Friday, August 28, 2009

The Love of a Mother

Mary came running to the van in tears at the end of her second day of life as a third grade student. She climbed into my lap, barely fitting behind the steering wheel, and buried her tear-stained face into my neck. Gently rubbing her back, I asked her to tell me what was bothering her. "Oh Mom, Colin told me that the reason my locker is on the bottom row is because I'm so small!" Once again, sobbing overcame her. "But Mary," I said, "You are one of the tallest girls in class. You know that what he said isn't true. That's such a little thing to be so upset about." She looked at me earnestly and replied "Mom, it hurts." The tears continued. All I could do was to hold her close to my heart until my sons came out of school and it was time to leave. A promise of some special time baking cookies together helped to ease her pain for the moment and she crawled into the back seat, buckled her seat belt, and we drove home.

This is how I imagine our pains look to Jesus. He knew the ultimate suffering, yet he gladly welcomes us into His arms with all of our 'little things'. He lets us cry and sob as He holds us close to His heart. He promises us the joy of heaven if we can only bear with the pain in our hearts a little while longer on the journey to our eternal home.

My dearest Jesus,
when You suffered little pains of daily life, did You run to Your mother and cry on her neck? Did she hold You and rub Your back and comfort You with the gift of her time? Did the tender love she showed You each day help to carry You through during Your greatest suffering in the crucifixion? Remind me that no matter how small and trivial my sorrows may be, I can always find comfort in the arms of your Blessed Mother just as You did. Thank you sweet Jesus and dear Mother Mary for always being there for me whenever I need a little reassurance in my daily trials. Amen.

8 comments:

  1. In the Stations of the Cross, I often get stuck at the one with the picture of Mary at the foot of the cross. It is so emotionally difficult for me to accept what she must have felt. As a mother, I could not imagine the pain of losing a child in this manner. How could she handle it? That is the thought that always has me in tears.

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  2. This is so beautiful. Thank you.

    As I'm not a mother and will never be one (outside of the spiritual dimension) it helps to read such stories to help me understand Mary more fully.

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  3. Thank you for sharing as we have so many of these moments in life. Your story reminded me of St. Therese and being little.

    Have a blessed Day!
    Hugs

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  4. Anne,
    This made me think of the scene in the Passion of the Christ where Mary rushes to Jesus' side as He falls carrying His cross. With that scene we are also reminded of how she did the same for Him as a child in the little falls as He ran an played.
    Thanks you for sharing this and for the beautiful prayer.
    PS- I found that Jeremiah video on Happy Catholic's site. What a great song! Think maybe you need to add it to yours :)

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  5. Like Adoro, I'm not a mother, but when I try to imagine the pain that Mary endured as she watched her Son suffer and die, I can be overwhelmed. I think back to the Presentation, when Anna and Simeon at long last saw the baby Jesus in the arms of Mary and Joseph. She was told then that a sword would pierce her heart. For decades she had probably wondered just what was meant by that. The reality must have seemed far worse than the prophecy.

    Thank you for sharing this, Anne.

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  6. I often meditate on Mary's sorrows. Can you imagine standing under the cross and watching your child suffer like this? Thoughts of what she endured have often reduced me to tears. He was mocked, scourged,and crucified. The pieta never fails to move me; Mary cradling her dead son in her arms.

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  7. 'He lets us cry and sob as He holds us close to His heart. He promises us the joy of heaven if we can only bear with the pain in our hearts a little while longer'

    How much longer, Lord?

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  8. I love that description of how Christ holds us close to his heart and cares, even when our hurts are relatively small!

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