What To Give Mary This Mother’s Day

"Babydandelions" by anitapeppers (2006) via Morguefile.

Isn’t Mother’s Day the best? The homemade cards, handcrafted string jewelry, the dandelions: all of them given with a little heart full of love.

My favorite gifts are the ones that the children are most excited for me to unwrap, the ones that they’ve put all their effort into. At the moment I’m wearing an early gift, a clay flower pendant that my second grader made for me. I could just cry looking at the little blue petals and imagining her painting them as carefully as she could. What a treasure.

Now, as for Mary: what can we give her this Mother’s Day? We can take some cues from our children on how to give the perfect gift. It should take some effort and time to make. It should be done carefully, as well as our wobbly hearts can manage. And it should be a token of our deepest sentiments, a true “thank you” and “I love you” to the best mom in the world.

Some special gifts for her day might include an extra rosary during the baby’s—okay, our—normal naptime, doing well a household chore or task at work that we might ordinarily avoid, or a special trip to church or extra time after Mass to spend time with her and Jesus.

But could things little things like that really be good enough gifts for the Queen of the Universe? Reread that handmade card or admire the little bouquet of backyard flowers. It is enough. Because it’s from you, her favorite you in the whole world.

Copyright (2015) Meg Matenaer.
Photo: "Babydandelions" by anitapeppers (2006) via Morguefile.