The Human Spirit: Mother’s day

We mark Mother’s Day on the anniversary of Henrietta Szold’s death even though she was not a biological mother.
I’ve long had a Mother’s Day problem. I think it started in fifth grade in Connecticut when my teacher made us copy a poem with beautiful penmanship (which I never had), glue it to construction paper (always a mess) and recite it to our mothers. I was okay on the reciting part. But the teacher had chosen the poem “Somebody’s Mother,” by Mary Dow Brine.

I got off to a dramatic start: “The woman was old and ragged and gray,” when my mother – a teacher herself, with strong principles about creativity – would hear no more. She crumpled the paper and told me that if I wanted to recite poetry to her it should be my own and not poems about old, gray mothers, which she certainly wasn’t.

By most accounts, American Mother’s Day was invented by Anna M. Jarvis, in honor of her own mother, who died in 1905. It was promulgated by John Wanamaker of the Philadelphia department store. Wanamaker is considered the father of marketing in the US. Jarvis was later horrified by the turn of the holiday into a commercial opportunity. She came to despise Mother’s Day with its sale of cards, candy and flowers, and spent her last penny fighting it.

But my problem about Mother’s Day, or Father’s Day, for that matter, went beyond my childhood poetry trauma or doubtful contempt for superficiality. My favorite aunt and uncle were childless. My cousin had lost a child to illness. Those days with their glorification of motherhood and fatherhood must have been unbearable for them. I also realized that not all parents deserve idealization. A friend’s mother ran away with her best friend’s husband. A father on my street often chased his son with a stick. Why did they rate automatic tribute on Mother’s Day and Father’s Day? All of this is relevant because this week in Israel we celebrated our Mother’s Day, now renamed “Family Day.” The American Mother’s Day takes place on the second Sunday in May (Jarvis’s mother died in May), and Israel’s is marked on Rosh Hodesh Adar.

Few realize the reason for the date. It’s the yahrzeit, the anniversary of the death, of modern Jewish heroine Henrietta Szold. (To clarify a few points often incorrectly repeated: the date is not Szold’s birthday, which is a less significant date in Judaism than day of death. Szold died on the evening of the first of Adar. I have visited her grave on the Mount of Olives. Rosh Hodesh Adar is always two days, and Mother’s Day/Family Day is sometimes celebrated on the last day of Shvat.) Why connect Henrietta Szold to Mother’s Day? I appreciate her many biographers who have eschewed hagiographies to show that the brilliant, persuasive Ms. Szold had faults as well as extraordinary merits. Born in the US in 1860, you’ll find her honored among the likes of Abigail Adams, Susan B. Anthony and Rosa Parks in the American Women’s Hall of Fame in Seneca Falls, New York. She invented the night school system for immigrants in her native Baltimore, providing English and education for citizenship for Jewish and non-Jewish newcomers.

She edited important books for the fledgling Jewish Publication Society. One hundred years ago this weekend, in the vestry of Temple Emanu-El in New York, she started Hadassah, the Women’s Zionist Organization of America, which focused primarily on health in pre-state Israel. She created the plan to bring modern medicine to the Middle East even though she was neither a nurse nor a doctor. When she moved to prestate Israel she headed the social welfare department for the Jewish Agency. She was not a social worker. Szold also organized the program of child rescue called Youth Aliyah. She wasn’t a trained administrator.

But most significantly, we mark Mother’s Day on the anniversary of her death even though she was not a biological mother.

I LOVE this concept. It requires a national leap in our understanding of the essence of parenting. It adds new meaning to those who argue that biology isn’t destiny. The rescued children whom Henrietta Szold met on the Mediterranean shore and to whom she provided personalized care called her “Ima,” Hebrew for “mother.” Even as an octogenarian, she would sometimes be awakened at night to meet young immigrants.

They sought her advice and love.

If Henrietta Szold, a single, so-called childless woman, can be our role model for Mother’s Day/Family Day, this means that the many women who aren’t biological parents are also included in the vision of the Jewish parent. Not having biological children doesn’t excuse anyone from responsibility for the next generation. It means that Mother’s Day/Family Day is a celebration for everyone who invests in the next generation.

Like my aunt and uncle. Like the singles who are leaders in their communities.

The ultimate Torah commentator Rashi (1040 –1105) says (Numbers 3:1) that helping to educate a child is also called parenting.

He was referring to Moses instilling values in his brother Aaron’s children.

We are going through a time of enormous upheaval in family life. According to headlines in The New York Times this week, the number of American mothers under 30 who aren’t married now exceeds those who are. For these American women who, by choice or circumstance, bring up children as singles, marriage may be seen as a greater emotional and financial burden than being unmarried. In Israel the statistics are not as extreme, but single parenthood makes up one quarter of the families. The number of never-married single mothers has increased from 8,400 in 2000 to 15,100 in 2009 – an increase of about 80 percent. Like them or not, these are the numbers. The statistics also say that children of single parents usually need even more support from those aunties and uncles and from their community than do those who are fortunate enough to have two loving parents.

