~ How Are You Celebrating Mother’s Day? ~

Mother’s Day was never intended to be a commercial holiday with cards and flowers and candies. The original women who organized Mother’s Days or Clubs did so with a sense of purpose.

Juliet Ward Howe – Mother’s Day: A Day for Peace

Julia Ward Howe wanted it to be a day of peace to honor mothers who had lost sons and brothers and husbands in the Civil War, and a time for mothers to work together the end all war.

She made this clear in her 1870 Mother’s Day Proclamation:

MOTHER’S DAY PROCLAMATION
Boston, 1870

“Arise, then… women of this day! 
Arise, all women who have hearts,
whether our baptism be that of water or of tears!
Say firmly: 
We will not have great questions decided by irrelevant agencies. 
Our husbands shall not come to us, reeking with carnage, 
for caresses and applause. 
Our sons shall not be taken from us to unlearn
all that we have been able to teach them of charity, mercy and patience.
We, women of one country, will be too tender of those of another country
to allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs.

From the bosom of the 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 out dishonor,
nor violence vindicate 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 council.

Let them meet first, as women, to bewail and commemorate the dead.
Let them then solemnly take council with each other as to the means
whereby the great human family can live in peace,
each bearing after his own kind the sacred impress, not of Caesar,
but of God.

In the name of womanhood and of humanity, I earnestly ask
that a general congress of women, without limit of nationality, 
may be appointed and held at some place deemed most convenient,
and at the earliest period consistent with its objects, 
to promote the alliance of the different nationalities, 
the amicable settlement of international questions, 
the great and general interests of peace.“

~ Julia Ward Howe

Ann Reed Jarvis and her Mother’s Day Clubs

Having lost nine of her thirteen children, Ann Reed Jarvis,  another advocate for Mother’s Day, organized women in West Virginia into Mother’s Day Clubs that worked to eliminate unsanitary conditions and provide aid to new mothers. During the Civil War, her clubs provided food and aid to troops from both sides and after the war, worked for reconciliation between the returned soldiers.

Mother’s Day Today

So how did Mother’s Day turn into a commercial holiday? Ann Jarvis’ daughter, Anna Maria Jarvis, worked  tirelessly to establish the day as a holiday in honor of her mother as she wrote:

To revive the dormant filial love and gratitude we owe to those who gave us birth. To be a home tie for the absent. To obliterate family estrangement. To create a bond of brotherhood through the wearing of a floral badge. To make us better children by getting us closer to the hearts of our good mothers. To brighten the lives of good mothers. To have them know we appreciate them, though we do not show it as often as we ought… Mothers Day is to remind us of our duty before it is too late. This day is intended that we may make new resolutions for a more active thought to our dear mothers. By words, gifts, acts of affection, and in every way possible, give her pleasure, and make her heart glad every day, and constantly keep in memory Mothers Day.”

Unfortunately, the floral, candy, and car manufacturers saw a great business opportunity since everyone has a mother. Anna Jarvis was furious at the commercialization and went to great lengths to get the holiday rescinded. You can read more of her story here – Anna Maria Jarvis on Mother’s Day.

With war and rumors of war on the news every day, perhaps, it is time to bring back Mother’s Day as a day devoted to peace actions. Perhaps, make a donation to a peace group in your mother’s name or join a social action group like the ones below.

Moms on a Mission

Mothers Against Violence

Mothers Demand Action

Mothers for Peace

So how are you planning to spend Mother’s Day?

We welcome your thoughts and comments.