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Show u "AY J U ML CZU Almost all of us celebrate the holiday on the second Sunday in May that is dedicated to honoring honor-ing and loving our mothers, but where did Mother's Day originate? origi-nate? The earliest Mother's Day celebrations cele-brations can be traced back to Greek mythology. Every spring, Greece held celebrations in honor of Rhea, wife of Cronus and mother of the gods and goddesses. god-desses. The next known celebration of mothers was in 1600, when England began to celebrate a day called Mothering Sunday, celebrated on the fourth Sunday of Lent. The purpose of "Mothering Sunday" was to honor the mothers of England. During this time, many of England's poor worked as servants ser-vants for the wealthy. As most jobs were located far from their homes, the servants would live at the houses of their employers. On Mothering Sunday the servants would have the day off and were encouraged to return home and spend the day with their mothers. A special cake, called the mothering cake, was often brought along to provide a festive and warm touch. - .; As Christianity spread throughout Europe the celebration celebra-tion changed to honor the "Mother Church," the spiritual spiri-tual power that gave them life and protected their mothers as well as the -f "" church. v Mother's , ; Day wasn't suggested in the United - States until 1872 by Julia Ward I 1 . -".TV vY ;: V, i-', J- " ' 4. Howe, who wrote the words to the Battle Hymn of the Republic, as a day dedicated dedicat-ed to peace. Howe would hold organized Mother's Day meetings in Boston, Mass. every year. In 1907, - Philadelphian Vf.. X Ana Jarvis I oegan a V campaign to establish a i national , Mother's , ' Day. Jarvis ' persuaded her moth- er's church r, in uraiton, W. Va., to celebrate Mother's Day j on the second anniversary of her mother's death, the second Sunday of May. By the next year, Mother's Day was celebrated cele-brated throughout Philadelphia. Jarvis and her supporters began to write to ministers, businessmen and politicians in their quest to establish a national nation-al Mother's Day. Her efforts and dedication were successful, because by 1911 Mother's Day was celebrated in almost every state. In 1914, President Woodrow Wilson made the official announcement proclaiming Mother's Day a national holiday holi-day that was to be held each year on the second Sunday of May. Jarvis also introduced the practice of using carnations as the flower of occasion since her mother liked carnations. Since her mother was deceased, she used white carnations to stand for purity and encouraged those whose mothers were living to use red carnations. (The personal touch a Mother's T)ay gift By PEG LOUDON I used to hate Mother's Day and I'm pretty sure I'm not alone in this. It seems women in general find it hard to allow ourselves occasional nurturing. But the thing is, we're not doing anyone any favors. It's important to allow our loved ones the pleasure and rewards of doing something for someone some-one else. It may be the ultimate Mother's Day gift. Hating Mother's Day My children love Mother's Day. They expect me to stay in bed, in my pajamas and read the Sunday paper, while the two of them, giggling furiously, tiptoe down to the kitchen to prepare my breakfast which they demand that I eat in bed of course! I used .to hate Mother's Day. I didn't like eating in bed, I wanted to get dressed the minute I woke up and I worried about what was happening down in the kitchen and it had nothing to do with the time my then three-year -old came running upstairs and said, "Don't worry about the coffee. We're going to clean it up." My problem was more my inability to allow myself to be nurtured for even one morning a year. It felt alien and I felt out of control. But I did it because my children needed the chance to put someone else first even if that someone was their very reluctant mother. I don't think I'm alone in this. It's been my experience that women in general find it hard to allow themselves to be nurtured occasionally and I wonder why. Is is a peculiar form of control? Like the mother moth-er whose children never made their own sandwich or got their own drink while under her roof? Or washed their own clothes or, for that matter, put them away in their drawers? The lessons we teach Or maybe it's that we need to realize we can offer our friends and family more than just our hard work and service. We can be loved for who we are and not just what we can do for others. Accepting nurturing is an important skill and one that can be learned. The process is twofold: we need to teach others how we expect to be treated and we also need to teach them enough independence to allow us time for ourselves. Like last night for instance. My older daughter asked if she could watch her favorite TV show and then come back and do her share of the dishes. That was fine with me. Unfortunately, though, when the television show ended, she pleaded masses of homework that needed to be finished and asked if she couldn't be let off the hook "just this once," something she says on an average of twice a week. I had my book in hand, a cup of tea waiting and the sofa was beckoning. This was my chance to finally put my feet up and have some "me" time. I very nearly said yes. But just the thought made me feel resentful. If she had time to watch a TV show, I thought, surely she had ten minutes to do her part in cleaning up after the dinner I'd spent all evening making. It wasn't easy, but I said no instead and went to lie on the sofa with my novel. It's a measure of how far I've come that I felt virtually no guilt at all as I listened to the water running in the kitchen and my daughter clanging the pots and pans. When taking is giving I've learned to love Mother's Day, to cherish it even. This year I plan to lounge in bed with the Sunday paper and not feel guilty that I'm not up "doing" and being useful. I know my children will enjoy making breakfast and fixing up the bed tray. They'll be pleased to be able to offer me that treat. And I'll be pleased that I've been able to do something for them to allow them the pleasure and to feel the rewards of doing something for someone else. o o s so |