Hello everyone and happy Monday! I hope that all of you had a fabulous weekend and are beginning your week feeling refreshed and ready to go. So, as most of you have gathered by now, I am far from a religious person. This is ironic, considering I spent my years up until high school attending school and church in a Roman Catholic setting. But from as young as five years old, I knew that religion just wasn’t something that I was interested in.
Despite these feelings (which is not what this post is about), I do have a deep appreciation of the beauty of churches as well as religious imagery. Specifically, rosaries. I can remember being really young and loving to wear rosaries and to this day have a special drawing towards them. This has led me to beginning my collection of rosary style jewelry, a la Bono, my U2 front man celebrity crush.
In my collection, I actually have a beautiful black rosary that was blessed by Pope Francis, which was gifted to me by my brother. But the other two in my arsenal are from my beloved mama, who knows my style all too well thanks to hundreds of shopping trips throughout the ages.
My mom knows exactly how to make someone feel special. Whether it be through her kind words, lending an ear to listen to your problems, or picking out a treat just for you when she’s out shopping – my mom does it all. I can’t tell you the amount of times that she’s come home from trips to Target or the grocery store with a box of hair dye for me or a new shade of nail polish for my sister and, of course, a new makeup or polish shade to treat herself with, too.
Ever since I was little, I can remember mom coming home with her shopping to tell me or one of my siblings that she has a “surprise” in the bag for one of us. As a child, I lived for that. And as a twenty-three year old adult, I still do. Knowing that someone picked something out special for you is a delight that I treasure so deeply. Finding out that someone saw a piece of jewelry or a color that reminded them of you so much as to purchase it for them is a marvel that never gets old to me. Kindness is something that I value beyond all other qualities and, to me, this exudes such divine kindness and generosity.
This past weekend was really rough for yours truly. My mom knew this and saved an afternoon of us running errands last Sunday to tell me that she has a “surprise” for me, which she had been carrying around in her purse. She waited until we were done with our shopping and in the car to leave for home to gift me with the most gorgeous necklace that I’ve ever seen:
I literally gasped out loud when I opened the small black box that my mom presented me with and saw this amazing rosary necklace sitting inside of it. This Louisa L brand necklace was made in Italy and on the back of the charm with the Blessed Mother features the Italian “Ruega Por Nosotros” or “Pray for us”.
My new rosary necklace has everything that I love – the color, the style, and the thought behind it, which made this the most wonderful gift to receive. My mom had gotten this present days before my unfortunate weekend, but waited until a “rainy day” to give it to me. I am so happy that she did, because it left me feeling infinitely better and so loved. Thank you, mom!! I LOVE YOU! ❤
So there you have it, this week’s Monday Update: Sweet Surprises Edition! What is something that makes you feel better when you’re feeling down? What is the best “just because” present that you have ever received? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah
) Figure skating! Both watching and playing, since I used to be a competitive skater. I miss it terribly!
lifewithlilred 