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Mother's Day in Switzerland

Flower for Mother's Day - Rainer Sturm  / pixelio.de

Mother's Day.

Other than Valentine's Day, I cannot think of another holiday that has hallmark written all over it like Mother's Day. Shops are full of Mother's Day promotions and school kids are crafting little gifts for their moms. Florists are especially happy since many grown up children will bring their mothers a nice bouquet or have it delivered.

Mother's Day in Switzerland

Switzerland adopted this American holiday in 1930 mainly because of a strong lobbying effort by the local florist unions but also had a strong Christian support through the Salvation Army that advocated this day to honor the mothers. Like in most countries around the world, Mother's Day in Switzerland is celebrated on the second Sunday of May.

Essentially, Mother's Day in Switzerland is probably pretty much the same as in other countries, I don't know of any uniquely Swiss traditions on this day. Unless you think it unique that we usually gift the most delicious swiss chocolates which are sometimes hard to come by in other places.

Memories of Mother's Days

I remember making little gifts for my mom during my school years but it was always a bit more tricky in my case. My mom has her birthday in the first week of May and sometimes her birthday actually fell on Mother's Day. So, me and my siblings always had to (that is, wanted to) think of two gifts for her at the same time. We also made breakfast for her and tried to make her day special.

Nowadays, we make do with some flowers or a visit which in my opinion is worth more than any gift. Looking back, I realize that celebrating your mom (or your dad if it's Father's Day) is probably more important for the children than for the mom since it gives them the opportunity to express the gratitude and love they feel towards her.

If you don't want to do the classic thing and bring or send your mother (or wife) flowers with a card you might want to take your mom out to a nice lunch or dinner. If possible gather all the siblings and choose a nice location. Or you could take one of these iconic "Now & Then" pictures. I've always wanted to take one but we never got around to it.










© 2015 IRENE WYRSCH "A HUMOROUS GUIDE TO SWITZERLAND" ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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