Some Thoughts About Mary

"May is the month of our mothers."  I remember reading this when I was in First Grade, right before our First Friday Mass for the month of May began.  I had been practicing for weeks.  I was the student who was chosen to read the before-Mass meditation.  Every year it was the same, "May is the Month of our Mothers."   Every May this same sentence runs through my head.  So I figure its an appropriate time to write a bit about Mary.

I've had two rather profound (if I do say so myself) thoughts about the Blessed Mother that I shall share for your own discernment and prayer.

Mary, until lately has been difficult for me to relate to.  Until my rather dramatic experience when she truly became my Heavenly Mother I honestly didn't even much try to understand her.  It was losing Claire and then losing Lolek that really brought me into a much deeper relationship with her, and has given me a much greater understanding of her.  I was pondering Mary once again as I was praying last night.  I was recalling how whenever I am pregnant (which if you read this blog you know is actually quite often!) I start to feel distant from Mary.  I began to prayerfully explore this.  Then it was as if a veil was lifted and I was given such a profound understanding - one I had never had before!  I realized that pregnancy always made me feel distant from Mary because, according to St Bridget and to theologians, Mary did not experience your "typical" pregnancy.  Being free from original sin, she therefore did not experience the physical effects of it - such as the pain in childbearing etc.  In fact according to the Revelations of St. Bridget, Mary was basically in prayerful ecstasy when she delivered the Christ-Child.  This is NOT my experience of childbirth!  But Mary DID experience something far more profound.  In my prayer I saw Mary at the cross.  She was in pain. She was uniting her will to God's but she was in profound pain, "And a sword shall pierce your heart."  She was at the foot of the Cross looking up at Her Son.  She had just walked the Way of the Cross with Him and now she was surrendering Him to the Father.  "My child, I have labored and I have given birth to my Son who is now to enter Eternity." She said from the foot of the cross.  Of course!! Mary's life was one long "labor."

Often I have thought how labor and delivery so closely mirror the Paschal Mystery - the suffering, the dying to self, and the birth of a New Life.  Mary's whole life was the Paschal Mystery.  The Word became Flesh within her womb and she delivered the Savior.  She was told at the Temple that a "Sword would pierce her heart" and she carried with her for Jesus' whole life the knowledge that she wold suffer as she watched and loved her Son as He Redeemed the world.  Mary's whole life was about giving birth to our Salvation - not just at Christmas, but at the Cross.  What a profound insight! What a gift!  How incredibly small and insignificant my labors seem in comparison now.  What is a few hours compared to 33 years!?  I am in awe of our Lady.  I am humbled by this new understanding.

This new understanding and deeper regard for Our Lady came on the heels of yet another revelation about our Blessed Mother.

I have been earnestly walking down the prayerful road of Contemplative Prayer.  I have been reading St. John of the Cross and St. Theresa of Avila, and a book by Fr.  Dubay on Contemplative prayer.  It has been amazing and beautiful.  But I was stumped when it came to Mary.  Neither St. John nor St. Theresa really mentioned her.  Yet, Pope John Paul II, who is considered a great modern contemplative had a deep devotion to her, so I knew she had to fit in somewhere.  But how?

So I brought it my Spiritual Papa, Bl. John Paul II, and asked for his wisdom.  "Mary is the exemplary contemplative."  Umm..OK... but how?  "The indwelling of the Trinity was not only Spiritual for her, but physical."  Of course!  **Lightbulb**  That makes sense! Why didn't I think of that!?

Contemplative prayer is all about the union of the soul with the indwelling Trinity, a unity so profound it is as if there is a flow - a conduit open between the two.  It is a connection at once to Heaven, where the soul exists both within the person and yet in Heavenly reality, united with God.  Mary experienced this in the most physically profound way possible. Not only her soul, but her whole being was connected to the Godhead as Christ was growing within her.  Mary needed only to contemplate the baby she carried - as every mother does - and as she did she was at once united with Heaven in a deep and mysterious way.

This was a beautiful new understanding for me to ponder. It also gives me a different way in which to enter into contemplation.  How much practice my babies have given me already! Any mother can tell you that as soon as you see those pink or blue lines on the stick your very reality is changed forever.  You are constantly aware of a person inside you, that your body is not the same, and that you are not alone.  How similar this is to contemplative prayer - to being united with God even as you go about every day life.

 How thankful I am to Our Lady for allowing me to better understand her, and how grateful I am to Papa John Paul II for patiently teaching me about our Heavenly Mother.

I hope that maybe these small, humble insights will bring you closer to our Heavenly Family as well.

Lolek's Friends

As promised! I want to introduce you to these amazing women!

It has taken me a little longer to post than I would have liked, but sick children demanded my attention!

Now that all are healthy again, I want to take some time and introduce you to the ladies who have become my "Virginia Family."  You already met my doula-bestie-extraordinaire, but I absolutely MUST tell you about the rest of the "family!"

