PODCAST: read and listen to this entry at the same time (you can find the Spanish text here)
In Spain, we celebrate (1) Mother’s Day on the first Sunday of May. This means that each year it’s on a different date.
Celebrating Mother’s Day is traditional in many countries and cultures, but it’s different for every country, depending on its different traditions and culture.
Here I’m going to tell you how we celebrate Mother’s Day in Spain and what you can expect on this day in my country.
This festivity is not marked as an official bank holiday. What does this mean? It means that it’s a business day, i.e. a normal day. However, since it always falls on a Sunday, we have the day off and can spend time with the family.
Practically everybody celebrates this date one way or the other. The most common thing to do is to get together with the family for lunch or for coffee, and like this, spend the day with that special person or remember her if she’s not with us anymore. Because (2) “There is but one mother”.
Families meet for lunch at the home of a family member or they go out for lunch to a restaurant. Going out for lunch is a very common thing to do when there’s some kind of festivity. In May the weather’s usually good and warm, therefore going to a restaurant and taking a stroll is quite popular.
After lunch, it’s also common to go and have a coffee at some family members’ house. If you are, for example, having lunch with your partner and children at home or in a restaurant, you will definitely visit afterwards your parents or your in-laws at their home for coffee.
What to gift?
It’s customary to make a present or give a (3) little something to the moms and also the grandmas. The gifts mothers receive are typically (4) bouquets of flowers, something sweet, like (5) pralines, but jewelry, costume jewelry and books are also popular.
The most wished for presents are, however, the ones from the smallest ones at home. Children usually make a special gift which they prepare for days. Normally they do some (6) handicraft at school which they then gift to their (7) mommies. As a mother you’re always looking forward to receiving a small gift that was made by the smallest ones. And they as well are very excited about preparing it in school for a whole week and then surprising (7) mom with it in the morning.
A commercial festivity?
There are some that prefer not to celebrate that day. One of the reasons is that in the last years this festivity has become quite commercial. Like so many other commemorative occasions like Christmas, Valentine’s Day or Father’s Day, Mother’s Day has changed a bit into a commercial date. Already more than a week before the first Sunday of May, the (8) displays fill with advertisements and gifts you can buy. Regardless it still is a day you most of all spend with your family.
INTERESTING VOCABULARY TO USE ON MOTHER’S DAY:
- Mother’s Day: Día de la Madre; día en el que se celebra a las madres.
- There is but one mother: Madre no hay más que una; expresión que destaca lo especial o única que es una madre.
- a little something: Detalle; regalo pequeño, que no ha costado mucho dinero.
- bouquet of flowers: Ramo de flores; flores atadas en un manojo y decoradas. Regalo típico para celebraciones.
- pralines: Bombones; pequeños dulces de chocolate.
- handicraft: Manualidad; objeto realizado por uno mismo usando distintos materiales. Suele ser para decorar o regalar.
- mommy, mom: Mami, mamá; forma coloquial y cariñosa de llamar a una madre.
- displays: Escaparates; parte exterior de una tienda donde se presentan los productos.
Credits:
Featured image: Photo by S&B Vonlanthen on Unsplash
Picture 1: Photo by Stefan Vladimirov on Unsplash
Picture 2: Photo by Ekaterina Shevchenko on Unsplash