For a few weeks now I have been a little anxious. I haven’t quite been sure how I was going to feel about celebrating Mother’s Day so soon after the loss of my own mother. It is difficult to separate the day into a celebration for me and a memorial, of sorts for my mom. This got me thinking… “What is Mother’s Day?”
I did some searching on the internet and what I found was quite interesting. According to Wikipedia:
“The modern holiday of Mother’s Day was first celebrated in 1908, when Anna Jarvis held a memorial for her mother at St Andrew’s Methodist Church in Grafton, West Virginia. Today St Andrew’s Methodist Church now holds the International Mother’s Day Shrine. Her campaign to make “Mother’s Day” a recognized holiday in the United States began in 1905, the year her mother, Ann Reeves Jarvis, died.”
I was quite surprised to find that Mother’s Day began as a memorial and we carry it on today as a holiday to celebrate ALL mothers. This has really opened my heart to be able to not create a division between the two versions of Mother’s Day for me, but instead celebrate them both as one. Today will be a day filled with emotions; the good, the bad, and the ugly. I will hold my children tight and appreciate their eagerness to shower me with tokens of their love and I will also spend my day remembering all of the things that I possibly can about my mom.
May your Mother’s Day be a special one, no matter how you celebrate it!
Diane Howard says
This is so touching Trista. I too will remember my mom and your message about the origins of the day is really helpful.
The Lilypad says
Diane… Thank you so much for the comment. I am happy to know that this post was helpful. ~Trista