Preparing to Surrender

This morning, prayer was different for me. I usually read the Gospels for the day as I sit and pray in the recliner before the rest of the house wakes up. Today, the Wednesday of Holy Week, is referred to as "Spy Wednesday". Judas is going to betray Jesus after the Last Supper tomorrow evening, but would have had to sell Him out first. That was today's Gospel.

As I read, my mind wandered away from Judas to Jesus. What would Jesus have been doing the days leading up to the Last Supper? Who would He have been with?

While I will never know for sure, my prayer led me to the quiet moments leading up to the His arrest. The days prior, He would have been at home.

And as I think about Jesus, my heart turns to Mary. She would have been at home with Him, where this mother knows she is about to surrender her Son. And then it hits me, in those moments leading up to Holy Thursday, the ordinary tasks of their lives stop. She is not cooking, cleaning, doing laundry, or visiting neighbors. In her last moments with her Son, she is WITH HIM. She is hugging His neck and holding His hand, and kissing His sweet face. She is spending her time simply in His Presence.

I am amazed at the parallels of my own story to this one. We found out on a Monday that we would have to surrender Anna Marie on Thursday. That week, we ordered take-out every night. No dishes or laundry were done. Cleaning the house didn't matter. What mattered was being with her...hugging her neck, holding her hand, and kissing her sweet face.

As I enter into the Triduum this year, I'm a little more aware of the moments before the Last Supper, when a Mom simply wanted to be with her Son.

Isn't that what Holy Week is supposed to be? These days are given to us so we can enter more fully into the mystery of His suffering and death. The word "holy" means to be "set apart". This week should look different. Let's choose, like Mary, to just be with Jesus.