The Divine Grief of Mary
It’s been said that being a mother is like living your life with your heart outside of your body, walking around. When motherhood began for me at the tender age of 15, I didn’t know my heart very well, let alone the treacherous path of parenting I would lead. When the angel Gabriel appeared to me, I shuddered at the sight of his piercing eyes and voice solid like the trunk of the tree against my back. “Mary… Do not be afraid for you have found favor with God” (Luke 1:30). My hands shook wildly, and my breath caught in my throat as he told me what would come to be. “You will conceive and give birth to a son. He will be great and will be given the throne of David.” When I gently questioned his statement, I heard the rush of his wings reacting and his voice strengthened. “Mary. Nothing is impossible with God…” I heard the words but held them delicately in my hands, like a gift I didn’t kno