Mother’s Day is a day dedicated to honoring mothers and celebrating motherhood. After all, our moms play a crucial part in our lives; they are always there for us, supporting us and offering guidance when we need it the most. Plus, who doesn’t like the opportunity to sample their mother’s cooking?
Mother’s Day is also a time to honor moms’ contributions to society. A mother doesn’t have to be the woman who gave birth to you; she may be an adopted mother, grandmother, or someone you admire as a mother figure. These ladies, too, offer counsel, life lessons, and help mold you as future children.
Anna Jarvis was the first to advocate for Mother’s Day in the United States in 1905. A peace campaigner who treated both Union and Confederate troops during the American Civil War and founded Mother’s Day Work Clubs to address public health concerns. Now it’s celebrated in different ways and on different days by different cultures worldwide, let’s see how.
USA
Mother’s Day, like most American holidays and events, has become excessively commercialized, with cards and presents sometimes taking precedence over time spent together. On the other hand, many busy Americans make time for lunch or a special breakfast with their moms. The custom of presenting flowers as gifts for Mother’s Day survives, with pink and red carnations serving as the official flower of Mother’s Day in the United States. Wearing a pink carnation to honor one’s mother or a white carnation to indicate that one’s mother has sadly passed away is another American tradition.
Mexico
Despite the fact that it’s directly over the border from America, Mexico observes Mother’s Day on a separate day – May 10th – regardless of the exact date. The complete family normally gathers to celebrate La Dia de la Madre, frequently in a restaurant to enjoy traditional Mexican food. Children will offer their moms chocolates and flowers, and Mexican music is particularly essential. Children sometimes put on shows to convey their thanks and affection.
Italy
Italian ‘mammas’ are honored every day. Italian moms, on the other hand, are made to feel special on the second Sunday of May, frequently by not having to cook! In Italy, Mother’s Day is less commercialized and more about sentiment and quality time. Simple, fresh flowers are more popular than costly arrangements, and poems are more usual than cards. A special dessert, frequently in the shape of a heart, is served at the end of the day.
Japan
Carnations are also the flower of choice for Mother’s Day in Japan, with the same color connotations as in the United States. After World War II, the day was established to honor and console the mothers who had died, and white carnations are still worn for this reason. Mother’s Day in Japan is observed on the second Sunday in May and contains many of the customs we’ve learned about from other countries.
Certain foods are linked with it. These savory foods, unlike those found in Italy and France, include Tamagoyaki (a rectangle omelet) and Chawanmushi (a savory egg custard). Children in Japan can also draw pictures of their moms or write a piece of calligraphy in their honor.
Some of these customs might be incorporated into your own Mother’s Day festivities. The return to handmade presents and modest personal gestures, such as taking over the cooking, is very appealing to us.