Wednesday, February 3, 2016

Novenas always make me feel better...

Hi all!

*bleary*

Our overnights are getting better, but we're still dealing with some early morning coughing that is heralding the start of my day WELL before 6 am, so I'm a bit tired. And I have the evening reference shift tonight, so I'm stuck here until 8 pm. I couldn't come in later today to compensate, due to the nefarious parking situation that I will not go into further lest I start having to strike out profanity.

*glares*

So it's going to be a long day. I will almost certainly be very tired tomorrow at this very same time as well. But we'll get there.

I was thinking this morning as I drove in, using my winter-themed Our Lady of Lourdes/St. Bernadette rosary to pray, that I love having a novena going. It really does help to settle my mind about many things. And novenas are especially meaningful to me when I pray them leading up to the actual feast day. I mean, there's nothing saying we can't pray an Our Lady of Lourdes novena in the middle of July if we really wanted to. And sometimes, if I have a petition related to a specific saint's patronage, I do just that. But when I'm in tune with the liturgical calendar everything jives even more in my soul, know what I mean? I just love it.

And yes, I am a total Rosary Nerd and I own rosaries that are themed around seasons as well as different saints. I keep 3-4 tucked into a holding spot on the driver's side door of my car that I rotate out every seasonal quarter. That way I can pick an appropriate one each morning as I drive. Right now I have St. Francis de Sales, the Our Lady of Lourdes that you see pictured above, and the Holy Family. Come March, I'll switch to spring rosaries like the one with a Divine Mercy centerpiece, and St. Dymphna. Maybe I'll add Pope Francis in as a spring rosary too, since he was elected to the papacy in the spring. ;-) LOVE IT.

What are your rosary and novena habits, dear reader? Do you have specific rosaries that you pray with at different times of the year? When do you pray the rosary? Do write in and tell me all about it. :)

4 comments:

  1. I'm not hugely into novenas, but I have warm feeling regarding them because praying novenas together was something Sr. Mary Magdalene and I often did before she entered Carmel. Maybe in future we'll get to revive that together!

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  2. Well hello there Br. Joseph! I have a letter going out in the mail to you tomorrow. :-) Indeed, praying a novena in community lends greater meaning to the experience. How sweet that you shared that with Sr. Mary Magdalene! I do so hope that you have more novenas to pray with her in the future. :-)

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  3. I do want to thank you Tiffany, I do love novenas too, and because of you I am doing the Our Lady of Lourdes Novena. I have a friend having eye surgery on that Feast Day so she should not worry at all, all will be well.
    But I did want to thank you for giving the idea. you will be well blessed

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    Replies
    1. Clare Ann, I am SO glad to hear this! Indeed, all will be well. Right on the feast?! Perfect!

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