Mothers day

Hello all,
    So, everyone’s out there preparing for Mother’s day, which is to happen on the 14th of this month… Thus, I thought that I could publish an article on the significance of Mother’s Day. Meanwhile, a community I’m part of, called BlogMad, is giving away freebies to anyone who cares to introduce themselves on their blog, and put in the keyword “BlogMadMom”. :)

    So here’s my personal details :) Im Mohan K. , better known around the net as my alias and writing name, Neo Garfield. I’m a 12th Grade student, from India. One day, I had this strong urge to do something for this world of ours, and thus I started this blog ;) My mom is a doctor, my dad was a manager, who is now enjoying his retired life :) And I have this very annoying(but loving) elder sister, who is thankfully right now in Australia ;) Oh, and if you’re a guy from BlogMad, my username is neogarfield .

    So back to the significance of .. uh… oh yeah, Mother’s Day ;)

This occassion was started by a gal named Julia Ward Howe. She wrote a poem, in 1870, and called it the Mother’s Day Proclamation. It was a plea for peace, and disarmament (but don’t ask me where the war was :D ). It goes as follows -

From the voice of a devastated Earth a voice goes up with
 Our own. It says: “Disarm! Disarm!
 The sword of murder is not the balance of justice.”
 Blood does not wipe our dishonor,
 Nor violence indicate possession.
 As men have often forsaken the plough and the anvil at the summons of war,
 Let women now leave all that may be left of home
 For a great and earnest day of counsel.
 Let them meet first, as women, to bewail and commemorate the dead.
 Let them solemnly take counsel with each other as to the means
 Whereby the great human family can live in peace…

Yep. Thats it :) . However, she failed in her attempt to get formal recognition of a Mother’s Day for Peace. Her idea was influenced by Anna Jarvis, a young Appalachian homemaker who, starting in 1858, had attempted to improve sanitation through what she called Mothers’ Work Days. She organized women throughout the Civil War to work for better sanitary conditions for both sides, and in 1868 she began work to reconcile Union and Confederate neighbours.

Jarvis’ daughter, also named Anna Jarvis, would, of course, have known of her mother’s work, and the work of Howe. Much later, when her mother died, this second Anna Jarvis started her own crusade to found a memorial day for women. The first such Mother’s Day was celebrated in Grafton, West Virginia, on May 10, 1908, in the church where the elder Anna Jarvis had taught Sunday School. Grafton is the home to the International Mother’s Day Shrine. From there, the custom caught on — spreading eventually to 45 states.

The holiday was declared officially by somes states beginning in 1912. In 1914 President Woodrow Wilson declared the first national Mother’s Day. Nine years after the first official Mother’s Day holiday, commercialization of the U.S. holiday became so rampant that Anna Jarvis herself became a major opponent of what the holiday had become. Mother’s Day continues to this day to be one of the most commercially successful U.S. holidays.

Mother’s Day is a busy time of year for mail in many countries. In 1973, the U.S. Postal Service was held up for eight days because of the number of letters and cards. Telephone networks are also at their busiest on Mother’s Day.

On Mother’s Day, we appreciate our mothers, by sending cards, gifts, teddy bears, the works ;) So those reading this from USA, please don’t forget to wish your mother a happy mother’s day on the 14th :)

    That’s the message I wanted to convey. I hope that when you finish reading this article, you are more literate about Mother’s Day, than before. SOOOOO go ahead, and enjoy Mother’s Day! And don’t forget to drop in a comment on how you celebrated the day ;) Caio :)
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May 11, 2006 | Filed Under General World | 3 Comments 

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