This mother attended an advent recollection last Saturday. She yearns to be liberated from her guilt– not having enough patience to be the loving mother her boys deserve. Oftentimes, she lets stress eat her up, thus spoiling her relationship with her children. She thinks her boys follow her not out of respect and love but because of fear. And she does not like that. She needs to do some reflection. And very timely that Tina of Truly Rich and Blessed was then scheduled to conduct an advent recollection for moms at The Parenting Emporium.
She made confirmation only the night before the recollection. And on the day itself, she backed out because the rain kept on pouring. She had to commute with a four-month baby in tow.
The husband must have felt her sadness as she withdrew herself from them. A minute after, he knocked at the bedroom door and told his wife he will accompany her and the baby at the recollection venue.
The recollection lasted for about an hour. Though short, she was able to grasp the idea of “how to decorate her heart with joy and hope instead of negative comments and discouragement. That she could only fully appreciate her boys if she first makes a room in her heart for Jesus. That she has to thank Jesus for the gift of children because without them, her life will surely be empty.
The recollection ended with a prayer she now recites every morning and evening or anytime she feels the need to remind herself that she is a loving parent and not a critic to her boys.
I thank you Lord for this experience. And I must say that like Tina, I am also truly rich and blessed.
