Mother's day is special; many moms teach kids about great outdoors

Today, many youngsters learn their outdoors skills from their mothers, and this weekend is the time to honor them.

Mother’s Day is a special day. It is a time to remember and honor Mom. 

There’s the traditional flowers and candy, or a trip to the restaurant for Mom, but how about giving her an outing, a trip to a state park, or even a trip fishing.

Many moms enjoy fishing, and if fishing really isn’t something they like, most would enjoy a day outdoors. In many cases, it was Mom who helped introduce we to the outdoors, and often today in single-parent families it is Mom who is teaching youngsters to hunt, fish, or otherwise enjoy nature.

My Mother was an important part of my early days in the outdoors, and much later when our family lived on a small farm. Mom would visit and spend hours fishing in the small pond behind the house. Besides bass and bluegill, it had some large channel catfish. They always were her target, and after she caught one, I would help her return it to the water, but first I would have take a photo.

For Mother’s Day, consider taking Mom fishing. It appears the weather will be good in the Central Kentucky area. The early week forecast calls for mid-60’s and sunny. Ideal for sunny spring outing.

You might also consider taking her on a fishing trip for a day or two to a place like Kentucky Lake or some other lake where you could fish with a guide. She might enjoy such a treat, however if the budget doesn’t permit, a trip to a nearby pond or lake would be fun.

If you choose to take mom fishing for the day, pack a lunch. Bring out the lawn chairs. Plan everything. Make sure all Mom has to do is show up and have fun. Remember, fishing isn't just about catching fish. It's fun even if no one catches a whopper. Talking, laughing, and just spending quality time makes the day.

And, if you aren’t confident, Mom would enjoy fishing, a picnic would be fun. The trees and wildflowers this year are beautiful, and something Mom will appreciate. Also, a number of parks have inns where a nice meal can be enjoyed before or after visiting the rest of the park.

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HISTORY -- Mothers Day can be loosely linked back to ancient Greece when in the spring a celebration honored Rhea, the Mother of the Gods. 

Then in the 1600’s in England, Mothering Sunday on the fourth Sunday of Lent honored English moms. During this time, many of England’s poor worked as indentured servants and lived at the home of their employers some distance from their families. On this one day, many of the employers gave their servants the day off and encouraged them to travel home and spend some time with their mothers. 

In the O.S. a woman named Ana Jarvis in 1907 started an effort for a national Mother’s Day and convinced her church in Grafton, W. Va., to celebrate Mother’s Day on the second anniversary of her mother’s death which was the second Sunday in May. She and other women wrote to pastors in other churches and the celebration spread.

By 1911, Mother’s Day was celebrated in every state and in 1914 President Woodrow Wilson announced the day as a national holiday. It also is celebrated in a number of other countries, but in most cases on different days of the year.

It is good to honor mothers. They have tough jobs raising kids and husbands.