Happy Mothers’ Day For Peace.

Way back in 1870, Julia Ward Howe called for a “Mothers’ Day For Peace” to promote national disarmament.  Apparently, she believed that a mother’s greatest responsibility was raising children who would resist the call to become canon fodder, as had happened so disastrously in the then-recent Civil War.

While Mrs. Howe’s efforts were (surprise!) ignored by the mainstream press and the government, later efforts to promote Motherhood as a calling worthy of recognition persuaded President Woodrow Wilson to establish the holiday in 1914.

Now, while I wish dearly that Julia Howe’s conception had been embraced rather than the commercialized mumbo-jumbo which dominates our modern holiday, I’m nonetheless honored to be able to recognize the contributions of mothers the world over in raising healthy, functioning, productive children (in so much as their circumstances permit.)

Looking back many years, my own Dear Mother was all I could have hoped for, and for that I thank God.  How wonderful it was to feel loved unconditionally, to be nurtured and shepherded along life’s road with kindness and patience and compassion.  Not everyone is that lucky for one reason or another, but I certainly was, and not because I particularly deserved it.

Thanks, Mom, for giving me enough love to share the overflow throughout the rest of my life.

Moving into the Present, I have two amazing daughters, and they have a very special woman to call “Mom.”  Gina, whom some of you know as The Pagan Sphinx, has been a real gift in my life, a teacher to both me and our girls, a partner without whom I would have been a clueless Dad.  She’s brought SO much to the rearing of our daughters that I can’t imagine having done that without her.

Thank You, Gina Duarte, for the gift of two beautiful daughters, and for keeping the original meaning of a Mothers’ Day For Peace alive in your life and in your actions.

Namaste, my Friends, and especially to all you Mothers out there today.