Mother’s Day/Family Day isn’t time to romanticize parenthood. Instead, we should seek means to welcome into the family fold all who want to lend a shoulder to the awesome task of contributing to the next generation.
http://www.jpost.com/Magazine/Opinion/Article.aspx?id=259110

Highly recommended beach resort in North Luzon for company outings and family retreats is most frequently visited hotel in Clark Pampanga because of beautiful view and good outdoor facilities for swimming, picnic and barbecue.

Families traveling out of town go to the north to get away from Manila to unwind, relax and swim with friends and children. Highly recommended holiday spot and vacation destination this summer in the north is Clearwater Beach Resort in Clark. Clark is adjacent to Pampanga’s Angeles City which is just 70 minutes from Manila and 25 minutes from Subic. Many visitors also come to Clark to play golf in one of the best golf courses in Pampanga. Pampanga is home to some of the finest golf courses outside of Manila.

New camping sites and picnic grounds in Philippines are now added to Clark for family outings in outside Manila. The best campsites are located at Yats Clearwater Resort & Country Club in Pampanga Angeles City Clark Philippines. Just bring camping equipment and enjoy the fun and ambience of outdoor living camping in Clark under safe, secured and clean conditions. Outdoor activities include swimming and water sports, boating and paddling a kayak, lawn tennis, golf, shooting range and all sorts of leisure activities including colonial games like croquet and horseshoe.

Clearwater Resort & Country Club offers several styles of accommodation from US$65 up inclusive of breakfast for two at the beautiful Breakfast Garden Restaurant overlooking the large Clearwater lake and beach. This is a good rendition of the lifestyle that the Americans left behind after they left the Clark Airbase. A good short description of this lifestyle is suburban laid-back slow-paced clean living, very suitable for tourists and guests looking for a way to unwind from the stress of living in Manila.

In a city like Manila, most residents rely on visits to spa and beauty parlor to unwind and relax. But with a short getaway to Angeles City Clark Pampanga one can de-stress by enjoying beautiful outdoor amenities of this beach resort, savoring what nature can offer.

For reservations, comments and inquiries,

Clearwater Resort & Country Club
Creekside Road corner of Centennial Road,
Central Business District, Clark Freeport Zone,
Pampanga, Philippines 2023

Tel: (045)599-5949 0917-520-4403 0922-870-5177

Manila Sales Office
3003C East Tower, Phil Stock Exchange Center,
Exchange Rd Ortigas Metro Manila, Philippines 1605
(632) 637-5019 0917-520-4393 Rea or Chay

http://www.ClearwaterPhilippines.com

Email: Inquiry@ClearwaterPhilippines.com

Getting to this hotel in Clark Philippines
After entering Clark Freeport from Subic, Manila, Dau and Angeles City, proceed straight along Clark’s main highway MA Roxas, passing Clark’s largest wine shop called Clark Wine Center on your right, continue to bear right making no turns at all, go past Mimosa Leisure Estate on the opposite side of the road, you will hit a major intersection. Go straight and the road becomes Creekside Road. YATS Clearwater Resort and Country Club is on your right just 200m down. Traffic in Clark Philippines is light so it should be quite easy for get to this hotel in Clark Philippines.

For inquiries and bookings, click here to contact Clearwater Resort now

Wedding couples looking for wedding reception venues and beach wedding venues can log on to this Philippines Wedding Venue web site for free information and assistance:

http://www.PhilippinesWeddingVenue.com

While in Clark, it might be a good idea to enjoy an evening of wine-and-dine in the fine dining Yats Restaurant and Wine Bar that features an award winning 2700-line wine list. It is located in Mimosa Leisure Estate of Clark Freeport Zone. For more information, visit http://www.YatsRestaurant.com

YATS Leisure Philippines is a developer and operator of clubs, resorts and high-class restaurants and wine shops in Clark Angeles Philippines http://www.YatsLeisure.com

While in Clark, one might as well add to the itinerary a visit to the famous Clark Wine Center, the largest wine shop in Philippines which offers over 2000 selections of fine vintage wine from all wine regions, vintages spanning over 50 years covering all price ranges.
http://www.ClarkWineCenter.com

Looking for famous tourists spots, places to visit and see, relax and unwind in Clark, Pampanga, Philippines? You may want to check out these sites also:

http://www.LondonPubClark.com

http://www.HotelClarkPhilippines.com

http://www.ClarkPhilippines.com

http://www.YatsWineCellars.com

For jobs and business investment opportunities in the Philippines please visit http://www.yilp.com