Hail our illustrious mothers (Daily Graphic, Page 11. 09/05/09)

Article: Salome Donkor
Over the last few days the airwaves of local radio stations and television screens have been inundated with discussions by a number of people extolling the virtues of mothers, including their biological mothers and other women who have made invaluable contribution to their lives. This is in commemoration of Mother’s Day.
Those showering praises and adoration on mothers look up to a mother as an embodiment of love, the guardian angel of the family, the queen, the tender heart of love and the best friend anyone ever has, contending that mothers have a nurturing, caring and loving aspect that make them unique.
Mother’s Day is observed world-wide, just like International Women’s Day, which is a major day of global celebration for the economic, political and social achievements of women, which is observed on March 8 every year.
The modern Mother's Day holiday was created by an American, Anna Jarvis, as a day for each family to honour its mother, and it's now celebrated on various days in many places around the world. It complements Father's Day, the celebration honouring fathers.
Started as a political event, the holiday blended in the culture of many countries (primarily Russia and the countries of former Soviet bloc). In some celebrations, the day lost its political flavour, and became simply an occasion for men to express their love to the women around them in a way somewhat similar to Mother's Day and St Valentine's Day mixed together. In others, however, the political and human rights theme as designated by the United Nations runs strong, and political and social awareness of the struggles of women world-wide are brought out and examined in a hopeful manner.
My interest in the on-going discussions relating to the attributes of a mother was heightened after watching a televised programme, The Stand Point, on Ghana Television on May 1.
The discussions on the programme, which centred on issues confronting wives who do not have biological children, were quite intriguing and aroused my interest. Two of the three penallists have no children and that resulted in the break- up of the marriage of one, while the third speaker had her first child eight years after marriage.
The two childless women however demonstrated their resolve not to allow their circumstances to control them and refused to be victims of circumstances.
The third woman also demonstrated that, during the eight years that she had to wait on God for a child, she relentlessly continued with her life and trained to become a doctor in psychology.
One thing that was clear was that all the three women have made positive impacts on the lives of people and contributed their quota to national development.
People all over the world have their own customs in celebrating motherhood to show appreciation to mothers as those who bring forth children and nurture them to life, as well as women who care for people and even sacrifice their lives for the need of others.
According to polls, Mother Teresa is the most respected woman in the world. Her name is a by-word for selfless dedication in the service of humanity. Mother Teresa has this reputation of holiness amongst many non-Catholics and even secular people. And her reputation is based upon her charitable work for the sick and dying in Calcutta.
Similarly for Mother Teresa, she became a symbol for virtue, so even in cartoons, jokes, movies, and television shows, if you want a synonym for selflessness and holiness she is always mentioned.
The Christian doctrine describes the church as a mother because she is a bride who is forever bringing forth children of light, pillars of holiness, sources of inspiration, challengers of truth, and defenders of the faith. Fervent souls look upon the church as a dispenser of grace through a sacramental system.
We could go on and on talking about the opinions and feelings of people about a mother, but what I found very interesting were these quotations by Danielle Hollister accessed on BellaOnline.
It describes a mother as someone who cares when others care less, someone who encourages when others ridicule, someone who defends when others condemn, someone with patience when others are impatient, someone who appreciates when others fail to notice, someone who gives security in a world of insecurity, someone who is accepting when others reject and a friend for all time, to cherish and protect.
Another web site, parenting.myLot.com says a mother can be almost any size or age. She has soft hands and smells good. She does not like having her children sick, temper tantrums, loud noise, or bad report cards. She can bake good cakes and pies, but likes to see her children eat vegetables. She is underpaid, has long hours and gets very little rest.
Another online piece, describes a mother as the laundry woman, the cook and anything you wish to call her for she can be jack of all trade inside her home, giving proper advice at home, as well as nurturing and supporting family members all the way.
Colleagues, religious leaders and some parents, who were interviewed to elicit their views on Who is a Mother?, gave varied responses and opinions. I wanted to know whether a mother is a woman who brings forth children and desert them to fend for themselves due to socio-economic problems, or a woman, who lightens a home, ensures that family members, both close and extended, benefit from her passion, skills and resources, or a woman who takes care of children who are not her biological children, or a woman who does not just bring forth children, but provide them with care, support and provide for the needs of the child.
A colleague said a mother was the light of the home, she reigns in it, she's foremost the educator of her kids, the financial officer, for she handles the budget for the family, the accountant, for every now and then she gives an accounts of what is needed in the house.
A-45-year-old mother of four, Maame Yaa, said, “I love being a mother to my four kids for I consider them the best gifts I received from God. I consider my being a mother to them as my greatest achievement in life”.
Reverend Dei Awuku of the Atomic Hills Presbyterian Church said, to call somebody a mother, goes beyond just nine months of carrying pregnancy and giving birth to children, adding that, a mother is a person people can come to for food, advise, care, protection and comfort.
He said a mother is that person who knows what to do most of the time, and evokes trust and confidence.
An Evangelist and the Head Pastor of the New Bethel Revival Ministry International, Mrs Alice Newman, said children needed to appreciate their mothers in whatever condition they were and show them love and care.
She said sometimes mothers failed to take care of their children because of the hurts and pains suffered from a divorce and left such children to fend for themselves.
She explained that children from broken marriages deserved to be loved and properly taken care of by both spouses because they were not to be blamed for a marriage that had gone wrong.
Mrs Newman advised mothers to sacrifice in support of their children’s psychological, physical and social development to ensure that they grew up to become responsible people in future.
She said if mothers became more responsible, the number of street children could be reduced and cases of children accusing their mothers of being witches due to the hardships of life, may be minimised.
There are some people who do not know the value of their mother because they want to listen to themselves and others when confronted with problems they perceive to be insurmountable. Consequently, some mothers are being kept as ‘witches’ in camps, while others end up with depression and psychological problems, as a result of domestic and other societal problems.
But Rev Awuku’s advise to mothers is encouraging. He said since we would never have a society without problems, it is important for mothers to appreciate the power and glory of the Lord and utilise their gifts from God with the conscience of reason and maximise God in life to fulfil their roles as women and mothers.
As we celebrate Mother’s Day, all mothers (not only those who have brought forth children) have to believe, trust, and have confidence in themselves as women and mothers to look within for the answers instead of looking elsewhere. Happy Mother’s Day to all peace-loving and industrious women.