What Is Mother's Day and Why Celebrate It?

Mother’s Day is a worldwide celebrated holiday to honor your mother and friends or family members that are mothers. Although the United States and most other countries celebrate this holiday on the second Sunday in May, there are a few countries who celebrate on a different date. This year, Mother’s Day for most will fall on Sunday, May 10^th, 2009.

The History of the Mother’s Day Corsage

Of course, every mother is unique, and gift ideas for Mother’s Day are extremely vast; however, there is one token of appreciation that is tradition and still honored in today’s modern society: the corsage. The original flower corsage specifically for Mother’s Day was created with carnations. Carnations were delivered to all the mothers at the very first celebration hosted by its founder Anna Jarvis. She delivered single white carnations to mothers as a symbol of purity and a mother’s love. She chose the carnation as the staple flower of this holiday because it was her mother’s favorite flower.

Corsages and Mother's Day Flowers Branch Out

Partially to the shortage of white carnations, and partially due to the efforts to expand the sales of a variety of flowers on Mother's Day, the florists began using flowers other than white carnations for Mother's Day. In fact, florists promoted wearing a red carnation if your mother was still living and a white carnation if your mother had passed. This effort was tirelessly promoted until it reached its way into the popular observations at churches, in which these customs are still practiced today.

Although carnation are traditional, corsages using various types of flowers are considered an appropriate way to honor your mom or any mom on the Mother's Day. Many florists create Mother's day corsages with special flowers like orchids or roses. Orchid corsages are very beautiful and represent delicacy. Orchid’s among other new, modern flowers used in corsages are very popular with the younger generations. Other’s still expect the traditional red or white carnation corsage. It all depends on your mother's personality.

Whether you celebrate Mother's Day by giving your mother a carnation corsage or a bouquet of flowers, the meaning is the same, “Thanks, I Love You.”

Here are a few Mother's Day Flower suggestions:

Lasting Love - a basket of pink flowers.

Remember Mom - StarGazer lilies and other flowers in a vase.