortality by fighting disease and curbing milk contamination, according to historian Katharine Antolini of West Virginia Wesleyan College.

The groups also tended wounded soldiers of both sides during the U.S. Civil War from 1861 to 1865, she added.

In the postwar years Jarvis and other women organized Mother’s Friendship Day picnics and other events as pacifist events uniting former foes. Julia Ward Howe, for one—best known as the composer of “The Battle Hymn of the Republic”—issued a widely read “Mother’s Day Proclamation” in 1870, calling for women to take an active political role in promoting peace.

Around the same time, Jarvis had initiated a Mothers’ Friendship Day for Union and Confederate loyalists across her state. But it was her daughter Anna who was most responsible for what we call Mother’s Day—and who would spend most of her later life fighting what it had become.

“Mother’s Day,” Not “Mothers’ Day”

Moved by the 1905 death of her own mother, Anna Jarvis, who never had children of her own, was the driving force behind the first Mother’s Day observances in 1908.

On May 10 of that year, families gathered at events in Jarvis’s hometown of Grafton, West Virginia—at a church now renamed the International Mother’s Day Shrine—as well as in Philadelphia, where Jarvis lived at the time, and in several other cities.

Largely through Jarvis’s efforts, Mother’s Day came to be observed in a growing number of cities and states until U.S. President Woodrow Wilson officially set aside the second Sunday in May in 1914 for the holiday.

“For Jarvis it was a day where you’d go home to spend time with your mother and thank her for all that she did,” said West Virginia Wesleyan’s Antolini, who wrote “Memorializing Motherhood: Anna Jarvis and the Defense of Her Mother’s Day” as her Ph.D. dissertation.

“It wasn’t to celebrate all mothers. It was to celebrate the best mother you’ve ever known—your mother—as a son or a daughter.” That’s why Jarvis stressed the singular “Mother’s Day,” rather than the plural “Mothers’ Day,” Antolini explained. But Jarvis’s success soon turned to failure, at least in her own eyes.

Storming Mother’s Day

Anna Jarvis’s idea of an intimate Mother’s Day quickly became a commercial gold mine centering on the buying and giving of flowers, candies, and greeting cards—a development which deeply disturbed Jarvis. She set about dedicating herself and her sizable inheritance to returning Mother’s Day to its reverent roots.

Jarvis incorporated herself as the Mother’s Day International Association and tried to retain some control of the holiday. She organized boycotts, threatened lawsuits, and even attacked First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt for using Mother’s Day to raise funds for charities.

“In 1923 she crashed a convention of confectioners in Philadelphia,” Antolini said.

A similar protest followed two years later. “The American War Mothers”, which still exists, used Mother’s Day for fundraising and sold carnations every year,” Antolini said. “Anna resented that, so she crashed their 1925 convention in Philadelphia and was actually arrested for disturbing the peace.”

Jarvis’s fervent attempts to reform Mother’s Day continued until at least the early 1940s. In 1948 she died at 84 in Philadelphia’s Marshall Square Sanitarium.

“This woman, who died penniless in a sanitarium in a state of dementia, was a woman who could have profited from Mother’s Day if she wanted to,” Antolini said. “But she railed against those who did, and it cost her everything, financially and physically.”

Mother’s Day Gifts Today: Brunch, Bouquets, Bling

Today, of course, Mother’s Day continues to roll on as an engine of consumerism.

In the U.S. alone, Mother’s Day 2012 spending will reach $18.6 billion—with the average adult spending more than $152.52 on gifts, the National Retail Federation estimates.

Sixty-six percent of Americans celebrating Mother’s Day will treat their mothers to flowers, the federation reports, and more than 30 percent of the surveyed celebrants plan to give their mothers gifts of jewelry.

The U.S. National Restaurant Association reports that Mother’s Day is the year’s most popular holiday for dining out. Last year the association estimated that some 75 million U.S. adults woud do just that on the holiday.

As for Mother’s Day being a Hallmark holiday, there’s no denying it, strictly speaking.

Hallmark Cards itself, which sold its first Mother’s Day cards in the early 1920s, reports that Mother’s Day is the number three holiday for card exchange in the United States, behind Christmas and Valentine’s Day—another apparent affront to the memory of the mother of Mother’s Day.

