The closest ally

In a child's eyes, a mother is a goddess. She can be glorious or terrible, benevolent or filled with wrath, but she commands love either way. I am convinced that this is the greatest power in the universe. J.K Jemisin.

One of the greatest gifts God ever endowed mankind is the feminine figure called mother. Everyone was born of a woman and so everyone has a mother until death lays its icy hands on her, that notwithstanding, some people are fortunate enough to find another wonderful gem that plays motherly roles in their lives. To those who never found one, the Lord is your strength.

Mother is the name for God in the lips and hearts of little children. —William Makepeace Thackeray.

Mother defined: A selfless female parent, who sacrifices her money, time, energy, needs and wants for her child. She is the matriarch of the family and most often becomes the closest ally in the family confederacy. Mothers are the proxies that act in the stead of fathers.

From the Germanic origin, the word mother comes from the Old English Modor pronounced moh-dor." Moh-dor" means to take care of.

The beginning word ' m ' for mother seems very common among different languages. In Spanish, it is called Madre, Mutter in German. The Chinese say Mama, and in French, it is pronounced Mère.

The most consonant sounds babies easily produce are "M", 'D' and 'P' followed by the vowel, "a" — which is the easiest. And then they start babbling. Then comes the magic word in speech, "ma-ma", "ba-ba" "pa-pa," and so on. This is why children, effortlessly, are able to say "mama" even at a tender age.

The sacrifices mothers make are inarguably great, right from conception, the gestation period coupled with nausea, indiscriminate spitting, weird diet cravings, early morning sickness, the uneasiness, talk of the heaviness as if they are carrying the whole world !.

The battle in the labor ward is another story altogether and things are not funny in there. From changing diapers to the wearing of caps and gowns, mothers' patience is tested by their children, but they stand firm anyways.

With or without husbands, mothers are as solid as rock, is it the physical needs, the emotional, psychological or social? Did you just mention security? Is it the 'Mummy I am sick", that they cannot deal with? Is it that beautiful attire they are dying to buy for their children? Or the confectionaries that kids always demand? Among all these, their faces still beam with smiles.

What at all have mothers not experienced in the upbringing of children and what at all have they not done? From Australia to Zimbabwe, I am yet to hear a mother tell her child," motherhood is stressing me, now onward be the mother, I will be the child".Enveloped with love, they turn little humans into amazing adults. A mother will give away what she will eat, she will sell her clothes, she will trade her happiness for you. She will openly face the shame just to make you happy. They are the epitome of love and care on earth.

When you are looking at your mother, you are looking at the purest love you will ever know — Charley Benetto.

One good turn deserves another, it is in this regard that mothers have been recognized as one of the most wonderful creatures God ever made and are therefore worthy to be applauded.

Celebrated on various days in many parts of the world, most commonly in the months of March or May, Mother's Day is that special day celebrated to honor the mother of the family, as well as motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in society.

This is how it started in brief.......

Anna Maria Jarvis born May 1, 1864, founded Mother's Day in the United States to honor her mum, Ann Maria Reeves Jarvis. Actually, Ann Reeves and Anna Jarvis herself frequently expounded a desire for the establishment of such a day, and so after her mother's death, Jarvis led the movement for the monumentalization. Anna Jarvis started a bandwagon for an official holiday honoring mothers in 1905, the year her own mother died. The first celebration of the holiday was in 1908, this was when Jarvis held an open memorial for her mother in Grafton, West Virginia.

In the first few years of the holiday's official existence, she had crewed up with florists alongside lobbying to get the holiday recognized, and even recommended a white carnation as the symbolic flower of Mother’s Day.

She said: "The carnation's whiteness is to symbolize the truth, purity and broad-charity of mother love; its fragrance, her memory, and her prayers. The carnation does not drop its petals but hugs them to its heart as it dies, and so, too, mothers hug their children to their hearts. When I selected this flower, I was remembering my mother’s bed of white pinks".

However, with the passage of time, Anna Jarvis grew dissatisfied with the growing commercialization of the observation, or if you like the celebration, as she the founder herself never profited anything from the day.

Jarvis watched as florists, candy and card makers and use Mother’s Day as a way to make money. According to Jarvis, the acts of the candy and card makers defeated the whole purpose of a holiday that was supposed to be about celebrating the personal and individual connection between a mother and her children. She, therefore, spent heaps of her own money in lawsuits against profiteers she saw using the Mother’s Day name in vain. She attempted to have the Mother's Day repealed.

Then, in 1914, President Woodrow Wilson (28th president of the United States) signed a proclamation making Mother’s Day an official holiday. It was set to take place on the second Sunday of May.

This was after Jarvis pushed to have the holiday officially recognized, and it was celebrated exponentially in more and more states around the United States.

Anna Jarvis put Mother’s Day on the calendar as a day dedicated to express love and gratitude to our mothers and acknowledging the sacrifices they make for their children.

It has been recorded that, founder Jarvis in 1948 died penniless, blind, emaciated and surrounded by strangers. She never got married and never became a mother herself. Her soul rests in Peace.

Today, almost the whole world through the television, radio, online portals and journals celebrate mothers. We celebrate them for being warm and caring, and for being helpful too, and for all the wonderful things that make creatures as beautiful as them. Hail the matriarchs and heroines of our lives!

On mother’s day, your appreciation to your mum will send and establish the signal that, their toil have been much appreciated and recognized. The wrapped gifts, warm hugs and kisses, and a big thank you to them will earn them that special joy.

Perhaps is this different or there is this tension between you and your mum, but that should never wind up the mother-child relationship, she’s still your mum anyways. You can never change that fact and can do nothing about it as well...

As a matter of fact, none of us have the right, privilege or chance to choose our mothers. This is how powerful and dictative nature can sometimes be.

Honor your mum while she is still here with you, please make amends now before the day of reckoning approaches. A Little while and you may never see her again.

However or whatever your mum looks like, literate or not, rich or poor, she is still your mum and deserves that reciprocal love.

Remember, we have but only one mother.

Kudos to our mothers for always doing the yeoman's job!