Why all women deserve a Mothering Sunday

Gemma David - 5 Mar 16

Mothers. Some of us ‘do ‘ave ‘em, some of us don’t. Some of us want to be mothers and some don’t. Whichever applies to you, it’s hard to ignore that tomorrow is Mothering Sunday. With pink tat, funny cards and soppy adverts all over the high street and TV for the past few weeks’, you’d be forgiven for wondering whether we’re all going a bit crazy for these “Hallmark Days”.  However, in my acupuncture practice, where the majority of my patients are women, it’s provoked many discussions about the personal relevance of this day, as well as my apparent lack of knowledge about its history.

A short poke about on the internet helped. Did you know that celebrating mothers and motherhood can be traced back to the ancient Greeks and Romans, where festivals were held in honour of the goddesses Rhea and Cybele…? No, I didn’t either. But the Mothers Day we now recognise originated during a time when it was considered normal to pack your 10 year old daughter off to work as a servant for a wealthier family. These young girls (er, children) were then allowed one day off on the 4th Sunday after Lent, where they could return home to their family and worship in their ‘mother church’. This day then developed into a time dedicated to family reunions with it being common for the girls to pick wild flowers on the way home to give to their church, or their mother (along with a bit of simnel cake).

Currently, Mothering Sunday is an international day of celebration in honour of mothers, maternal bonds, a mother figure or love within the family (Israel). In Hinduism the day is celebrated on the new moon of the month of Baisakh and I love this, not because I’m a worshipper of the moon, (I am definitely affected by it’s cycles, obviously) but because in Chinese Medicine the moon is a yin symbol, which represents nourishment, nurturing and the feminine in all of us.

Talking about Mothers Day in my practice can be emotional. Many women are undergoing fertility treatment and I also have several patients who have lost their mother. So this year, we’ve been talking about the origins of the festival instead, and how this day might encourage each of us to mother ourselves or honour the feminine or yin inside all of us.  But I’m not going to give you a list of ‘5 ways to love yourself’, because we all know what we need to do right? If only we had the time…

As a co-parent (still a strange term to me) I know that this year there’ll be no lie-in or cup of tea in bed (I’m not after violins here) and that’s fine, because after separating from my husband 14 months ago, I’ve learnt that the only way to be able to give love as a mother is to feel some love for myself first. So, other than appreciating the amazing gift that is my little girl, this year I’m going to be making this day special for me (and her) by doing stuff we both love; going out for breakfast, having a (short) country walk and then kicking back with a film in front of the fire, probably with cake.

Mothering Sunday could/should be a day where ALL women are cherished and if you’re on your own, why not cherish yourself? It’s your choice as a strong, beautiful woman to decide how much you value that wonderful body and brain. Once you’ve been worshipped or remembered the mother figures in your life why don’t you make some time to consciously mother yourself, however that may be. You know you deserve it.

With love.

Image via pinterest.com

Gemma David

I run a wellbeing business in Bristol called The Quiet Heart. I am a qualified Chinese medicine practitioner, meditation and mindfulness teacher, mental health first aider and coach. I use these skills to run a private practice and retreats to help you connect with yourself; to help you hear what feels right.

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