Mother's Day is celebrated around the world, but the traditions and details are varied. Mother's Day really is about the little things...
{Happy Mother's Day! Photo courtesy Myles Grant via Wikimedia}
For example, in the US, Anna Jarvis was the Mother of Mother's Day, finally achieving her goal of an official national holiday in 1914. She campaigned for the official celebration and is said to have been quite specific about it - right down to where the apostrophe in Mother's Day was located. Jarvis was clear that it should be 'Mother's Day' as a singular possessive so that it is clear this is a holiday for families and their own Mother, as opposed to a communal celebration of all mothers (which would be plural possessive 'Mothers' Day').
Many countries don't celebrate 'Mother's Day' at all, but instead celebrate International Women's Day (which the US actually celebrated officially before Mother's Day became the national holiday). Countries which celebrate International Women's Day include Russia, Albania, Kazakhstan, China, just to name a few.
And in Albania and South Korea, they celebrate both parents on the same day with Parents' Day.
Many countries recognize Mom on Mother's Day with small favors (like breakfast in bed) or gifts such as flowers. When first recognized in the US, the carnation was the most common floral gift, in no small part because Ms. Jarvis specificially selected the bloom as the emblem of Mother's Day. Additionally, carnations have been linked to motherhood because of the biblical story of carnations blooming where Jesus Christ's mother Mary's tears fell upon seeing Jesus Christ's crucifixion.
Celebration of motherhood is undertaken many ways in many different cultures, but ultimately, it comes down to appreciating and thanking woman for their unique contributions and hard work as mothers.
Do you have an interesting piece of Mother's Day information or trivia? Share it in the comments!
(Note: Mother's Day info via Wikipedia)
