Likewise, the Romans had a mother of all the Gods, and she was Magna Mater, or Great Mother. A temple on the Palatine Hill in Rome was built for her. Each year on March 15, there was a three-day celebration to honour her, and it was called the Festival of Hilaria. Gifts were brought to the temple to please this powerful mother-Goddess.

With the coming of Christianity, a celebration was held to honour the "Mother Church." On the fourth Sunday in Lent, people brought gifts to the church where they had been baptized.

During the Middle Ages another kind of celebration began. Since many children had to leave home to earn money, and they were only allowed one holiday a year, it was on the fourth Sunday in Lent that the children went home to see their mothers. This was called "a-mothering", and thus the custom of "Mothering Sunday" was started.

When the first settlers came to America, they didn't have time for many celebrations, so Mothering Sunday was not continued until 1872.

The famous writer, Julia Ward Howe, made the first suggestion for a Mother's Day in America. However, no one took her suggestion seriously. Other people, such as Mary Towles Sasseen, a teacher in Henderson, Kentucky, suggested that her pupils plan a musical program for their mothers.

A woman named Anna Jarvis is considered the real founder of Mother's Day in America. She was born in 1864 and lived in Grafton, West Virginia during her youth. The Civil War had ended when Anna was only one year old, yet there was still much hatred among families in West Virginia. Anna heard her mother say many times that she hoped "sometime, somewhere, someone will found a Mother's Day." She was convinced that if the family honoured their mother on a special day, the fighting and hatred would end.

When Anna's mother died, Anna made a promise to herself that she would be the "someone" to make her mother's wish come true. At her request the minister in Grafton, West Virginia, held a Mother's Day service on May 12, 1907, and this service is remembered as the first Mother's Day celebration in the United States.

Anna continued to write letters in support of a national Mother's Day on the second Sunday of May, and by 1909, almost every state was celebrating this special day. On May 9, 1914, President Woodrow Wilson signed a proclamation declaring the second Sunday in May as Mother's Day in every state.

Anna continued to write letters and give speeches, and she organized the International Mother's Day Association. Before she died in 1948, her idea had spread around the world, and more than forty countries were observing Mother's Day.

Tradition

Mother's Day is celebrated in many different countries, and not all of them celebrate it on the same date or in the same manner. Norway observes Mother's Day on the second Sunday in February, and in Argentina, it's the second Sunday in October. Lebanon celebrates Mother's Day on the first day of spring, and in South Africa, it's the first Sunday in May.

In parts of Yugoslavia where the Serbian people live, Mother's Day is called "Materice", and it is observed two weeks before Christmas. On "Materice" boys and girls tiptoe into their mother's bedroom very early in the morning and tie her up. When she awakens, she is surprised to find herself all tied up, and she begs the children to untie her, promising to give them little gifts which she has hidden under her pillow.

In India, the Hindu people celebrate a ten-day festival called Durga Puja early in October. It is to honour Durga, the Divine Mother. Durga is the most important of all Hindu Goddesses in India. She is supposed to be very tall and to have ten arms. In each arm she carries a weapon to destroy evil.

In both Spain and Portugal, Mother's Day is closely linked to the church. The eighth of December is the day that tribute is paid to the Virgin Mary, Mother of Jesus. It is also the day when children honour their mothers.

Mother's Day in France is celebrated much like a family birthday, and it occurs on the last Sunday in May. The entire extended family gathers around the family dining table for dinner, and at the end of the meal a beautiful cake is presented to the mother.

Sweden also has a family holiday on the last Sunday in May. Shortly before Mother's Day the Swedish Red Cross sells tiny plastic flowers. The money from these "Mother's Flowers" is used to give vacations to mothers with many children.

In Japan, Mother's Day is celebrated on the second Sunday in May as it is in North America. An exhibit of pictures drawn by children between the ages of six and fourteen, called "My Mother" are entered into a "traveling exhibit." This exhibit is held every four years, and it travels to many different countries. By looking at the pictures, boys and girls learn how children live in other parts of the world.

From the largest countries to the smallest, people almost everywhere celebrate Mother's Day. The days and the ways may be different, yet the idea is still the same - to honour mother in some special way.

Activities

Activities to honour mothers are different for each country or even for each family. Some children make breakfast for their mothers and serve it to them in bed when they awaken on Mother's Day. Others make little gifts, or buy special cards or flowers. Children prepare dinner as a surprise or mother is taken out to eat for her special day.

Churches hold special services to celebrate Mother's Day, and Flower Shows are celebrated around North America.

A mother does not have to be the woman who gave birth to you. There are many women who are still considered a mother to someone even though they did not give birth to him or her. Also, there are women who have never given birth to a child, yet they mother other children or even their pets. Thus, they too should be honoured on Mother's Day. Sending flowers, cards, or gifts to those who have mothered us throughout our growing years is a very special way of saying thank you for loving me.