For Our Mothers, Without Whom ....

The Dream of Motherhood by Ysabel de la Rosa

This post title comes from an author whose name, unfortunately, I cannot remember. I do remember, though, that the dedication for his book read:  "For my mother, without whom". This dedication says everything and often comes to my mind in this month that hosts "Mother's Day."

You'll find a fascinating history of Mother's Day here. More than 40 countries celebrate Mother's Day, which has ancient roots in reverence for the divine Feminine and for peace. The most recent actors in this history were Julia Ward Howe and her daughter Anna M. Jarvis of the United States. Both women wanted Mother's Day to honor  mothers everywhere and to be a day that emphasized the peace that mothers around the world want for their families. Far from their thoughts was the idea, expressed early on by a florists' trade journal that, "This was a day that could be exploited."

And has it ever! I started receiving promotional emails for buying gifts for Mother's Day by mid-April. They arrived daily by April's end and continue. There's a hitch, though, in marketing to me:  My mother is dead.

I can't be the only person barraged by these ads whose mother has also made the transition into the next life. You would think, with niche marketing and data mining, that marketers could take the time to figure this out. Perhaps, they could simply offer recipients the ability to opt out of Mother's Day promotional emails, if nothing else.

Anna M. Jarvis

But I have a better idea. Those of us who cannot give physical gifts to our mothers can give other kinds of gifts in their honor. To that end, I'm inviting you to send poems, essays, verbal or visual tributes to your mother that I will post on this blog during the month of May. Please refer to the guidelines for submissions in the sidebar of the blog. Loss can come by means other than physical death, so this invitation extends also to persons who have lost their mother through divorce or some other means.

If you would also like to share something that helped you through the loss of your mom, please feel free to send that, as well. This blog is meant to be a "place" where people can both express themselves and find ways to help themselves with the great challenge of moving on without those whom we love by our sides.