Mother’s day is approaching, May 8th, and was established on May 12th, 1907. This holiday celebrates the sacrifices of mothers in the United States. 

The idea of the holiday was created by Anna Jarvis after her mother passed in 1908. It later became a U.S. official holiday in 1914.

Mother’s day can be traced back to ancient Greeks, who celebrated by having festivals to honor mother goddesses. Christians also had festivals celebrating mothers and calling it “Mothering Sunday”. Mother’s day is celebrated on the second Sunday of May, so one could say that this Christian festival inspired the U.S. holiday. 

The Christian custom of “Mothering Sunday” became more secular, and kids would give their mother’s tiny gifts like flowers and other gifts to show that they are being appreciated. 

Anna Jarvis started promoting this holiday in 1905, the year her mother died. Jarvis was a peace activist, who cared for the wounded during the civil war. She and another activist, Julia Ward Howe created “Mothers Day For Peace”. Mothers ask their husbands and sons not to be killed during the war. 

Jarvis lobbied for the holiday and was created an official holiday by Woodrow Wilson in 1914. Though she created this holiday, she did not like how commercialized the holiday was. 

“Jarvis couldn’t stand the idea of people spending so much money on extravagant flower arrangements, sappy greeting cards and overly priced chocolates” according to CNN. Americans spend over 23.1 billion dollars on flowers and 4.6 billion on jewelry. 

Mother’s day is not just a holiday in the United States, it’s celebrated all over the world, to appreciate the hardships of motherhood everywhere. Have a wonderful Mother’s Day!