Mothering Sunday

It was once the Sunday in mid-Lent when young people in domestic service living away from home were given a rare day off to go home to visit their families and, with them attend their parish church. Some years ago when I ran the Sunday School we would spend the Sunday previous making Mothering Sunday cards and then on the Day families would come to church and during the service the children would collect a small bunch of flowers from the vicar (provided by the ladies in the choir) and give them to their mothers. It was a very sweet little ceremony. Today I was the recipient of some beautiful flowers and had a very nice lunch with Mike and Amanda. I also received greetings from Tokyo which was so nice. For several years I used to get a card from a French friend addressed to "My English Mummy". I feel sorry that my own mother is no longer with us. She so enjoyed any excuse for a celebration. Her obvious pleasure at receiving a gift, however small, gave pleasure to the giver.