You know the way for me
You know the time
Into your hands
I trustingly place mine 
Your plan is perfect 
Born of perfect love
You know the way for me
 That is enough 

Reflections written by Schoenstatt members 
         
          In the stillness of this morning, in my Home Shrine, surrounded by nothing but the sound of the birds, a thought no more than a whisper crossed my mind: the stains of a mother.  Yes, the stains that come with motherhood. What was it that I was supposed to learn from that thought Mary? Didn't I know what the stains of motherhood were after raising my own children and watching countless nieces and nephews? And as our Mother and Father always must do with my quick witted ignorance, they show it to me simply and personally so that I might understand. I leaned back and closed my eyes in the hopes of being able to swallow my ego and pride so that I might be taught the lesson without getting in the way.
          I thought of the many women that fill my church and the frequency at which burp rags are pulled out and spit up wiped up. And what of the snot smears on their shoulders from holding a crying, too tired, child? I can see the grace in which these mothers care for their children with disregard for themselves and the stains left behind. I see the child as it grows and is covered in spaghetti yet he cannot wait to run to his mother to squeeze her, leaving trails of big orange smudges on her leg or shirt or face. And how could I forget the stains that come with a child who has been outside all day and just skinned a knee? The mother goes with haste and picks up the child  unaware and unconcerned of the dirt and blood that is now covering her as well. The many, many stains of a mother.
       As I sit in this place where my sins are before me and seem so heavy that it is difficult to lift my hands or eyes to Jesus, my Mother, our Mother, is coming. I see her running toward me unconcerned of the darkness and multitude, unconcerned of the weight they bear. She sees me and has heard my cries. She has allowed the correction to come from my Father and now it is her turn and she is running with the quickness that only a Mother can attain when her child is slipping, stumbling, and bleeding from their missteps. She has come to pick me up and carry me to the bathroom sink at the foot of the cross. I see her dirtied by my sins and weep at how she is only concerned with bringing me to her Son. She wipes me off with the veil she is wearing and bandages the wounds that I have given to myself and others with the only ointment that can truly heal it: the blood of Jesus. She pulls me off the sink, sets me on my feet, kisses my forehead, and turns me toward the cross. Although the wounds are not healed yet, there is hope now that they will be, for our Mother will always take perfect care.
      If you have found yourself in a place where your sins are heavy or you are filled with a pain that is almost too difficult to bear, take heart and go sit with your Mother Thrice Admirable. Close your eyes and wait in the silence as your soul cries out to her. Can you see her? She is running, running to you with the quickness of being carried by angels. 

Mother Thrice Admirable, Queen and Victress of Schoenstatt, Pray for us.
        
                                                                                          Submitted by an anonymous Schoenstatt  member