MOMS: Armed with tomatoes

I don’t know about other mothers that read Sholeh Patrick’s article on “Mother’s Day: Is it past its prime?,” but it really rattled my cage and not in a good way. So many of our traditions and rights are being stolen right out from under us and I’ll be darn if you think you can take away “Mother’s Day” by re-defining it and calling it “Parent’s Day!” The moment I gave birth defined me as a mother and there has never been anything in my life that has made me more proud and caused me greater joy than to earn that title. That’s mine and you’re not touching it!

You expressed that being a mother meant something gender and generation specific, but that story is changing fast. You stated that perhaps it’s time to dump “womanly” and “manly” from rigid vocabularies and focus on calling it “Parent’s Day” and focus on whoever fulfills that particular role, that particular year.

I don’t care who’s taking care of the children … be it the mother, father or grandparents … they each have their own “gender” value and are defined by that role in that child’s life. I really don’t understand how you could even write this article and believe for one second that it has any validity to it whatsoever. Mothers have earned the right to “Mother’s Day” and fathers have earned the right to “Father’s Day!” If you don’t want to celebrate Mother’s Day for what it is and has always been, that’s your choice, but don’t shove that down my throat because remember those tomatoes you asked your readers to hold off on, well I’ve got a whole box of rotten ones ready to throw at you.

SALLY HICKS

Rathdrum