Actress Nan Su Yati Soe with her mother Daw Tin Tun Win.

THEY carried us in their bellies for nine months, comforted us when we were sad or sick, tended to our cuts and scrapes and sat up with us when we had nightmares.

So why should we not celebrate the countless sacrifices our mothers made for us?

This month, people across the world will celebrate Mother’s Day. In the US and several other countries, including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Switzerland and Myanmar it is celebrated on the second Sunday in May.

The earliest Mother’s Day celebrations can be traced back to the spring celebrations of the Ancient Greeks in honor of Rhea, Mother of the Gods. In the US, Mother’s Day was first proclaimed in 1872.

Despite the holiday being widely celebrated in other countries, it has only become popular in Myanmar over the last five years. People are becoming more aware of special holidays like Valentine’s Day, Father’s Day and Mother’s Day with each year that goes on.

A testament to the growing significance of Mother’s Day in Myanmar is the number of special promotions and celebrations scheduled for this year’s holiday.

Special Mother’s Day gifts, including cards, colourful glass boxes, and flower bouquets and baskets fill the shelves at the Pearl Gift and Florist shop on Bogyoke Aung San Road.

“These presents are not selling as well as those for Valentine’s Day,” a salesperson from Pearl told The Myanmar Times last week.

“But it might be that the day is still far away or maybe people just don’t care about it very much. You know mothers are forgiving. They will not sulk even if we don’t give them presents (unlike girlfriends),” she said.

City Mart supermarkets are equally decked out with hairpins, brooches, cards, bouquets and books about motherhood that mothers are sure to like.

Even though the gift counters are not as crowded as they were in February, there are groups of girls standing around them choosing gifts for their mothers.

“The only time I’ve ever bought a present for my mum was on her birthday. I have heard of Mother’s Day but I had no idea when it was exactly. I came to the supermarket for some cosmetics but I happened to see this Mother’s Day gift counter and got the idea to buy a present for my mum,” explained Ma Thazin Aung.

Special gift packages, mini hampers, food and women’s items are also available at promotional prices at the Blazon department store. Those who are not sure what to buy their mum’s can pick up a gift certificate instead, which she can use at the store herself later.

But do mothers expect to get anything in return for their love?

“You know there is a proverb in Myanmar ‘Parents’ love is just downstream, never upstream’,” says Daw Than Than Yee, a mother of two.

“We want to provide our children with everything we can but do not expect anything from them in return.

“For example when my eldest daughter was born she was very sickly and we were just managing to make ends meet. So it was difficult for us to send her to the clinic by trishaw. My husband and I had to carry her, sometimes very late at night. Now she’s grown up, educated and working in a well-paid job. I’m happy to see her like that and I never hope to get anything valuable from her but she said the other day that she will pay respect to me and give me a present on Mother’s Day. Her words were really pleasing for me to hear because I feel that she’s quite aware of my love and everything I’ve done for her. As a mother, I think Mother’s Day is a day that reminds you of your mum’s love and sacrifice for you.”

May Lin New, 22, says she believes celebrating Mother’s Day is important and she plans to spend the day with her mother: “Mother’s Day is on a Sunday so I’m free the whole day. I usually go out with friends on the weekend. But on this day, I’ll stay home, cook a special meal and spend my time with my mum.

“For a mum, her children are always small and close to her heart. But we children tend to forget our mothers when we are having a good time with friends or sweethearts. Even though we think a lot about how our boyfriends or girlfriends treat us, we tend to ignore the greatest love — the love of our mothers and all the kind things they do for us. I think Mother’s Day reminds us that we need to consider how much our mothers do for us at least once a year,” she says.

Older people too, are ready to embrace the holiday.

“Even though celebrating Mother’s Day is quite a new thing for us, I find it quite acceptable. Looking at it from the perspective of Myanmar culture, it is the honouring of mothers, which we encourage every child to do,” 50-year-old Daw Marlar told The Myanmar Times.