Originally Mothering Sunday was a c16th religious event here that had nothing to do with mothers at all. The word "mothering"
referred to the "mother church", which is to say the main church or
cathedral of the region. It became a tradition that on the fourth
Sunday of Lent people would return to their mother church for a special
service. This pilgrimage was apparently known as "going a-mothering",
and it became something of a holiday event. Domestic servants were
traditionally given the day off work to visit their families and attend a service at
their mother church. Walking home they would often pick bunches of wild flowers from the hedgerows and woods to give to their mothers and to decorate the church.
courtesy PigeonParkPress
Ann Jarvis is recognised as the mother who inspired Mother’s Day in the United States, she was a social activist and community organiser during the Amercian Civil War era. It was her daughter, Anna, who compaigned for a Mother's Day to be held during May in memory of her mother, and it was President Wilson who formalised the date to be the second Sunday in May.
Today is Mothering Sunday here, which also means that Easter is now only three weeks away.
Whoever you are and wherever you are enjoy a lovely day.
