Honor your mother every day

Anna Jarvis is recognized as the founder of Mother's Day in the United States. She received the inspiration from her own mother. After her mother's death, Jarvis continued rallying to make Mother's Day official. She convinced a minister in a West Virginia church to hold a Mother's Day memorial service. There she passed out white carnations-her mother's favorite flower. Eventually those whose mothers had died wore white carnations, while those whose mothers were living wore pink or red carnations. Congress voted in 1913 to have government officials wear carnations. By 1914, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed Mother's Day an official holiday. Jarvis wanted a day to let mothers know their children appreciated them. To us, that day could be any day or every day. It is as simple as saying, "I love you," as my children and grandchildren always do with a phone call, a message, a note and a hug. You can take your mom to dinner in the snowy midst of winter. You can give her exquisite flowers in the spring. You can visit her and share pictures on a warm summer day. You can stroll with her on a walk through the leaves of fall. Whether you are 5 or 50 years old, no matter the age, you can reach in your heart for a pure, sincere message of love and place it on a hand-written note. There is nothing more heart-warming than this special message. It is invaluable and treasured and presents memories of yesterday for tomorrow. As mothers roam through a scrapbook or a trunk, and encounter those messages — some on paper that is faded and brown and some on little handprints — memories flow through the years, as baskets of flowers and hugs. Thomas Edison said, "My mother was the making of me." His saying could give meaning to many of us. Mothers stand up for you. They teach you the power of words in "thank you and I love you." They prepare you with the wisdom that you can be anything you want to be. They hand you words such as hard work, dream, success, opportunity, peace and hope. They instill in you that every cloud has a silver lining. They teach you to be loving, caring, and sharing human beings. They teach you to treasure God, your life and your freedoms. They hold your hand for a little while, but your heart forever. When you are older, they thank you for your gracious love and tell you how proud they are of you and your family. They forever give you the expression of being there if you need them and they are for all of their life. The stark reality of life creeps in, and they are gone. You feel that stark reality all over again when you read the words in a bestseller book, "For One More Day," by Mitch Albom. He writes, "When death takes your mother, it steals that word forever. Mom? But there are a zillion words on this planet, but not one of them comes out of your mouth the way that one does." When your mom is gone, you can no longer hold her hand, look into her eyes, call her mom and tell her you love her. That is gone forever. Time is the only comfort. Now is the time to honor your mother with a celebration of life. All over the world people love to celebrate Mother's Day with their mother and shower her with love. Forty-six countries across the globe celebrate at different times of the year. Anna Jarvis said, "Mother's Day is in honor of the best mother who ever lived-the mother of your heart." As you pay tribute to your mother on Sunday, or every day, thank her for her sacrifices, her support and the beauty of her love and warmth of her hugs. Place in your heart, that your mother is a treasure from God. Happy Mother's Day! I hope your day is filled with sunshine and flowers of love as fresh as the morning dew. ••• Margaret Banks is a longtime community contributor to The Erwin Record.