After Lolek was born and I was rushed to the hospital, Doula - Bestie -Extraor... wait, how about we use DBE?  OK, so she put out the word on Facebook and phone for prayers.  Immediately and unbeknownst to me, ladies started praying and organizing.  One, we shall call her Fortitude, even came over and checked on the house, made sure Lolek's body was OK (his body needed to be kept on a wet towel in his special box  in the refrigerator.)  Well, they were preparing to bring meals and to help prepare for Lolek's burial when I ended up BACK in the hospital with the PE and Pneumonia.  That's when "Lolek's Friends" was really born.

As I was getting hooked up to heart monitors and being told to not move, my poor shell-shocked husband was left juggling children, and home, and cleaning up the incredible mess almost dying makes.  (who knew?!)  He was sleep deprived, worried, and all of a sudden Mr. Mom.  So DBE started a thread on Facebook. It included friends - some of whom I hadn't met yet - some from out of state, and  my mom and mother in law.  These ladies got to work.  DBE would visit me in the hospital and post updates.  They used a meal planning website and organized meals for a MONTH for my family.  Dear Hubby was so relieved to not have to cook while I was in the hospital, and I couldn't cook once I was out.  They took turns coming to visit and brought me yarn and gummi bears (all I could stomach eating for a while).  They prayed with me, they prayed for me, and then they cleaned my house!!  Once I was home, one dear "sister" whom we shall call Battwoman (dont ask) drove down from upstate New York with her 3 children and baby to help us out for a week!! Talk about love!

Lolek's burial was approaching, and I was back in the hospital.  We wanted to celebrate his short life.  My family was driving in, and I KNEW my house must have been a disaster.  Poor Hubby could only juggle so much, on top of grieving for his baby son, and worrying about me.  Never fear!  One night, I am told, women and husbands, kids and acquaintances, descended on my home.  They deep cleaned, scrubbed, bagged clothes, organized closets, switched the seasons for the kids' clothes, cleaned out the fridge, nuked my bathroom, vacuumed, dusted, decluttered - my husband said he was in awe.  Some of them he had never met before, yet here they were, completely cleaning our house, bringing us meals, watching the kids so he could come visit me.  I felt so very loved!  I felt taken care of!  I was so very humbled.

 Most of them attended Lolek's burial.  The photos that one of the ladies took - she should be a professional photographer and we shall call her Jules.  She is from across the street and our kids are friends - the photos showed so many people! So many children! There were about 20 children at Lolek's burial!  Just children! Sitting in the hospital, looking at the photographs I was filled with such gratitude.  What a blessing these ladies and their families are!

Soon a facebook group was formed where we could expand and pray and help not just ME but each other.  It was suggested that we name it "Lolek's Friends" because he was the person who brought us all together.  I cried.  How beautiful! My little Lolek had a purpose!

I pray for his intercession daily, and I know others who do too.  They have told me he is strong intercessor.  One of the ladies, we shall call her Patience, wrote a Litany to Lolek Pio.  I have included it at the end of this post.

If only we knew at the time how much we would need each other for support and prayer and help.  Each lady, I don't think there were any exceptions, had a cross to bear this last year that required the support and the prayers and the assistance of all of us.  We aren't talking small things here either, we're talking big, scary, life changing, and painful things.  Its as if God used Lolek's death and my health crisis to bring us together because He, in His Wisdom, knew we ALL would need it.

I am so thankful to Him and so thankful for these ladies!  Just this last week I got a call from "Fortitude" who took it upon herself to order a headstone for Lolek to let me know it was in.  She knew it was heavy on my heart and God gave her some special Graces that prompted her to order a stone for him.  I can't tell you how incredibly happy it made me.  I wasn't able to be there for his burial but can now be there for the stone to be set, and then Lolek's Friends can celebrate not only his life, but the comfort and joy and strength that he allows us to give each other.

Before closing, I would like to call your attention to Healer in Your Heart . Vanessa or "Patience" is one of Lolek's Friends.  Last December her husband was diagnosed with a Grade 3 Mixed Brain Tumor.  Some of Lolek's Friends have formed Team McArthur and we are working and fundraising to help the family through this time.  Please take a look at the website and offer your prayers and support.

Vanessa is also the Friend who wrote the Litany of St. Lolek Pio, which I pray daily for these ladies, their intentions, and their families.

Litany of St. Lolek Ricketts

By Vanessa McArthur

Lord, have mercy... Lord, have mercy
Christ, have mercy... Christ, have mercy
Lord, have mercy... Lord, have mercy

Perfect gift... pray for us
Intention of God... pray for us
Consecrated by God... pray for us
Perfectly formed... pray for us
Fearfully made... pray for us
Fruit of the womb... pray for us
Knitted in the womb... pray for us
Welcomed gift... pray for us
Answer to a petition... pray for us
Fullfillment of a request... pray for us
Arrow in a quiver... pray for us
Gracious blessing... pray for us
Heritage from the Lord... pray for us
Gift from the Lord... pray for us
Dweller of Heaven... pray for us
Saved by Christ's mercy... pray for us
Called from the womb... pray for us
Called by name... pray for us
Baby Green Chocolate... pray for us

Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world... Have mercy on us
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world... Have mercy on us
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world... Have mercy on us

Let us pray.
Almighty God, in your infinite wisdom and love you brought Lolek Ricketts into the lives of his parents, siblings, and friends. You chose him to be a beacon of hope and light to all who longed to meet him, and used his spirit to bring together a group of faithful friends. As we pray for each other on earth, may we have the help of his intercession in heaven. We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

An unexpected Blessing! Thank you JP2!

