The mother is the one supreme asset of national life; she is more important by far than the successful statesman, or business man, or artist, or scientist. Motherhood is a rewarding and often difficult job. A mother is a child's first teacher and affects a child's life like few others can. Effective mothers can inspire their sons and daughters to love themselves and others, work hard, make healthy choices, serve causes greater than self, and achieve their dreams. Mothers who protect, teach, and nurture their children with all their hearts strengthen their families and help build a better future for the planet.

Some historians claim that the predecessor of the Mother's Day holiday was the ancient spring festival dedicated to mother goddesses. In the ancient Greek empire the spring festival honored Rhea, wife of Cronus and mother of the gods and goddesses. In Rome the most significant Mother's Day-like festival was dedicated to the worship of Cybele, another mother goddess. Ceremonies in her honor began some 250 years before Christ was born. This Roman religious celebration, known as Hilaria, celebrating- from March 15 to 18.

Four hundred years ago, the English celebrated a festival called "Mothering Sunday" also called Mid-Lent Sunday, observed on the fourth Sunday in Lent,just before Easter, one of the most important festivals for Christians. On this day, women who worked as servants in the houses of the rich, were given a holiday. They could return to their homes and spend the day with their mothers. In other words, on that day, they were mothered. A special cake, called the Mothering Cake was also made on that day.

In 1872, Julia Ward Howe (who wrote the words to the Battle hymn of the Republic) suggested the idea of Mother's Day, but it was Miss Anna M. Jarvis (1864-1948), of Philadelphia, who began a letter-writing campaign to a variety of influential people that made Mother's Day a national holiday.

Anna M. Jarvis (1864-1948) is credited with originating our Mother's Day holiday. She never married and was extremely attached to her mother, Mrs. Anna Reese Jarvis. Mrs. Jarvis was a minister's daughter who for 20 years taught Sunday School in the Andrews Methodist Church of Grafton, West Virginia. Miss Jarvis graduated from the Female Seminary in Wheeling, West Virginia, and taught in Grafton before moving to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with the rest of her family. Anna Reese Jarvis died in Philadelphia in May of 1905. Still unmarried and left alone with her blind sister Elsinore, Anna missed her mother greatly. Two years after her mother's death (1907) Anna Jarvis and her friends began a letter-writing campaign to gain the support of influential ministers, businessmen and congressmen in declaring a national Mother's Day holiday. She felt children often neglected to appreciate their mother enough while the mother was still alive. She hoped Mother's Day would increase respect for parents and strengthen family bonds. The first Mother's Day observance was a church service honoring Mrs. Anna Reese Jarvis, held at Anna Jarvis's request in Grafton, West Virginia, and in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on May 10, 1908.

Carnations, her mother's favorite flowers, were supplied at that first service by Miss Jarvis. White carnations were chosen because they represented the sweetness, purity and endurance of mother love. Red carnations, in time, became the symbol of a living mother. White ones now signify that one's mother has died.

The first Mother's Day proclamation was issued by the governor of West Virginia in 1910. Oklahoma celebrated Mother's Day that year as well. By 1911 every state had its own observances. By then other areas celebrating Mother's Day included Mexico, Canada, China, Japan, South America and Africa. The Mother's Day International Association was incorporated on December 12, 1912, with the purpose of furthering meaningful observations of Mother's Day.The House of Representatives in May, 1913, unanimously adopted a resolution requesting the President, his Cabinet, members of Congress, and all officials of the federal government to wear a white carnation on Mother's Day. Congress passed another Joint Resolution May 8, 1914, designating the second Sunday in May as Mother's Day. The U.S. flag is to be displayed on government buildings and at people's homes "as a public expression of our love and reverence for the mothers of our country." President Woodrow Wilson issued the first proclamation making Mother's Day an official national holiday.

The roles of women began changing rapidly after that in both Canada and the United State. Women started to explore the vast world beyond their duties as wife, housekeeper, mother and homemaker, though they still took these roles seriously. They continued to do so through World War One and the Great Depression but World War Two drastically changed women’s role in society. When thousands of men marched off to war, women went to work as welders, riveters and in munitions plants. They were the backbone of the war effort. They worked long hours, often for far less pay then men made to do the same work. These women on the Home Front laid the cornerstones of the Women’s Lib movement. More women enrolled in social security from 1941 to 1946 then men. They earned higher wages from 1941 to 1946 than ever before in history. Minimum wage was twenty-five cents per hour but war plants offered a one-dollar per hour starting fee. These women learned to drive cars and operate machinery. They made more contributions to the Red Cross and Salvation Army than ever before. The day the war was over, the defense plants closed and sent the women back to their homes. But the women had tasted independence and had found they were capable of earning a paycheck. Over the next fifty years, women would take a step up in the world. As the years progressed, circumstances pushed women back into the work force. Divorce, death and single parenthood as well as the high cost of living made it necessary for women to work. Baby boomers gave their children too many material things and today’s mothers work, not only out of necessity but also because they want to have a career and be independent. There is also the factor that they want to have money to buy what they want when they want it. The busy life of a working mother is not an easy one. They have to ensure their children are in the hands of a responsible and loving caregiver. The role of a mother has changed drastically since that Sunday in May 1907. Today, women not only work but must also be homemakers as well as mothers. Many are single parents and must play the role of both mother and father. This is a big challenge but most women are up to it and my hat is off to each and every one of them.

Today, Mother's Day is celebrated in various countries across the world. Denmark, Finland, Italy, Turkey, Australia and Belgium also celebrate Mother's Day on the same day as the United States, on the second Sunday in the month of May.

This Mother's Day, we express our heartfelt thanks to our mothers for their unconditional love and guidance. We take time to recognize the many mothers who are supporting their brave sons and daughters in the Armed Forces, and the many others who are themselves serving proudly in defense of America's freedom and security. The service and sacrifice of these women reflect the best of our Nation. They and their loved ones are in our thoughts and prayers.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim May 9, 2004, as Mother's Day. I commend mothers for the important contributions they make to our society and encourage all Americans to express their love, gratitude, and respect for mothers, and to honor their mothers on this day and throughout the year.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this seventh day of May, in the year of our Lord two thousand four, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and twenty-eighth.

GEORGE W. BUSH

Happy Mother’s Day to all mothers everywhere from Rumela's web