Mother’s Day is an ancient tradition that has been recognized globally for many centuries. Historical records document celebration of mothers going back to Early Egypt with Isis – who became known and celebrated as the Mother of the Pharaohs. The Romans’ Mother’s Day celebrated the Phrygian goddess Cybele – commonly referred to as the “Magna Mater” (Great Mother).
In the 17th century England began celebrating this special day.England began their tradition in the 1600’s. They called this day “Mothering Sunday”, a day that was celebrated during Lent. Everyone was encouraged to visit their mothers on this day, even servants.
It was not until centuries later that Mother’s Day would be recognized in the United States. The first recorded celebration in America was actually a protest. In 1870, Julia Ward Howe gathered Mothers together in order to celebrate peace and motherhood. Seeing so many young men die, all mothers’ sons, in the recent Civil War had caused her anguish.
In 1908, Ana Jarvis made attempts at creating a National Mother’s Day, which would be in recognition of the anniversary of her Mother’s death. Her first effort was made in 1907 when she gave each Mother of the church her own Mother taught Sunday school for, a white carnation. There were total of five hundred carnations passed out. The memorial service was held at her Mother’s church on May 10, 1908. From there Ana would trademark “Mother’s Day” and “second Sunday in May”.
In some ways, this tradition is carried on today. We still honor our Mothers on the second Sunday of May – staying true to the holy vow Ana Jarvis began. We also often give our Mothers flowers. Even the tradition of decorating our Mother is continued. The goddess Isis was typically seen sitting on throne wearing a crown made of two horns. The horns were guardians of a fiery sun orb. This is the one day per year that we shower our Mothers with gifts – most commonly rings, earrings, and necklaces, that will only compliment her beauty further, just Ana Jarvis did so in remembrance of her Mother, and the people of Egypt honored Isis.
Specially designed mothers jewelry is a great way to let mothers and grandmothers know that they are loved loved and appreciated. There is now a wide variety of personalized jewelry available for mother’s and grandmothers that hold the birth dates, names, and birthstones of the children and grandchildren. Over the years mothers rings have developed into the most widely chosen mother’s gift. A Mother and Grandmother have the one job that one can never retire from. It is important to honor them with the same beauty they gave us the day we were born.
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