Julia Ward Howe was the first to proclaim Mother's Day in 1870.
Mother's Day? Mothers' Day? Mothers Day?
In 1912, Anna Jarvis trademarked the phrases
"second Sunday in May" and "Mother's Day", and created the Mother's Day
International Association.
She was specific about the location of the apostrophe; it was to be a
singular possessive, for each family to honour their mother, not a
plural possessive commemorating all mothers in the world.
This is also the spelling used by U.S. President Woodrow Wilson in the
law making official the holiday in the U.S., by the U.S. Congress on
bills and by other U.S. presidents on their declarations.
Common usage in English language also dictates that the ostensibly
singular possessive "Mother's Day" is the preferred spelling, although
"Mothers' Day" (plural possessive) or "Mothers Day" (plural
non-possessive) are sometimes used.
When do we celebrate it?
Different
countries has its own date of celebrating Mother's Day. In Malaysia, we
celebrate it on the second Sunday in May just like Anna Jarvis had
trademarked Mother's Day.
What I think of Mother's Day?
As
for me, EVERYDAY is Mother's Day. Think of what she has done to us,
whether she's our adopted mother or natural mother or even our guardian.
Think of her sacrifice for us. If we are too arrogant to admit that we don't
owe our mother, then we are a great liar. Let's calculate what she has spend on us. I mean every single cent that she spent on us..! What about her love? Can we calculate that? ermmm....I don't think so.
Ah..! I may not remember what my did to raise me since birth, but as long as I can remember, my mum used to give me bath when I was little. She made sure I am clean, dried me and powder me. She would clothes me. She combed my hair too. Whenever it's meal time, she would called my brothers and I to eat. She would shouted for us to make sure we had our meals. She cooked for us. What a delicious food that she had cooked..!
When we are playing, she always reminded us not to play far from her sight. We'll be playing around the house compound, do whatever we want. We played with mud, climbed the rambutan trees, went to the pigpen and fed the pigs, running around the backyard or under the house. We even disturbed the cocks in the coop at our back yard. I also remembered following grandma to pick coffee and took out the seeds. Then we would dry the seeds and grind them. My cousins would join us sometimes. We would compete with each others to find who can grind the fastest. My mum would be nervous and concerned if we were silent or out of her sight. She would called out our names until we replied her back.
There are times when we were naughty. Belt, stick or whatever she can use to punish us, will be handy. Sometimes I saw that she shed tears while she punished us. I don't remember getting sick but I remember that my brothers did get sick. Mum would not sleep well because they would always cry and be restless. She gave them medicine and soothe them. I guess what we did for her is not enough to cover what she has given to us. She had done her best to give us shelter, education and everything that we need to make her proud of us. I am what she made me today. Thank you mum and Happy Mother's Day everyday..! :)
