Much has happened at Bethany and within our broader communities since the last time I had the opportunity to share my thoughts with you. My last message was about budgets – so the thoughts I am sharing today will be quite different coming, as they do, one day after Mother’s Day.
I think everyone will agree that celebrating our own mothers, or in some cases helping our children celebrate with their mother, is one of the most important dates in the annual calendar of events. When I did some very brief research on the subject, I discovered some interesting facts:
- In its earliest observation in the 16th century, Mothering Sunday was not a celebration of a person’s mother, but an annual celebration by Christians in Europe, three weeks before Easter, when they would return home to visit their ‘mother’ church – the church in which they were baptized.
- From those early beginnings, the day evolved into a time for people to celebrate with their families and recognize their mothers’ important role in their lives, including the tradition of giving gifts to their mothers.
- Over the years, Mother’s Day has grown in popularity to be recognized in most countries of the world, and celebrated by people of many faiths and cultures.Although Mother’s Day is very common throughout the world, it is not universally celebrated on the same day. In most cases, however, it is celebrated on a Sunday in March (as it was, historically, on the fourth Sunday in Lent) or in May (often, as in North America, on the second Sunday of May).
- In recognition of Mother’s Day, American Presidents (from John F. Kennedy to Donald J. Trump) have made formal proclamations encouraging their citizens to express their love and respect for their mothers, and providing some personal insights of their own personalities and of some of the historical events that were occurring at those times.
- Calgary has its own large and growing event on Mother’s Day – currently SportChek Mother’s Day Race – which was started by the Forzani family in 1979 and this year is celebrating its 41st anniversary.
I hope each of you had the opportunity yesterday to celebrate Mother’s Day in a way that was meaningful for you – whether it was in preparing or receiving breakfast in bed, participating in a large family event, working with our residents as they shared Mother’s Day with their family or friends, being with your own mother in person or in spirit, or (like me) taking part in a fun run or walk.
I believe that celebrating days like Mother’s Day helps us to be more grounded within ourselves, and allows us to bring our best to those we serve in fulfilling Bethany’s mission of ‘Creating Caring Communities’.
As always, I welcome ideas, suggestions and any questions that you may have. Please feel free to send them to me at alasdair.smith@bethanyseniors.com.
Take care,
– Alasdair
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