Happy Mother’s Day!

When I asked my mom what she wanted to do or what she wanted to receive as a gift for Mother's Day, she would answer, “every day is Mother's Day.” After becoming a mom, I really understood her message: mothers, or good mothers, deserve EVERYTHING. The dedication, the anxieties, the fears, the disappointments, the satisfactions and especially, the love you feel for that being who gave you the title of “Mother” is truly great.

Although the celebration of Mother's Day is a tradition spread around the world, not all countries celebrate it on the same date, but the vast majority celebrate it during the month of May. The origin of this celebration is somewhat uncertain, although it is believed that it began with the Egyptians who paid homage to the mother goddess, Isis. In 1870, the American Julian Ward Howe wrote the proclamation of Mother's Day, in which she called on mothers to unite for world peace, since many of them had lost their children in the American secession war.

However, the official founder of this celebration in the United States of America was the activist Anna Jarvis, who started a campaign in favor of Mother's Day in honor of her own mother, who, during the civil war, created a front of women that promoted reconciliation between ex-combatants in a region still divided by war. Anna Jarvis, promoted Mother's Day motivated by her mother's actions and the fact that the American holidays of her time were dedicated to male achievements. This resulted in President Woodrow Wilson signing an official measure in 1914. Proclaiming Mother’s Day for the second Sunday of the month of May.

Although Anna Jarvis's efforts to value the role of mothers in the development of our society were not in vain, she was greatly disappointed to see that each year the celebration became a highly commercial reason; since her original idea considered a date to venerate women who sacrificed themselves for their children, and not merely a way to obtain monetary profits for merchants.

However, the fact that we have a date on our calendar that is the day to celebrate and thank our mothers does not mean that we forget the mutual need to celebrate them daily with our love, company, care and understanding. And for those who are not or have not been able to be mothers, there are ALWAYS opportunities to love, understand, educate, help, and be present as a good mother would do. There are so many people who are in need of maternal love and how happy it feels to be like a real mother!

May this May 12, 2024 become a reason to celebrate the love of our mothers in life or in our most beautiful memories. Congratulations to all!

Carlota Mendoza-Iglesias