Grieving with Mary

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 brown wooden beaded rosary

 

I want to tell my mom I got my haircut and hear what she thinks about it.

I want to tell her about my job at her parish.

I carry her picture on the key chain one of our daughters got for me after she died.  It is one way to carry her with me.

Even though we are past the one-year anniversary of her death, I find myself still longing to hear her voice, listen to her advice, and tell her my news.  I pray every day that she is enjoying the beatific vision up in heaven.

I’m very happy that she is free of the suffering that walked with her every day as she aged.  It doesn’t take away my sense of loss, but it is something to be glad about.

Grief is a strange bedfellow for those of us left behind.  I was glad for the books I was given following her death.  They really helped me process the grief.

I know some of you are in the throes of grief due to the loss of a loved one right now.  I don’t envy you the first days and weeks, but I can tell you, it really does eventually stop enveloping your days and nights.

It also helps to know that you are not alone.  I know it sounds cliché, but it’s true.

The best advice I can give is to let yourself grieve.  Don’t be afraid of what that looks like, just let it go.  Let your expression of grief be what it is.   Holding grief in is unhealthy for us and doesn’t help move the dial towards healing.

Vice President Biden spoke into the camera on debate night and referenced families who have an empty place at their table.  I thought it was a striking word picture that so many people can relate to, whether their loss came from the virus or from some other cause.

If you are a believer, turn to Mary, the Mother of Jesus for comfort.  She suffered great loss in her human life.  She watched her son suffer and die.  She is our mother and will stand with us as we go through our own struggles in life.  We can count on her.

As we begin the month of October, we are encouraged to turn to Mary in the Rosary.  This is not just for Catholics.  The Rosary is a powerful prayer that encompasses the life of Christ, from his Agony to his Resurrection and beyond.

In his Apostolic Letter on the Rosary, Pope St. John Paul II had this to say about it:

“It is a prayer form in harmony with the spiritual journey of the Christian life and, while it is Marian in character, it is at heart a "Christocentric" prayer. Contained within the Rosary, one finds a ‘compendium’ of the Gospel message in its entirety.”

We have a mother in heaven who hears our prayers, and if we want to truly encounter Jesus and enter more deeply into his life, death and resurrection, praying the Rosary is the way to go.

This is good for everyone.  Why not give it a try?

If you are unfamiliar with the Rosary, you can learn how to pray it here.

Janet Cassidy
janetcassidy.blubrry.net (podcasts)

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