THROUGH
MOUNTAIN MISTS
Early Settlers of
John Their
Descendants...Their Stories...Their Achievements
Lifting the
Mists of History on Their Way of Life
By: Ethelene Dyer Jones
Travel
back with me through the mists of
time to the country church many of you readers attended when you were
children
and during your growing-up years. Think
about how we observed Mother’s Day and Children’s Day in those churches. It seems to me that those events may have
occurred on the same day. But memory
sometimes has a way of blending events so that they seem in our mind,
looking
back in retrospect, to come at the same time.
Let’s take a look at Mother’s
Day. This past Sunday, May 9, was a day
to honor mothers. Mother’s Day as a
national observance was made by official announcement of then President
Woodrow
Wilson in 1914. The proclamation stated
that it was to be held each year on the second Sunday in May. The Mother’s Day flower selected was the
carnation, so chosen because it represents sweetness, purity and the
enduring
qualities of a mother’s love.
The custom of wearing a flower,
whether carnation or whatever might be blooming the second Sunday in
May,
became symbolic. If persons wore a white
flower, it indicated their mother had died already but was remembered
with
dignity and respect. If persons wore a
red flower, they still had the privilege of their mother being alive.
In the
In my memory I recall that the
pastor’s sermon was based on verses from that inimitable “Godly Woman”
passage
found in Proverbs 31:10-31. What better
description of mother and industrious woman can be found?
The oldest and the youngest mother present
were always recognized. All mothers were
admonished to bring up their children in the nurture and admonition of
the
Lord.
It was not Mother’s Day, but the day
after Valentine’s Day when my own mother’s funeral was held at
This past Sunday as you observed
Mother’s Day and remembered your own mother, or felt pride in your own
privilege of being a mother (and even a grandmother), I trust that you
were
strengthened in faith because you had a godly mother to emulate.
Then there was the observance of
Children’s Day. As I recall, this program,
when the children did recitations, sang songs and perhaps did a
mini-drama, was
sometimes a part of the Mother’s Day celebrations at the church. Our Sunday School teachers worked with us
weeks in advance of Children’s Day to insure that we knew our lines and
could
recite them well. This program was, in
itself, a tribute to mothers as they proudly watched their children
demonstrating what they had learned of Bible verses memorized,
character traits
engrained through some little playlet, or songs that taught faith and
doctrines. Of course the children were
too young to know why these programs were important to their early
Christian
training. But somehow the experience of
participating gave us confidence, instilled in our eager minds the
feeling of
belonging, and assured us that we were an important part of the church
and its
training. These memories of Children’s
Days at church weave a fabric of appreciation for growing up in the
country and
having a good church and a good home.
Recall some of your early years. See
what facets of your upbringing fashioned
your life and made you who you are today.
Maybe your own memories of celebrating Mother’s Day and
Children’s Day
will give you a warm, fuzzy feeling deep inside as they did me.
Updated September
26,
2009
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