Show gratitude for Mother’s Day with your presence as much as your presents

Aconvergence of cultural holidays has given rise to a full Mother’s Day weekend this year, rather than just a single Mother’s Day. The United States celebrates Mother’s Day on the second Sunday of May. Mexico, much of Latin America and the many Latinos who call Southern Nevada home, celebrate Día de las Madres on May 10 regardless of the day of the week.

That means this year, Día de las Madres occurred Friday, while Mother’s Day is today. We hope that this calendar convergence means that moms across the country are enjoying a full weekend of well-deserved recognition, love, appreciation and pampering designed to say “thank you.”

It should go without saying that all of us have a mother to thank for bringing us into the world. We often fail to appreciate this fact, or to appreciate just how much our mothers may sacrifice for us until we are adults or even parents ourselves.

Only then does it fully set in that mothers so often sacrifice their time, energy, sleep, professional opportunities and perhaps even a bit of their sanity, in pursuit of our well-being and success.

And of course, not all mothers are the biological parents of their children. Some are called to motherhood by an innate desire to nurture others.

In this regard, Mother’s Day is a deeply personal holiday that is focused on each individual mom and her relationship with her children — not a larger family, community, faith or fellowship. Even the name itself, “Mother’s Day” is a singular noun spelled with an apostrophe “s” — punctuation that implies a focus on the individual.

As with all individuals, every mom is different and unique. Just as there’s no step-bystep guide or checklist to being a good mom, there is also no correct way to celebrate your mother on Mother’s Day.

However, for many of the 84% of U.S. adults who are expected to celebrate the holiday this year, cards, flowers, dinners and other experiences are often the go-to gifts.

While most moms will certainly appreciate the sentiment of gifts and the experience of fine dining, a 2022 study by Lending Tree found that what most moms really want is to spend time with and feel a connection to their kids.

In fact, more than two-thirds of moms surveyed identified a card with a heartfelt message and the opportunity to spend quality time with their children as the two “best” gifts for Mother’s Day.

As the survey’s authors explained, “Despite their best intentions, adult children and spouses miss the mark with their gifting plans. Even though 32% of moms are hoping for the gift of quality time together, only 21% of consumers giving a Mother’s Day gift this year intend to provide that.” Only 57% send a card.

Instead, most Americans spend money. According to the National Retail Federation, Americans will collectively spend $33.5 billion this year on Mother’s Day flowers, dinner, jewelry, gift cards, wine and other products or experiences.

That’s the second-highest Mother’s Day dollar figure in U.S. history and a 25% increase from five years ago.

While some of that increase is to be expected due to rising prices over time, we also believe that many Americans now have more than one person in our lives who we look up to and revere as a mother figure.

After all, moms aren’t always the people who brought us into the world. They might also be adopted parents, mentors and other people we meet in life’s journey who have a profound impact on us. They are those who teach us, guide us, nurture us and ultimately protect us. Often, they do all these things at once, helping to protect us from our own worst impulses.

Moms pick us up when we fall, encourage us to learn life’s lessons and become the best versions of ourselves. We can all learn a lot from the best moms, and we don’t blame people who want to spend a small fortune showing their love and appreciation for their mom on Mother’s Day. In truth, no matter how much we spend, most of us can never fully repay our moms for all they’ve done for us.

However, regardless of what else we might do to celebrate, appreciate or honor the moms who are still with us, we encourage everyone to give the gift of time and make their presence part of their present. After all, we never know how much time we have left together.

As for people whose moms are no longer with us, as any child will tell you, moms are endowed with the unique ability to see and hear everything around them. That means it’s never too late to say thank you. They’ll hear you.

Happy Mother’s Day, and to all of our moms, thank you.

Moms pick us up when we fall, encourage us to learn life’s lessons and become the best versions of ourselves. We can all learn a lot from the best nmdoms, and we don’t blame people who want to spend a small fortune showing their love and appreciation for their mom on Mother’s Day. In truth, no matter how much we spend, most of us can never fully repay our moms for all they’ve done for us.