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Posted 5/4/22

SPELLING BEE BY BEA WESTERBERG Mother – So Many Things To Say “Youth fades, love droops, the leaves of friendship fall; A mother’s love outlives them all”. Oliver Wendell Holmes They came in …

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SPELLING BEE

BY BEA WESTERBERG

Mother –

So Many Things To Say

“Youth fades, love droops, the leaves of friendship fall; A mother’s love outlives them all”. Oliver Wendell Holmes They came in running, pushing and marching to an unknown beat!It appears to be time for the spring invasion of the small ANTS!(Maybe you thought I was talking about kids?) Gone for months and then BAM, the counter tops are ALIVE with movement. I dig in the cupboards below to find the ant treats but all I find are what looks like already used ant treat cups. The plastic wrap was cracked and “something” has already had the treats. That means a trip to the grocery or hardware store for a new seasonal shipment. I sure hope this product is not on the ships out at sea.

Now that I got that off my mind, we can move on to the next upcoming event on Sunday. Easter seemed to take forever to get here and I was sure that Mother’s Day was at least another week away. The calendar and retail stores are overriding my opinion.

Mothers have been getting honors on a special day way back in the ancient times of the Greeks and Romans. An early Christian festival called “Mothering Sunday” gave more information on how mothers were honored on a special day. This day was very popular in the United Kingdom and parts of Europe when the emphasis was on going to your “Mother Church” rather than actual human moms. By the 1930s to the 1940s, it fell out of favor and the American version was embraced as a replacement. Other countries do have a day for a special recognition of mothers, but the dates vary.

In our country, celebrating Mother’s Day is almost a new event. In 1914, Woodrow Wilson signed a bill to make it a national holiday. The official day for Mother’s Day is the second Sunday of May. A woman who never married or had children was responsible for working to get this event to become a national event. Anna Jarvis was the person’s name, and in part, she was carrying on her mother’s work from the Civil War times. Julia Ward Howe is also listed by some as the “founding mother” of this day. There most likely could be a long list of people having this program in mind. Maybe Anna had more influence or knew more people to get the President of the United State to put this event in place. Anna, who born in 1864 and passed in 1948, came to regret being the Mother’s Day founder as she became very bitter on how it got to be commercialized with candy, flowers and other gifts. She actually filed lawsuits and worked hard to get it removed from the national holiday status.

You might have a problem getting to talk to Mom on Mother’s Day as that is the highest phone use day of the year. Some report that phone usage is up by 35 or more percent on that day. Flowers might be easier to get at Mother’s Day rather than on Valentine’s Day. The colors are not as limited (mostly red and pink at Valentine’s time) and it’s later in the growing season. A candy gift can sometimes be challenging if Mom has a taste for just a specific kind or brand of candy. Sunday brunch is a very popular way to get mom out of the kitchen. Early birds have made early reservations. But don’t despair too much, there is always the INTERNET. Most of us have learned almost anything can be obtained if one is willing to do a little research. Another important fact is that you know your Mom. Is she one of those people who really does like to get a new kitchen tool or a new spice collection? Give with your heart, not from the “I have to give her something” mindset.

There are many of us that do not have the gift of having a Mom on hand to honor. Give thanks for those who have passed on as well, and the many generations before that were there to get us here today. Peace to all. That would be the greatest gift ever.

Bea Westerberg [email protected]