Mother’s Day occurs on different days depending on which part of the world you live in. The modern version was founded by Anna Jarvis and the day became formal in the US in 1914.

Perhaps the oldest festival known to honour Mothers was an amourous one practiced by the Ancient Greeks. The Mother of the Gods in mythology was Rhea. She was married to Kronos who was also her brother. Kronos castrated their father Uranus to claim the Kingly throne and Rhea was his Queen.

Kronos learned that one of his children would overthrow him in the future, so each time Rhea gave birth, he would swallow the child immediately. Rhea was able to rescue one child however, the boy child Zeus.

She gave birth in Crete, hiding Zeus in a cave, where others helped to keep the child alive and evade his father. She handed Kronos a stone wrapped in infant’s clothing which he swallowed and thus succeeded in duping him into believing he had got rid of all his children.

There are differing versions of this story. One of the versions has Adamanthea, a nymph come up with a clever way to hide Zeus from Kronos who presided over the heavens, sea and earth. She wrapped the child and suspended him from a tree with a rope so he was dangling between sky, sea and earth – making him invisible to his father.

Here are some printable tags to use for your Mother's Day gifts and cards. Customise them to suit other occasions. Click on the image to download.



Article and images copyright Mina Keenan
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