“A printed card means nothing except that you are too lazy to write to the woman who has done more for you than anyone in the world,” Jarvis once said, according to the book Women Who Made a Difference.

“And candy! You take a box to Mother—and then eat most of it yourself. A pretty sentiment.”

Mother’s Day Gone Global

The holiday Anna Jarvis launched has spread around much of the world, though it’s celebrated with varying enthusiasm, in various ways, and on various days—though more often than not on the second Sunday in May.

In much of the Arab world, Mother’s Day is on March 21, which happens to loosely coincide with the start of spring. In Panama the day is celebrated on December 8, when the Catholic Church honors perhaps the most famous of mothers, the Virgin Mary. In Thailand mothers are honored on August 12, the birthday of Queen Sirikit, who has reigned since 1956 and is considered by many to be a mother to all Thais.

Britain’s centuries-old Mothering Sunday, the fourth Sunday of the Christian period of Lent, began as a spring Sunday designated for people to visit their area’s main cathedral, or mother church, rather than their local parish.

Mothering Sunday church travel led to family reunions, which in turn led to Britain’s version of Mother’s Day.

Mother’s Day ~ the HISTORY

Origin of Mother’s Day goes back to the era of ancient Greek and Romans. But the roots of Mother’s Day history can also be traced in UK where a Mothering Sunday was celebrated much before the festival saw the light of the day in US. However, the celebration of the festival as it is seen today is a recent phenomenon and not even a hundred years old. Thanks to the hard work of the pioneering women of their times, Julia Ward Howe and Anna Jarvis that the day came into existence.

Today the festival of Mothers day is celebrated across 46 countries (though on different dates) and is a hugely popular affair. Millions of people across the globe take the day as an opportunity to honor their mothers, thank them for their efforts in giving them life, raising them and being their constant support and well wisher.

Earliest History of Mothers DayThe earliest history of Mothers Day dates back to the ancient annual spring festival the Greeks dedicated to maternal goddesses. The Greeks used the occasion to honor Rhea, wife of Cronus and the mother of many deities of Greek mythology.

Ancient Romans, too, celebrated a spring festival, called Hilaria dedicated to Cybele, a mother goddess. It may be noted that ceremonies in honour of Cybele began some 250 years before Christ was born. The celebration made on the Ides of March by making offerings in the temple of Cybele lasted for three days and included parades, games and masquerades. The celebrations were notorious enough that followers of Cybele were banished from Rome.

Early Christians celebrated a Mother’s Day of sorts during the festival on the fourth Sunday of Lent in honor of the Virgin Mary, the Mother of Christ. In England the holiday was expanded to include all mothers. It was then called Mothering Sunday.

History of Mother’s Day: Mothering Sunday The more recent history of Mothers Day dates back to 1600s in England. Here a Mothering Sunday was celebrated annually on the fourth Sunday of Lent (the 40 day period leading up to Easter) to honor mothers. After a prayer service in church to honor Virgin Mary, children brought gifts and flowers to pay tribute to their own mothers.

On the occasion, servants, apprentices and other employees staying away from their homes were encouraged by their employers to visit their mothers and honor them. Traditionally children brought with them gifts and a special fruit cake or fruit-filled pastry called a simnel. Yugoslavs and people in other nations have observed similar days.

Custom of celebrating Mothering Sunday died out almost completely by the 19th century. However, the day came to be celebrated again after World War II, when American servicemen brought the custom and commercial enterprises used it as an occasion for sales.

…even in modern times, women still sing for PEACE – here is Whitney Houston, one of our greatest. RIP.

History of Mother’s Day: Julia Ward Howe

The idea of official celebration of Mothers day in US was first suggested by Julia Ward Howe in 1872. An activist, writer and poet Julia shot to fame with her famous Civil War song, “Battle Hymn of the Republic”. Julia Ward Howe suggested that June 2 be annually celebrated as Mothers Day and should be dedicated to peace. She wrote a passionate appeal to women and urged them to rise against war in her famous Mothers Day Proclamation, written in Boston in 1870. She also initiated a Mothers’ Peace Day observance on the second Sunday in June in Boston and held the meeting for a number of years. Julia tirelessly championed the cause of official celebration of Mothers Day and declaration of official holiday on the day. Her idea spread but was later replaced by the Mothers’ Day holiday now celebrated in May.

