| Happy Mother's Day |
[May. 13th, 2012|10:38 am]
Irish Warrior
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This is one of the few. holidays that I celebrate each year, and I make it a point to celebrate it was originally intended. My mother has been one of the defining people in my life, and it's sad how many people are unfamiliar with the history of this holiday.
To sum it up:
The surprising history of Mother's Day:
“The driving force behind Mother’s Day was Anna Jarvis, who organized observances in Grafton, W.Va., and Philadelphia on May 10, 1908. As the annual celebration became popular around the country, Jarvis asked members of Congress to set aside a day to honor mothers. She finally succeeded in 1914, when Congress designated the second Sunday in May as “Mother’s Day.”
As it turns out, her mother, Ann, had started Mother’s Day Work Clubs in five cities to improve health and sanitary conditions during the Civil War; soldiers from both sides were cared for equally. After her mother died, Anna Jarvis organized memorials in what ultimately led to the congressional action on Mother’s Day.
But, according to Biography.com and other sources, Anna Jarvis eventually came to resent the commercialization of the holiday — so much so that she campaigned for its abolition — to no avail. She is said to have complained that she wanted it to be “a day of sentiment, not profit,” but instead had become a bonanza for greeting cards which she saw as “a poor excuse for the letter you are too lazy to write.”
She and her sister spent the family assets trying to end it — and she was once arrested for protesting a sale of carnations for Mother’s Day after florists and greeting card companies realized in the early 1920s that the holiday could be a bonanza for them.
It's always been a bit of a stereotype for gay men to be close to their mothers, but anyone that has spent more than five minutes in this country knows that it's exactly that, just a stereotype. Which is why I'm glad tbat I have a decent relationship with my mother. There's a personal story of a high school friend that comes to mind, and the last time I saw him I was thirteen.
I was luckier, because my mother always supported who I was. I have never forgotten that.
There are many good articles out there to read, and many good activities to partake in. Articles and activities that "get it" and that captures the importance of what Anna Jarvis was about in terms of the importance of 'sentiment' on this day. Take a minute to go out there and investigate it, to be proactive.
It is impossible to celebtate. my mother without thinking about the things she did for my father. |
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