Mothers are all slightly insane.

-J.D. Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye

I’m rather good at pooh-poohing most Hallmark days. They’re too commercial, designed to sell cards and gifts. 

One that is hard for me to put neatly in this category is Mother’s Day – even if it is every bit as commercial as all the rest. In fact, Mother’s Day is one of the most commercialized of the lot. This year over $17 billion (yes, billion) will be spent in the U.S. alone on Mother’s Day – jewelers, florists and restaurants are the leading beneficiaries.

Yet, for me this day somehow retains a sacred part to it.

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Grown don’t mean nothing to a mother.  A child is a child.  They get bigger, older, but grown?  What’s that suppose to mean?  In my heart it don’t mean a thing. 

~Toni Morrison, Beloved, 1987

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I don’t need a Mother’s Day to remind me of mom but it sure feels wonderful to celebrate her on a special day.

And to say thank you from the bottom of my heart – for life and for complete and unconditional love and caring. How lucky for me!

Go ahead, don’t hold back. If  you can say the same, you should. Loudly.

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When your mother asks, “Do you want a piece of advice?” it is a mere formality. It doesn’t matter if you answer yes or no. You’re going to get it anyway.

-Erma Bombeck