You may have noticed that I haven't been writing much lately.  That is because the infamous Noah -the star of a few of these posts broke his leg 4 weeks ago!  My poor little baby boy (well, he is 2, but still!!) broke his beautiful little leg!  He was going down a tube (covered) slide and on the way down, on his Daddy's lap, he stuck his leg straight up, catching the rubber of his sneakers on the top.  His leg stuck to the top and wedged there - as he was sliding down. Ouch. Big Ouch. 

One ER trip, one orthopedist, and a lot of tissues for a weepy Mommy later, Noah had a full leg cast.  It was green and he called it his dinosaur leg.  If you got too close to him he would raise it up and make it roar.   It broke my heart!  For the first 3 days he wouldn't let me out of reach.  I actually got out my Moby Wrap and wore him around so I could make food and go outside.  It was terrible to see him so uncomfortable. 

The night he broke it, and we came home from a rather traumatic hospital trip full of X-Rays and splints, high doses of pain medicine and fiberglass wraps, I was terrified.  How does one care for a 2 year old, who never sits still, with a broken leg?  How do I take care of my other children?  This was a brand new Mommy challenge.  Noah slept in bed with me that night (actually he is still sleeping in bed with me....he really liked the idea!) and as I looked at him sleeping with his leg all propped up I thought of John Paul II.  He had just been beatified.  I have a very special devotion to him, and have been close to him since before I was in High School.  I immediately felt the need to ask him for his help.  So that's just what I did.  I got out one of my prayer cards that was blessed by theh late Holy Father when I saw him in Rome in 1996. My other kids joined me in asking Bl. John Paul II to fix Noah's Leg.  And you know what?  He did!
I would like to share with you that story and what an unexpected and wonderful Blessing it was!

Here I have a copy of what I wrote to some friends and family the day of Noah's 2 week Check-up for his leg (a break which we were told would need at least 4-6 weeks to heal iin a full leg cast):


Noah had his 2 week check up for his leg today. The doctor was somewhat flabbergasted when she looked at today's Xrays and saw that the 2 breaks are completely healed. "I've never seen this type of break heal so quickly - even in a small child," she said, "I don't know what to do!" and she stared at the XRays some more. I, however, was not as surprised, simply because when Noah broke his leg (he had a good crack in his tibia and a spidery fracture and some bowing in his fibula) I began praying to Bl John Paul II to heal it quickly. I had a prayer card that was blessed by him when I saw him in Rome in 1996. I placed it over his break inside his cast at night. Today I was practically giddy as we waited for the XRay results because I knew it would be good news! Since the Doc was so confused as to what she should do and all I could do was laugh as Noah swung his "broken" leg around she decided to take off his big cast and look at it. When she came in the room after it was removed she started examining the wrong leg saying, "Hmm there is some bruising." When I pointed out that she was examining the wrong leg and that the bruising was an ink smudge and an old black and blue mark, she took a look at the "broken" leg and said, "Oh my, it looks perfectly fine!" She asked him if it hurt to which he responded by kicking it, laughing, and trying to jump on it. Ultimately she decided to put him in a short leg cast "because that's what I would normally do, and I've never encountered this situation before." She admitted though that the short leg cast doesn't even cover the part that was broken (!) and that its really for "insurance and malpractice purposes" more than anything else, "because his leg looks completely healed even though it shouldn't."



I never gave him homeopathy to promote bone growth because I couldn't find it, and was confident that Bl. Papa JP2 would fix him. He never had or needed pain relievers after the day the break occurred. I gave him Arnica for the first 2 days (before his big cast was put on) to reduce swelling, and that was it. I am completely convinced that through the intercession of Papa John Paul II, Noah's leg is perfectly fine, and he has to deal with the short cast purely as a formality and to appease a very confused doctor.


Another interesting thing is that the whole time we were at the Orthopedist Noah kept asking to go to Church! He told all the nurses he was going to church and kept asking me to go. He NEVER asks to go to church. Ever. I promised him we'd go when we were done. When we left the Orthopedist we went to our Church and into the Adoration Chapel. Noah was very quiet and content (also rare). He blessed himself with Holy Water, blew Jesus a kiss and I asked him if we should say thank you. He nodded so we said, I love you Jesus, thank you John Paul 'second'. Then he blew Jesus another kiss, and looked at me whispering , "OK, go home now." I smiled at him and that's just what we did! Perhaps his little heart understands...I'd like to think so.


Thank you, Bl. John Paul II!!! We Love you!

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