Editorial

This Sunday is when all of us will spend billions on flowers,
another billion on assorted “pampering” gifts and millions more on
not-so-special greeting cards. And, don’t forget the brunches,
where this Sunday continues to be the most popular dining out day
all across America.
Yes, this Sunday, May 8, is Mother’s Day. Mothers: everybody has
one. And most of us have other mothers to celebrate as well. We’re
married to mothers. We have mother-in-laws, step-mothers and
mothers of our mothers and fathers. Some of us live close to our
mother and some of us have mothers who live far, far away. Some of
us have only memories of our mothers who passed away several years
ago.
Every mother is different and every mother is somebody’s
favorite. And all mothers like those flowers, Hallmark cards and
lavished gifts. Most like the brunches but some insist on doing
their own cooking.
But what very special gifts might most mothers really cherish?
More than flowers, what gift or gesture might prove longer lasting,
more meaningful or significant to her life?
What kinds of gifts could all of us give to all of our mothers
that they could share? Think of something that is more than a
greeting card with a poem written by a stranger. Consider something
all mothers could enjoy and make use of through all the days of the
coming year — and beyond.
When you ask a mother what she would most like, she usually asks
for something for her children, and not for herself, right? A
mother’s best gift is us, her children, she always tells us. She
might want happiness, good health and a successful life, but not
for her — it’s for her family.
Mothers want all other mothers to have the same things they
have: a nice home, financial security, good schools, nearby parks
and playgrounds, a small garden and a loving family.
Here at home, and around the world, many mothers do not have
these comforts and joys. In many places, motherhood is full of
danger, poverty, infant mortality and very short life spans.
Each year, the Save the Children organization conducts a survey
on the “state of motherhood” around the world. In this year’s
survey of 164 countries, the United States ranked only 31st among
43 developed countries, partly because the maternal mortality rate
here is the highest of any industrialized nation. (One in every
2,100 births results in a maternal death.)
Norway ranked as the best place in the world for mothers and
Afghanistan is the worst place to be a mother, where a mother’s
life expectancy is only 45 years and one in every five children
dies before the age of five. A mother’s life expectancy is 83 in
Norway, where mothers have the most generous maternity leave
programs, receiving a full year of paid leave.
The report also says that 22,000 infants die every day from
treatable and even preventable conditions — principally diarrhea,
pneumonia, malaria and complications of childbirth.
In some good news, the world’s mortality rates are improving. Of
the 15 countries who receive the most U.S. development assistance,
14 have achieved reductions in child mortality ranging from 20 to
77 percent since 1990, according to the Save the Children report.
But we only spend one half of one percent of the federal budget on
anti-poverty and humanitarian programs. What if we could do
more?
The answer to every mother’s wish is a simple one. Mothers and
their babies need better access to prenatal care, basic health
care, attended births, nutrition and family planning programs.
What if instead of us buying flowers and cards, we let all the
mothers pick out each other’s gifts — gifts for all the mothers of
the world?
— Rollie Atkinson