Monday, June 1, 2020

Arlene Corwin writes

Mother’s Day In Sweden
Just a note and written on the spot:
Today is Mother’s Day in Sweden.
Therefore, consequently, thus and so,
On this occasion, for that reason
May I dedicate this day
To mothers near and faraway,
Young and old, unmarried, widowed,
Sick and healthy, poor and wealthy.

Filling mother earth through labor,
They, the grower and the arbour
Of the whole of humankind.

How to honour mothers
Through the warring failures of successors!

She who is the single vessel,
Seeds of blessing deep inside.
She, the bride of the Creator
Wheresoever That may be.

May the ones who’ve all had mothers;
Sons and daughters, sisters, brothers,
Honor mothers universal;
Nature’s highest principle
And bearers of us all.

1 comment:

  1. Mors Dag is always celebrated on the last Sunday of May. In 1919 Cecilia Bååth-Holmberg proposed the establishment of the unofficial holiday, and the following year an Uppsala committee released a brochure on how the occasion should be conducted:
    1.The Swedish flag is to be hoisted on the flagpole at home.

    2. Mother is to be greeted in the morning with song by her children.

    3. She is to be given good coffee and bread, preferably made by the children. She is to be honored with flowers and a small gift.

    4. Rest and freedom from all housework for mother as much as possible. 5. Her children will help around the house as much as they can by sweeping, cooking, and doing the dishes.

    6. At afternoon coffee or in the evening, a small ceremony is to be held, during which father participates. Something beautiful is to be read, and a heartfelt "thank you" is to be said to Mother, the unifying force of the home.

    7. Children who are not at home are to greet Mother with a letter or telegram.

    The modern tradition of honoring mothers was launched in the US by 12-year-old Anna Jarvis in 1876; however, it was not until 1908 that she initiated an actual observance, at Andrews Methodist Episcopal Church in Grafton, West Virginia. Through her continued efforts West Virginia officially observed the holiday in 1910, followed by all states by 1911. In 1912 Jarvis trademarked the phrase "Second Sunday in May, Mother's Day, Anna Jarvis, Founder" and created the Mother's Day International Association. She specifically noted that "Mother's" should "be a singular possessive, for each family to honor its own mother, not a plural possessive commemorating all mothers in the world." In 1914 president Woodrow Wilson signed a proclamation designating the 2nd Sunday in May as a national holiday.

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