Mother’s Day is the day people all over the world remember and honour their mothers. Just like how this piece of writing cannot adequately encapsulate the true value of mothers, our yearly celebration of Mother’s Day is woefully inadequate to fully appreciate the extent of their service. Mothers wear many hats: wife, confidante (husband and children), counsellor (husband and children), housekeeper, nurse – the list goes on seemingly endless.
Over the years, their role has changed additively. In the past, the fathers would bring home the bread, and the mothers would take care of the household. However, in today’s world, often, both parents hold jobs, and the mother is somehow expected to continue to take care of the household. Being a mother is a full-time job that has no off-days or annual leave. As such, mothers of my generation often work and attempt to mind the children and the household. Of course, modern couples are less likely to split gender roles as strictly as the couples of old, but somehow mothers still bear the societal expectation of being their children’s primary caregivers. Ironically, notions of quitting work to be a full-time mother are often met with scepticism and disbelief.
Notwithstanding the current societal norms that govern how young couples live their lives, it cannot be denied that mothers do so much. This year, in an effort to build community spirit in our youth, we enlisted our youth to serve the church to celebrate Mother’s Day. Who are better at performing a gesture of appreciation and love to the mothers in our church than our youths? Our youths have prepared a simple token for our mothers, anchored by Proverbs 31:31 – “Honour her for all that her hands have done, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.”
Even as we are thankful for all that our mothers have done, let us not just acknowledge this day but actively do something to show our love and appreciation to them.
Amos Ghui
