A Mother’s Day Conspiracy

I was wondering the other day if Mother’s Day is a conspiracy to lull us moms into trudging through May with a smile on our face.  I do not know about you, but May seems to be as busy as December but with fewer decorations and a lot less fanfare. Between preschool graduations, high school graduation, end of school year banquets and parties, teacher gifts, summer planning, and a whole host of other stuff, family plates are FULL to overflowing.

Anna Jarvis put Mother’s Day on the calendar as a day dedicated to expressing love and gratitude to mothers, acknowledging the sacrifices women make for their children. After years of Jarvis’s campaigning, President Woodrow Wilson signed a proclamation in 1914 making Mother’s Day an official holiday, to take place the second Sunday of May. In the first few years of the holiday’s official existence, Jarvis observed as florists, candy-makers, and card-makers, and even charities, used Mother’s Day as a way to make an extra buck. The commercialization of Mother’s Day, according to Jarvis, defeated the whole point of a holiday that was supposed to be about celebrating the personal, individual connection between a mother and her children.1

Now that we have settled there was not an evil plot to disguise the month of May, we need to take courage to tackle the month ahead.  So before you fill in the days ahead, consider this approach to this season of May.

Five Ways to Approach this Season of Busy

1. Approach this season with gratitude.

In the last year, we missed graduations, birthday parties, school banquets, awards ceremonies, and so much more. With each event added to my calendar this month, I must remind myself of how I felt last year when we could not celebrate the completion of the school year with our kids. Being grateful for all that has returned in our lives provides me with the freedom to approach each event with an open heart.

And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Colossians 3:17

2. Approach this season with a focus on our children.

It is easy for me to get wrapped up in my to do list. In this season of planning, shopping, gifting, and running from thing to thing, it is easy to get so wrapped in all we have to do and forget to focus on why we are doing it. Take a step back from all you must do and focus on your child’s accomplishments, celebrations, and rite of passage events.

And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

Philippians 4:8

3. Approach this season being in the moment.

I recently hosted my son’s end of year band banquet. It was a great evening of celebration and fun for everyone.  At the end of the night, I sat down exhausted.  I was happy everyone had a memorable and special evening. Then I realized that I did not have one picture with my son, his awards, my family, or all that we had to celebrate. These moments cannot be recreated or recaptured, so step back from the busy and be all-in for your kids.  (Oh and by the way, don’t just take the pictures, be in the pictures.)

Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.

James 4:14

4. Approach this season as a time of change.

Change is hard, and this is truly a season of change. Although we are starting to see many events and activities of our pre-COVID life return, they still feel different, look different, and in some cases are just harder. Just as you learned to give yourself some grace in the last year when life was unsettled, allow yourself some grace as you adjust to change again.

But from there, you will seek the LORD your God, and you will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul.

Deuteronomy 4:29

5. Approach this season with a sense of confidence.

My teenager would say, “You got this!” But you do! You made some 100,000 different meals over the last 18 months, kept yourself and your kids from hurting each other, and fed the dog at least once every day. You mastered Zoom, educated your kids, had babies, and did about a million other feats of strength. You can handle a busy calendar. You might even enjoy it. 😉

As you scan your May calendar and to do list, I encourage you to consider your approach, weigh what is important to you and your family, skip a couple things that don’t make that list, and remember all the lessons of time together you learned in the last year.

God can bring meaning and blessings to you in surprising ways. The Lord God is your strength. Rejoice in Him. He is the God of your salvation. He will take your tiredness, insecurity, and distractions and do beyond what you can imagine.

If you would like to read more about managing the transition to post-pandemic life, read:

Encouragement for a Time of Transition

  1. “Here’s The Real History Of Mother’s Day”. 2021. Here’s The Real History Of Mother’s Day | Grammarly. https://www.grammarly.com/blog/history-of-mothers-day/.

Author

  • Christine Clark

    Christine Clark is the Ministry Leader for Family Ministries at Stonebriar Community Church. She has a passion for supporting parents and helping them gain confidence and tools to be spiritual leaders in their homes. She is blessed to be the mom of a one son and the wife of her college sweetheart for 25 years. She and her husband are finding their way as empty nesters, and enjoying the new found freedom that comes with this stage of life. She is also an avid sports fan who loves all things NASCAR and football, especially in the fall in Texas.

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