A woman behind

When people ask us, “How do you describe your mother in one sentence?, surely, we cannot do that. It is because of the many roles our mother plays in our lives and perhaps we will run out of words in doing so. We may say that she is a great mother, a mother who is loving, compassionate, endearing, kind, protective, strong, extraordinary, intuitive, caring, and mindful. All these virtues and values are all what a mother is, and as we celebrate Mothers’ Day today, we do honor them.

Just like most if not all of us, our mothers have played a rather larger chunk in choosing our vocations. Last May 10, as we witnessed the Ordination to the Diaconate of Reverends Soren Abellanosa, Junel Bustamante and Amiel Arado, we cannot help but wonder the women behind the rearing of these deacons, their mothers.

Usually our mothers are our first teachers. They teach us the basic skills we need in life, and among them is faith. This is also what our deacons have experienced. Their mothers had a significant influence in choosing their vocation even before their seminary experience.

According to Reverend Amiel, his mother constantly took him to church and exposed him to devout practices such as veneration of saints. The same thing happened to Reverend Junel, who was also brought by her mother regularly to attend the Flores de Mayo. Reverend Soren, on the other hand, sees his mother as a role model for his family as she was always so strong and persevering amidst challenges and trials and has never failed to bring him and his siblings to church, to God.

These deacons surely have put their mothers on the pedestal as models. As we see them continue with their vocation, we cannot also help but think about our own, have we also not considered the constant reminders of our mothers? Were we not accustomed to the daily praying of the rosary and angelus at home.

Our mothers would always be the best in our eyes, no matter their imperfections, we adore and respect them; we appreciate their efforts and sacrifices. So today, in celebration for all the mothers in the world, let’s not forget to express our thanks in the best way that we can, no matter how grand of simple the gesture, the important thing is we show them our love. (Bro. Ranieboy Pamplona | Photos by DCH & Brenda P. Milan)