History of Mother’s Day: Present Day Celebrations Today Mothers Day is celebrated in several countries including US, UK, India, Denmark, Finland, Italy, Turkey, Australia, Mexico, Canada, China, Japan and Belgium. People take the day as an opportunity to pay tribute to their mothers and thank them for all their love and support.

The day has become hugely popular and in several countries phone lines witness maximum traffic. There is also a tradition of gifting flowers, cards and others gift to mothers on the Mothers Day. The festival has become commercialised to a great extent. Florists, card manufacturers and gift sellers see huge business potential in the day and make good money through a rigorous advertising campaign.

It is unfortunate to note that Ms Anna Jarvis, who devoted her life for the declaration of Mothers Day holiday was deeply hurt to note the huge commercialisation of the day.

Mothers Day is celebrated with lot of enthusiasm in over 46 countries across the globe. Though Mothers Day celebrations take place at different times around the world what is remarkably same are the feelings with which people celebrate Mothers Day. This is so because mothers are as caring in East as they are in the West. The difference between mothers from one part of the world to the other simply does not exist and so are the feelings of children. All over the world people love to celebrate Mothers Day with their mothers and shower love on them.

How is Mothers Day Celebrated ? In many countries special prayer services are held in churches in honor of mothers. But the most common method of celebrating Mothers Day is to treat mothers with breakfast in bed. Children allow their mothers to sleep till late in the morning while they along with their father juggle in the kitchen to prepare her favourite breakfast. Most often a Mothers Day card and a bunch of bouquet accompany the meticulously laid breakfast. Many children prepare a card themselves a day before Mothers Day. Some also make handmade gifts to show their respect and affection for their mother. Grown up children prefer to buy gifts from the stores ranging from clothes, accessories to jewelry.

Cakes, cookies and pies are the favourite dishes prepared on the occasion of Mothers Day. Some consider having dinner at home with the family as an ideal way of celebrating Mothers Day, many on the other hand prefer to dine out. Hence, restaurants are seeing more business then ever on the occasion of Mothers Day.

Since Mothers Day is observed as a holiday in lot of countries many like to take the opportunity to go out for family picnics and have fun. In several schools, celebrations of Mothers Day are organised wherein children present skits, songs and plays to honor mothers.

What can children do on Mothers Day ?

There are a lot of games and activities which may be planned on Mothers Day. But besides the euphoria of celebration people must not forget that the day is meant to make mothers feel special. On Mothers Day, children must be nice to their mom and give them a days rest. Its a wonderful idea to complete household chores on the day and make your mama feel that you acknowledge the importance of all she does to run the house so smoothly. Elder children may book a parlor or a spa treatment for mothers and make them care for themselves as most mothers find it difficult to get time for themselves.

Time for Family Reunion People staying away from the families make efforts to spend the day with mothers and grandmothers to make them feel special. This way Mothers Day has turned out to be family reunion day for many. While those who cannot visit their moms call their mother on phone and send greeting cards to express their gratitude and love for them.

Commercialization of Mothers DayThe festival of Mothers Day is based on the emotions shared between mother and a child and marketers make all efforts to convert the sentiments into profit. Rigorous advertising campaigns are launched days before the festival to lure people so that they spend more money on the day. Though this helps to promote Mothers Day and raise awareness about it, but somewhere along the line the noble ideas behind the celebration of Mothers Day get lost and what remains is the formality to exchange gifts. Founder of Mothers Day, Anna Jarvis was particularly annoyed with the high level of commercialisation of Mothers Day in US.

A Prayer ~ Thank God for our Mothers

If life were without water, where would we be?
If life were without mothers,
There would be no you or me.
We all need to take hold, of how precious life really is,
and not take for granted the gift of love and the ability to give.
Thank you to God for creating us all
For giving us our mothers
So we can stand proud and tall.
Humans are no accident, no mistake or error
We sometimes live our lives in fear of this,
Even to the point of terror.
But when the truth is told, and recognised by all,
God does not create rubbish. He knew what he was doing when he created
me and you, but the best gift of all, is giving us loving, caring
Mothers who love us unconditionally through and through.
None of us are perfect, that includes ourselves and family.
Hold onto how precious we are and thank God for our mothers.
Amen

Julia Hunt

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAYS !!!