Mother's Day!

On the second Sunday in May, children young and old, from America, Denmark, Finland, Italy, Turkey, Australia and Belgium recognize their mothers by giving something special. Mothers Day is also celebrated in England, Spain and France. It is the one day out of the year when children, show appreciation of their mothers in some generous way, whether this is a lavish gift or best of all, a gift from the heart.

England was one of the first countries to set aside a day to recognize mothers. In the eighteenth century when many people worked as apprentices or household servants, "Mothering Sunday" was reserved for them to return home to be with their mothers. Often a “mothering cake” was brought as a gift, very similar to a fruit cake. Although the tradition almost died out during the nineteenth century, but one Sunday for Mothers was finally established as a holiday in the twentieth century.

In the United States, Mother's Day did not become an official holiday until 1915. Anna Jarvis wanted to honor her mother. Anna swore at her mother’s gravesite that she would establish a day to honor sacrifices by mothers for their families. She asked the minister at her mother’s church to give a sermon to honor Mrs. Jarvis and all mothers with a special Mother's Day service. Anna passed out 500 carnations, one for each mother in the congregation; also the carnation was her mother’s favorite flower. In 1914, Anna Jarvis successfully lobbied congress to establish Mothers Day as a national holiday.