Motherhood, Mary, and the Journey to Christ

Dear Sister in Christ,

Mother Mary’s month has arrived. Woot, woot! May brings the crowning of Mary as not only Christ’s mother but as our own mother as well. Our lady of Fatima, beloved in my home

throughout my childhood, celebrates her feast day on the 13th. Many of us raised in the United States remember the expression, “April showers and May flowers;” and this brings an additional component of beauty to this month.

Commercially, this month is also designated to celebrating earthly mothers as well and taking a day to thank mothers and mother figures for all that they do in our lives. To me it just feels like love is in the air. When I reflect on our past retreat and the phenomenal homily that Father Pavón gave.

For those of you who could not attend, he essentially drew parallels and likened motherhood to a ship and the waters around it. As mothers of Explorers where our school logo, quite literally, is a ship; it was perfection. He mentioned that the ship must remain strong through daunting storms where waves and uncertainty ravage the ship to and fro and yet there is always an end to the storm and calmer waters that eventually prevail. He then pivoted to when we actually feel that the water is at its calmest, almost like a mirror all around an anchored ship at port; yet he pointed out the critical distinction that even then the water all around and below the ship is in constant movement and is in fact never the same from one instance to the next.

Motherhood’s greatest task for women of faith is to lead our sons and our families to Jesus Christ. This sanctifying process is one that faces storms, difficulties, and even changes in the midst of calmness. Our one hope and our best instruction come from Christ himself when he said to Mary, “Woman, behold your son,” and to John, “Behold your mother!” Under no uncertain terms, he is telling us that we are to turn to her for intercession and telling her that she is the mother of all.

Ladies we are so blessed to have been able to place our sons in a school where supplication, prayer and devotion to Our Blessed Mother are a common day to day practice in our son’s lives. Let’s continue to build from this so that our ships foundation is strong and lessen any cracks that my form along the way. Our journey and our precious passengers deserve a route that leads to salvation.

This past Friday my daughter was blessed to receive the sacrament of Confirmation. As I helped her step into her red robe, I heard my mothers words echo in my mind on the day that she drove me to church for my Confirmation. My mother said to me, “Hoy te conviertes en soldado de Cristo y la responsabilidad de luchar por el prójimo y la gloria de Dios se vuelve mas latente dentro de tu ser.” Loosely translated, she was telling me that my Confrimation date was the day that I oficially became a soldier of Christ and that I was to go about and bear witness to his name. I smiled to myself and did not say anything since another family began to enter the same hall entrance. I made a mental note to remind her of this later, but I did not have to. Archbishop Wenski told the Confirmandi this very phrase, “Today, ladies and gentlemen, you become soldiers of Christ and it falls upon you to make His glory known.”

The next morning at breakfast, we spoke about the homily, the evening and the precious friends that we shared this milestone with. I asked my son Maximo if he remembered the homily and what I had told him before his Confirmation and he said, “Yes, about becoming a soldier of Christ, right?” I smiled and with tears streaming I said, “My mommy was there.” He looked at me and simply said, “Dini is always there, she is everywhere.”

My sisters, Maximo is right, my mother is always with me because she embodies my faith having taught me EVERYTHING that I know about it. For me, Faith is everything and is in everything. I pray that this May brings you a beautiful and deserved Mother’s Day celebration. I pray that you know that you are loved and prayed for by our Christopher Columbus Faith Sisterhood community. I pray that as Explorer moms wet set sail together with a trajectory that leads us closer to His kingdom through the guidance of Our Blessed Mother.

Much love,

Estefania

Love - like Mary

Trust - like Mary

Pray - like Mary

We are Columbus moms. Adelante