Thursday, May 9, 2013

The Origins of Mother's Day

Welcome back everyone! You might be glad to know that I think we have finally solved the issues with my computer! So I'll probably be able to start back posting weekly not only on this website, but also SMILEY’S NEWS. So after you're finished reading today's post, be sure to check on that website as well and see what my pal Mr. Smiley has to say. Considering that this Sunday is Mother's Day, I will devote today's article to (what else) mothers of course! Now let's start off with updates before I get to today's article.

I am still attempting to complete my latest stop-motion series, Planet of the Dinosaurs. I'd say it's about 52% finished.

A few months ago (last year), I mentioned that Pixar has many “hidden projects” that are mostly kept under wraps. For some time, they only let a little bit of information about these movies out and we fans are constantly trying to guess at what the movie is about. Sometimes you can find out about these movies by looking on the internet on certain websites (such as Wikipedia). This way, many of us can know at least a little bit about such movies before most other people who don't do research. This is how I found out about the upcoming prequel to the ever-popular Monsters Inc. called Monsters University. By now, extensive trailers, commercials and previews are out so everyone knows about this film. I can't wait for this movie to come out! I've actually been hoping that they'd make another Monsters movie for quite some time, so I'm really excited to see what Pixar has come up with. In case some of you haven't seen the trailer, I put it on here for your enjoyment:


Remember, Monsters University comes out on June 21, 2013 for those of you who are going to the theaters to see it. For those of us waiting for it to come out on DVD, well, it's a good bet that it will be out by February 2014. I can't wait!

Since the last time I posted (last Thursday), there hasn't been a whole lot of news about another movie I'm looking forward to: Jurassic Park IV. As you might recall if you read last week's post, this film is supposed to be coming out on June 13, 2014. Universal still has a lot about this movie “under wraps”, but on May 2 (after I posted my last post) of this year, they released some new information about this upcoming film. On his twitter account, the director of Jurassic Park IV, Colin Trevorrow tweeted this:

Nublar.


After 11 years of speculation, we now know where this movie is going to take place: Isla Nublar! Isla Nublar is the island of the very first movie. In the Jurassic Park franchise, no one has set foot on this island ever since the tragic day when the park's power systems got screwed up, the dinosaurs escaped and the film's heroes narrowly escaped death at the hands of the cunning Velociraptors. So far, the plot of the film is still rather “hush-hush”, but when they release more information about this movie, you pretty can be sure that I'll let you know! (That is unless my computer acts up again or something unforeseen happens of course). In the mean time though, while we wait for this great movie to come out, take a look at the trailer for the recently released Jurassic Park: The Game (Jurassic Park 1 1/2), which is considered the bridging gap between the first and second Jurassic Park movies.


As you all know, Mother's Day is just around the corner! During this time of year, people everywhere visit their mothers and give them cards and gifts as a special “thank you” to devoted mothers all around the world! Mother's Day has been around for a long, long time. People know what we normally do on this very special day, but do you know where it all started? If you were to go out in public and ask a variety of people, “Where did this Mother's Day stuff all begin?” they'd probably shrug. In all probability, most people don't know how, when or where Mother's Day started. Well folks, I have decided to devote today's post to mothers all around the world. They definitely deserve a day devoted to them, because without mothers . . . well, even if we somehow managed to be born, think about all the things many mothers do on a regular basis, and it's a lot! Husbands will often admit that when their wives go away on trips or retreats, the house often feels empty and like there's an endless amount of work to do!

Much of what a mother does everyday is a work-related task (e.g. laundry, cooking, shopping). Have you ever thought about how much a mother would earn if she were paid for such tasks? Well, a recent survey on Salary.com set out to do just that. 40,000 mothers responded to the survey and each one explained what their job entailed and how many hours they worked. Out of this survey, they learned that the average mother had at least 10 jobs and worked 92 hours per week. After calculating all the numbers, the people who made the survey worked out that the average mother would earn $138,095 a year! Wow! Talk about a worth-it mother!

Now to get back to the topic of the origins of Mother's Day. The story of this special day begins during the Civil War in 1868. This was when Ann Jarvis decided to create a committee to help the soldiers in the war. She called her committee the “Mother's Day Work Clubs”. These clubs were devoted to the treating of wounds, feeding and clothing both Union and Confederate soldiers (that's following the second greatest commandment, “. . . let us love one another . . .” Jesus Christ).

But Ann Jarvis isn't responsible for Mother's Day. She died in 1905. Two years after her death, Ann's daughter, Anna Jarvis was holding a memorial for her dearly departed mother when suddenly it clicked: why not have a day devoted to all mothers nationwide? So Anna Jarvis started campaigning for a special day devoted to mothers and apparently, the idea caught on rather well! In 1914, Anna's mission was a success and Mother's Day was a confirmed holiday to take place on the second Sunday in May.
Pretty soon, people all over the United States were sending cards and gifts of all shapes and sizes to their mothers. An International Mother's Day Shrine was even established in Grafton, West Virginia (where Anna Jarvis lived as a child) to celebrate her success.

Mother's Day was so successful, that not only did it catch on, but Anna Jarvis started campaigning once again in the 1920's! But this time, it wasn't to promote her holiday – instead, she was campaigning against it! By the 1920's, the commercialism involved with Mother's Day was skyrocketing. She and her sister Ellsinore were so serious about getting rid of the holiday (or at least what the holiday had become) that that's what most of their family inheritance went toward. Anna was once even arrested once for “disturbing the peace”.

Anna especially hated the use of printed, store-bought Mother's Day cards. She is even quoted for saying:

“A printed card means nothing expect that you are too lazy to write the woman who has done more for you than anyone in the world. And candy! You take a box to Mother – and then eat most of it yourself. A pretty sentiment.” Anna Jarvis
Anna Jarvis never married or became a mother herself and died on November 24, 1948. But her legacy lives on. Now on the second Sunday in May (the exact day differs in different countries), people all over spend special time devoted to the hard-working, grossly underpaid, yet tender, loving and caring women who gave us life and a lot of TLC – our Mothers!

Mother's Day is going to take place on May 12 this year. So let's all take some time to spend with our mothers this Sunday (after church is over, of course, don't make an excuse to miss church service). Why don't you give your mother a card or some candy this year (but don't eat it all up!), and why not also use this special day to thank God for the amazing mothers He blessed us with.

Wow! Anna Jarvis sure put a lot into a holiday she would later despise, didn't she? Oh well. Be sure to come back next week for some more updates and another non-fiction article I am making for you to enjoy! Happy Mother's Day to all mothers all around the world!


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