premise: For years Mother 's Day presents have been a challenge for me ; my folks are older and in assisted living now . Even before they moved , there were few things they truly needed , so presents had taken the form of favorite perfumes , boxes of candy , restaurant gift certificates or cut flower arrangements . I ' m not sure my parents ever used any of the certificates and after a while , with multiple children and grandchildren facing the same present dilemma , the apartment was overrun with flowers and candy . Why give a gift for Mothers day ?
hypothesis: Given the competition among multiple children , gifts ensure the favor of the Mother .