When I look back on my "former" life and my desire for only two children, I am so grateful that the Holy Spirit helped me to find my way to the path that God had for my life. I often look at my children and think about what life would be like without the last five kids. (Okay, so on days when everyone is crabby and the house is a wreck, you could say that I fantasize about what life would be like...) My oldest two are 16 and 14. What a different life it would have been if we had stopped there. I am truly grateful that God's will won out and that we have been blessed with all seven of our children. I am grateful that they are all healthy, fun-loving, wonderful images of God and I am in awe that God has allowed us the awesome responsibility of raising them. I certainly don't feel worthy of the task and I know that I can definitely use a constant infusion of the gifts of the Holy Spirit to keep me going.
I am glad this Mother's Day is on Pentecost. I feel that as life becomes more difficult, God is giving us mothers an little extra gift this year. As we celebrate the birth of the Church as well as the births of our children by which we became mothers, let us unite ourselves with the Holy Spirit and thank God for the many gifts He has given us in our motherhood.
Veni, Sancte, Spiritus
Come, Holy Spirit, come!
And from your celestial home
Shed a ray of light divine!
Come Father of the poor!
Come, source of all our store!
Come, within our bosoms shine.
You, of comforters the best;
You, the soul's most welcome guest;
Sweet refreshment here below;
In our labor, rest most sweet;
Grateful coolness in the heat;
Solace in the midst of woe.
O most blessed Light divine,
Shine within these hearts of yours,
And our inmost being fill!
Where you are not, we have naught,
Nothing good in deed or thought,
Nothing free from taint of ill.
Heal our wounds, our strength renew;
On our dryness pour your dew;
Wash the stains of guilt away:
Bend the stubborn heart and will;
Melt the frozen, warm the chill:
Guide the steps that go astray.
On the faithful, who adore
And confess you, evermore
In your sevenfold gift descend;
Give them virtue's sure reward;
Give them your salvation, Lord;
Give them joys that never end.
Amen.
Alleluia.
Come, Holy Spirit, come!
And from your celestial home
Shed a ray of light divine!
Come Father of the poor!
Come, source of all our store!
Come, within our bosoms shine.
You, of comforters the best;
You, the soul's most welcome guest;
Sweet refreshment here below;
In our labor, rest most sweet;
Grateful coolness in the heat;
Solace in the midst of woe.
O most blessed Light divine,
Shine within these hearts of yours,
And our inmost being fill!
Where you are not, we have naught,
Nothing good in deed or thought,
Nothing free from taint of ill.
Heal our wounds, our strength renew;
On our dryness pour your dew;
Wash the stains of guilt away:
Bend the stubborn heart and will;
Melt the frozen, warm the chill:
Guide the steps that go astray.
On the faithful, who adore
And confess you, evermore
In your sevenfold gift descend;
Give them virtue's sure reward;
Give them your salvation, Lord;
Give them joys that never end.
Amen.
Alleluia.
