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| Goddess Isis |
The tradition of celebrating Mothers has roots in early Egyptian, Roman, and Greek times. During these times "mother" Goddesses were commemorated in street festivals and with various celebrations involving cakes and flowers. The Goddess Isis was commonly regarded as the Mother of the Pharaohs.
Fast forward to Early Europe and the Christians who had a holiday to honor Motherhood which fell on the fourth Sunday of Lent. That day was initially used as a day to honor the church in which you had been baptized, known as your "Mother Church". On that Sunday, each place of worship was decorated with jewels, flowers and offerings of food.
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| "Mother and Child" by George Hatsatouris |
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Sometime during the 1600's a clerical decree in England added real Mothers to the celebration and that day became known as Mothering Day. On that day, a one day reprieve from Lenten fasting was provided so that all could enjoy a family feast where mothers were the guest of honor. They were presented with cakes and flowers as well as visits from beloved distant children.
Push that fast forward button again...when the first English settlers came to America, they discontinued the Mothering Day tradition. While the Mothering Day holiday lived on in England, an American Mother's Day was conceptualized many years later by the woman who had written The Battle Hymn of the Republic, Julia Ward Howe. Howe wrote the Mother's Day Proclamation in 1870 in response to the overwhelming deaths of young men in the Civil War. She was calling on all mothers to come together to celebrate peace and motherhood. She had initially proposed July 4th as the new date of Mother's Day as a symbol of peace in our nation, but eventually June 2nd was settled on.
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| Anna Reeves Jarvis |
That date was celebrated for a few fledgling years, but it took a West Virginia woman named Anna Reeves Jarvis to bring us to the Mother's Day we know today. Reeves began an adaptation of Howe's holiday which called for mothers to re-unite families and neighbors that had been divided by the war. This new day was called Mother's Friendship Day. After Reeves' death her daughter, Anna M. Jarvis, petitioned the church where her mother had spent 20 years teaching Sunday school, to honor her mother with a day of celebration. On May 10, 1908 the first official Mother's Day took place at Andrew's Methodist Church in Grafton, West Virginia and in another church in Philadelphia. Jarvis' favorite flower, the white carnation, was given to each mother.
In 1912, West Virginia became the first state to officially recognize Mother's Day and in 1914 Woodrow Wilson signed it into national observance by declaring the second Sunday in May as Mother's Day.
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| Mothers' Day postcard 1915 |
Haj Paj Boutique is fully stocked with gorgeous gifts to let those special women in your life know that you appreciate them and thank them for their tireless dedication to motherhood. We have special discounts on all of our fashion jewelry and a fine sterling silver jewelry. We are overflowing with home accent gift items, Spring scarves, adorable Summer sun hats, and the wildly popular Lindsay Phillips sandals. We even have Gullah Gourmet meal mixes to help
you make that special dinner for
her! And never forget that we are an official retailer of TOMS shoes. We will be well staffed this week and weekend to aid you in choosing and wrapping the perfect gift.
Mothers have been honored for centuries...don't delay in honoring yours
TODAY!!
