Your life changes forever the day you bring home your little bundle of joy. Whether you give birth naturally, adopt or foster, this little person now depends on you for everything. From now on they come first, you come second, and a poor second at that
Being a mother is fabulous, and funny, and frightening. It’s the best and worst of jobs. There are cuddles and giggles, sports days and parents’ evenings, Na-tivities, and music recitals…there are also blazing rows with slammed doors, sleepless nights and more vomit than you ever realised one small human could pro-duce.
Mums are multi-tasking maestros. Carer, teacher, agony aunt, tour guide, drill sergeant, PA, and chauffeur… Even when they leave home it doesn’t stop. I still rely on my mother for advice, help with childcare, and a shoulder to cry on when things go pear-shaped.
It’s only now as with children of my own, that I realise what my own mother went through – why she made me do my homework, go to bed early, stop beating my sister up, eat my broccoli, save my pocket money, don’t talk to strangers, and say please and thank you.
Mother’s Day might have become a cliché, but it does give us the perfect opportunity to say thank you to our mums for everything they have done and still do for us.
Anna Jarvis, who founded Mothers’ Day in the US said she came to regret campaigning to get the day recognised, because it became commercialised. She hated that people sent cards with a pre-printed message rather than writing a letter.
So, although it’s a nice gesture to buy a card and give flowers and chocolates, it’s even nicer to do something special to show you care – maybe valet her car or treat her to a pamper session, or just visit and spend the afternoon chatting. Time is the most precious gift of all.
And go beyond the message in the card. Write a few personal lines of your own to tell your mother what she means to you. Make sure she knows that she’s loved and appreciated all year round.
Mothers’ Day in Brief
Mother’s Day is celebrated all around the world, usually in March or in May.
In the UK, it is a mixture of a Christian tradition, and the celebration of mother-hood that began in the USA in the early 20th century. During the 16th century, people in service would return to their home or ‘mother’ church on the fourth Sunday in Lent – Mothering Sunday.
The modern version of Mothers’ Day we know today became a regular event in the 1950s, largely thanks to businesses keen to exploit its commercial potential!