MOTHER’S DAY IS a perfect opportunity to celebrate women. On this day, our mothers deserve our thanks, our love, our care and our prayers. We celebrate not only our biological mothers, but women who have contributed in shaping our personalities, our ethics and even our career paths. It is a much deserved holiday, and supposed to be celebrated for an entire month.

For a successful motherhood, your family must have space in your schedule. Giving good times to relationship is like putting good fertilizer on a plant: It engenders growth. No matter your kind of profession, work or business make sure you do not neglect your responsibility as a mother. For your families are portions and treasures you have on earth. They are the jewels of inestimable values. They are the apples of our eyes. Motherhood calls then for tolerance. This is a key to a successful motherhood. Do not say I cannot tolerate this or that. Colossians 3:12-13 enjoins us: “As God’s elect, to put on bowels of mercies, kindness, and perseverance.”

Children have the natural tendency of being attracted to their mother. This is because women have within them greater capacity to love, sacrifice, and protect so says Bishop Fulton Sheen. For him, “a man always gives reasons for loving, but love, for the woman, is a ‘whole piece;’ It cannot be torn apart, analyzed and dissected.” A woman’s love, too, is more personal than the man’s. Her nature is more adaptable to the spiritual. They are capable of greater sacrifices than men; and they stand up better in time of crisis. Their love expresses itself in service, and under the spell of love, sacrifice becomes a joyful experience.

In the letter of Pope John Paul II to women he said, “Motherhood is the path to sainthood.” “There is no vocation on earth so wonderful than that of motherhood”, says Pope Francis. It is amazing to see a woman suck the nose of the child with her mouth. She tidy’s the Childs wastes, and sometimes when the child urinates on their body, she smiles. She is always the last to go to sleep and the first to wake up. She can go hungry, just to make sure that the children are well fed. Just like the mother hen uses it wings to shield the young, the woman uses all possible means to protect her child from danger. She easily feels any slightest change of mood in her children. The instincts of women are mostly right.

Motherhood is an intimate contemplation of God, says Caryll Houselander. The mother is the trustee of God’s love to the child. The child receives and trust’s God through his mother. To a young child, home stands for God. In it he or she learns to see and touch the gifts of God. It is in the home that the child should assimilate the teaching of the Sermon on the Mount (cf. Matt. 5:1-12) and if not, they will be influenced by the worlds negative teachings.

Wise mothers make the house a home. They work according to the gift and fruits of the Holy Spirit, which are wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety and fear of God and they manifest the fruits which are, charity, joy, peace, patience, benignity, goodness, longanimity, mildness, faith, modesty, continency and chastity. Lack of any of these gifts leads to frustration, anger, and jealousy. It can also lead to loss of home. Delinquents, neurotics, criminals, addicts are nearly always the children of disunited homes.

Beloved, pray for your mother. Mothers need the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit which are the fountain of love, wisdom and understanding. Jesus knew the value of Mary’s motherhood when he said, “Mother belold your son and son behold your Mother (Jn.19:26-27).” Children, if you want to win your mother love and blessings, always appreciate her effort in the family. When you praise her handworks, she will work harder. In proverbs 31:28-31, we have an example of a man leading his children in praise of his wife. “Her children rose up and called her blessed.” Fathers, please lead your children in praise of your wife; their mother and grandmothers. Berton Braley says, “If you think that praise is due to your mother, now is the time to slip it to her, for she cannot read her tombstones when she is dead.”

Happy Mother’s day to all MUMMYS. May you reap the fruit of your labour, through Christ our Lord, Amen.