The mother of all special days

UNLIKE a lot of so-called special days that shops love us to celebrate - National Middle Child Day, anyone?

- SUSAN LEE

Simply perfect: A homemade card

- Mother's Day outranks them all.It sits atop that long list of card-buying opportunities as the one that must not, under any circumstances, be forgotten - or worse, marked with flowers from the local petrol station.

And rightly so.

Mother's Day has deep provenance; a celebration dating back to the 16th century in the UK when folk (often domestic servants) returned to their 'mother church' and in doing so came back home to their family and their mums.

Now of course it has morphed into a juggernaut of spending; a wild retail ride complete with gifts, afternoon teas, bottomless brunches and Sunday roasts that mysteriously cost two quid more than usual.