Mothers' Day is apparently a BIG FREAKING DEAL here in Honduras. Every grade was required to put together some kind of drama, song, act, dance, etc. There was a show after school for all the parents and there was even a "parent of honor" for each grade who got to sit at a special table up front. Mothers' Day is on the same day in Honduras as it is in the United States (2nd Sunday in May), but Fathers' Day comes earlier here--in March instead of June.
One big discrepancy I noticed was the sentiment shown at the two events. Our school is big on decorations (sometimes I think they are more important to some folks than academics, but that is another blog entry...), and our Principal is big on the virtues of motherhood. The meticulously cut letters pasted above the stage for Mothers' Day read something like "Nothing comes closer to showing God's love on Earth than the love of a Mother." WOW, that's a pretty big statement. I don't disagree when you have a loving mother, but not everyone might feel that way. In contrast, the message for Fathers' Day was something like "The best legacy a father can leave his child is a little of his time every day." Like, smack me upside the head, spend some time with your dang KIDS, you idiot!!! Hmmmm... I don't know any concrete statistics on Honduras regarding single moms or "deadbeat" dads, but the chosen sentiments of the two holidays said a lot to me about familial attitudes.
