"When we had our children, our ideas changed somewhat. Thenceforward we lived only for them; they made all our happiness and we would never have found it save in them. In fact, nothing any longer cost us anything; the world was no longer a burden to us. As for me, my children were my great compensation, so that I wished to have many in order to bring them up for Heaven" -- Saint Zelie Martin, mother of St. Therese of Lisieux, canonized October 18, 2015 along with her husband St. Louis Martin.

Saturday, April 13, 2013

Encouragement

We caught an elevator that led to the church of a nearby shrine.  One elderly gentleman was ahead of us and kindly held the door as our family filed in (this takes a minute...there are 9 of us).  I don't usually assume people are thrilled to share the elevator with 9 others, but I hoped we weren't too off-putting to this man on his way, as we were, to daily Mass.

"How many?" he asked. I usually let my husband speak in these situations, so I waited to see what would follow. Before my husband spoke, the man said, "We had eight in eleven years: did we beat you?!"

My daughter was very upset that my husband and I did not own up to the fact that we would have eight in 12 years and two months.  She is very proud of our numbers.:)  Either way, the man did beat us (and I clarified that they did not have any twins!)  Can I tell you how this inspired me? I mean, it's not the norm for couples to have so many children so quickly in this day and age.  One starts wondering about oneself! And this, this made me feel so very happy! In a previous generation there was a couple, a normal Catholic, open-to-life couple that had done this before.  I know of many such families, of course, but it's wonderful to meet another one...especially within the first days of discovering you're pregnant.

Thank God for Christian witnesses.  God bless that man and his family! I know there's a Bible verse about building one another up...insert that here.

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