Mother's Day was created by Anna Jarvis in 1908 and became an official U.S. holiday in 1914. The holiday was put in place to celebrate maternal bonds and the influence that those bonds have on who we become.
However, I think Mother’s Day is essentially a celebration of the female influences in our lives.
I have been blessed to have a life filled with women who have had a positive influence on me. Women who have loved, supported, pushed, challenged, and accepted me. Women who have shared their wisdom and demonstrated their courage. Women who have shown strength, vulnerability, and insight. Women who have led the way as well as walked beside me.
My mother, my grandmothers, my mother-in-law, my great-grandmothers. My aunts, my step-mother, my cousins, my sisters, my female friends, my colleagues. And my daughter. They have all brought such varied and valuable things to my life. Even those who are no longer here, I can still feel their influence and see their impact, in my life.
There is something so powerful about female relationships. We get it. We understand the complexity of the world and the varied roles that make up the tapestry of our lives. We realize the work that is invested in each of these roles and the heart and soul we pour into them.
This year Mother’s Day will be decidedly different. Usually it entails a Family Brunch somewhere. Sometimes at someone’s home- mine, my daughter’s, my step mom’s, or my sister-in-law’s. Or out at a restaurant. We hug and we laugh and we talk.
This year with the pandemic and everyone hunkered down at home, we will have to have virtual mimosa toasts.
So, CHEERS to all the women out there! Whether you are a mother or not, you have undoubtedly impacted someone’s life.
