Many mothers deserve recognition

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As the last publication before Mother’s Day, it seems appropriate to put a shout out to all the mothers in the community.

And what better demographic is there to recognize? If it weren’t for mothers, none of us would be here — same goes for fathers, but I’d argue the average mother goes through a lot more torment than most fathers. Let’s take child birth, for example, despite any crushed hands out there.

But instead of spewing my opinion about why many mothers deserve not only a day, but perhaps a week, month or year of recognition, let’s plunge into the way in which Mother’s Day is celebrated in Mexico, the United Kingdom, India and Japan.

In Mexico, the Dia de las Madres is celebrated on May 10. A journalist in 1922 wrote an article that promoted Mother’s Day celebrations. This led to massive adoption of the holiday. Mothers are usually awoken by a song that is sung by the entire family or a hired band serenades her. The family then eats a brunch where any arguments or tense relations are set aside.

In the United Kingdom, Mother’s Day started with recognizing the church in which each person was baptized, by decorating it during the mid-Lent holiday. The church extended the occasion to recognize all mothers. People in the U.K. called the holiday Mothering Sunday, when Brits took a break from fasting and penitence with a family feast. Mothering Sunday ended in the early 1900’s, but after World War II the nation readopted the holiday.

India recognizes the western version of Mother’s Day and celebrates on May 10. The holiday isn’t necessarily celebrated throughout the country; instead, mainly people in cities and cultural centres recognize their moms.

Some Christian Japanese have celebrated Mother’s Day since 1913. Locals call the holiday ‘haha no hi.’ The holiday grew to prevalence in the 1930’s, but the practice was banned during WWII, as with all western customs. The holiday was started again after the war to comfort mothers who lost children in battle.

The degree of Mother’s Day here is pretty much decided by the most dedicated child. For example, if your sister buys mom an expensive gift, that probably means you’ll have to as well if you don’t want to receive an egg shell in your omelette during your next family breakfast.

But most moms will be happy with a phone call, so make sure you circle this Sunday on your calendar.