IN HONOR OF MOTHER'S DAY
WHERE ALL'S ACCUSTOMED, CEREMONIOUS
Above: Sorting through reams of musty old family papers and keepsakes, I came across this lovely collection of vintage Mother's Day cards, most of which were given to my grandmother from my mom, during the 1940s, 50s, and 60s.
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Below: I also came across pages 4 - 7 of a brittle typed manuscript for a Mother's Day Pantomime, featuring Some Mothers of Today, complete with stage directions for the coming and going of various mothers and a supporting cast for acting out each poem:
"Window with a mother's face.
Have a lattice window where the mother can
leave and come forth to greet her children."
The whereabouts of pages 1 - 3 remain a mystery, but on the back of page 7, my mother has written: "Found in Mama's cherished papers." My best guess is that my mom added this notation in 1966, when my grandmother died. However, it is unclear whether or not my mom knew why my grandmother cherished this manuscript. Was it perhaps part of a school play, church program, or community entertainment in which she participated?
Amidst all the unknowns, one thing seems certain: Mother's Day was indeed a well observed event in my grandmother's day. After admiring her treasure trove of cards, I was able to track down most of the poems and lyrics referred to in the text of her presentation:
The Old Arm - Chair
by Eliza Cook - 1818-1889
"Would ye learn the spell? a mother sat there,
And a sacred thing is that old arm-chair.
In childhood’s hour I linger’d near
The hallow’d seat with list’ning ear . . . "
and:
A Thread of Hair
by Christopher Bannister
"I knew her when her locks were golden.
And here, night afternight,
Over this ol dwork basket,
I saw them change to white . . . "
On page 5:
Revery: An Old Picture
Oliver Marble
"The change and strife of later life,
The years that leave me gray.
Have taken, too, that pictured view;
But cannot take away
The memory so dear to me . . . "
On page 6:
A Mother's Song
by Mary Frances Butts
"Mother, crooning soft and low,
Let not all thy fancies go,
Like swift birds, to the blue skies
Of thy darling's happy eyes . . . "
and:
A Mother’s Love
Caroline Elizabeth Sarah (Sheridan) Norton (1808–1877)
"The mother looketh from her latticed pane—
Her Children’s voices echoing sweet and clear:
With merry leap and bound her side they gain,
Offering their wild field-flow’rets: all are dear . . ."
On page 7:
The Goodest Mother
Anonymous
"But here was a comfort. Children dear,
Think what a comfort you might give
To the very best friend you have here,
The Lady fair in whose house you live . . . "
and:
Old Mothers
Charles S. Ross
"A knowledge in their deep unfaltering eyes
That far out reaches all philosophy,
Time, with caressing touch,about them weaves . . . "
When You and I Were Young, Maggie
sung by John McDermott
Silver Threads Among the Gold
sung by Foster & Allen
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I wish I knew more about my grandmother's role in this "Five Mothers Pantomime." Was she coaching the local drama students? Was she the Stage Manager, narrating the production in manner of Our Town? Or was she perhaps the editor, paging through the sentimental favorites of the day? I like to think of her making the connections, choosing each poem with care, and weaving them together into an effective sequence -- for me to read on Mother's Day, a hundred or so years later.
Next Fortnightly Post
Thursday, May 28th
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