A Rosary a Day (or Night)

There was an earthquake the other day. I was trying to pray a Rosary before bed but falling asleep towards the end, and so I kept losing my place on the beads. I decided to put it away and finish it in the morning--there was  only one decade to go. So I put my Rosary on the chair by my bed and fell asleep to the peaceful sensation of a heart full of prayer.

I woke up to my mom's frantic voice and the ground was shaking. First thing I saw was the Guadalupe statue right next to my bed. Not a coincidence. After that I scrambled out of bed, almost fell on my face trying to get to the door, and the earthquake finally stopped. I realized there had been a reason to save one decade for later, because I was going to need that peace again in a few hours.

There hasn't been another earthquake since then, but we're expecting one.
I know to keep praying and I'll be safe. And even if I'm falling over with sleepiness, I need to at least pray a few decades of the Rosary before bed. Not only do I feel safe, but they also keep the nightmares away that I used to get all the time. You should try it, too.

Thoughts on Faith and Writing

O.L.O. Guadalupe

I have a statue of Mother Mary of Guadalupe by my bed right now. I used to have all sorts of bad dreams--and reading about them in my journal, they were definitely spiritual attacks. It came to the point where I was afraid to go to sleep because of these nightmares, so I would wander around every day like a zombie dreading bedtime.

I find that when I let my mind drift too much into my writing, and stop putting my all into praying with all my heart--when I let worldly things get in the way of what's really important--I am more vulnerable to bad dreams and losing myself. I become a mess. Writing is just as much a part of me as breathing. It's a God-given gift, but lately I've been trying to find the balance between writing and spirituality. I think recently I found that balance. I blogged about it here, if you're interested, and plan to transfer that blog post to this site soon.

When I drift from my prayer life and focus too much on my writing, that's when I get the nightmares and sort of lose myself. It helped me realize something: I need to have time for both. I need to dedicate myself to both. Hence two blogs, hence two genres I enjoy reading (YA and really deep spiritual stuff.)

There are times I have to remind myself that the pen is mightier than the sword--but the Cross is mightier than both.

My writing is nothing without God.
My writing is nothing without prayer.

It's a struggle to keep myself on track with my prayer life, especially when I start writing again. But it's necessary, because I won't get very far on my own. I can't. If I move away from my spiritual life, I'll keep having bad dreams, lose myself, and throw away a precious gift.

Jesus deserves better than that.

Unplanned?

A while back I wrote some things in a journal--articles, Scripture verses, and sketches for decent things I could post on a project like this. I did gather decent stuff too, things I enjoyed writing and had hoped to share with people. They were reflections and things that certainly helped me, I was excited to share them with you.

But I tore the pages out of the journal to gather them somewhere because they were unorganized and all over the place. These pages I lost. While I search for them, I am learning a lesson:

You can't always plan. The Holy Spirit will inspire you with little things like a lost stack of paper--He will make you stop and think. He knows better than anything you can plan.

That was my lesson today.
I can't plan everything.
I have to keep my heart open to His voice at all times because what I plan may not be His will.

Remember to let go and open your heart.
It'll teach you a new lesson to cherish!

Hi, my name's Mariella!

I'm only 18 years old but I already have so many faith stories to tell that it's absolutely insane. I think it just proves to show that there's no such thing as age except for spiritual maturity. If you open your heart to listen for God, you're going to hear Him; and when you hear Him once, your heart will yearn for that sweet voice that is so alien but soothing to the heart.

I'm American, pro-life, a writer, and blogging addict. I have this goal of mine that is, above all, to make a difference in this world. It's not even really a matter of how I do it, as long as people know that Jesus was behind me every step of the way. I do have moments where I forget to pray. I do have periods of sometimes weeks at a time, where it seems like everything's about me. The Lord quickly corrects me and I remember that I can't do it on my own. I can't.

And I want to shout about all my blessings for the world to hear if they will. I want to shout about all He's done for me and will continue to do for me.

I hope this blog is going to be more than a blog. My desire is for it to touch your heart and help your understanding of Catholicism, Jesus, or yourself. What's right? What's wrong? Where is the right path and where do you stop learning? Do Catholics have fun? What goes on at the Mass, what are the Sacraments, and why do we make such a big deal about all of this?

Let me warn you first that I cannot do much more than explain it to my best understanding. I'm never going to understand my faith for all it is, so beautiful and deep that I'm always falling into it again, over and over, and she becomes new. Old and new at once. Beautiful and strange. More than our human hearts can grasp.

I'm going to make mistakes, and lots of them. But I'm still going to try. It's the least I can do after all the Lord has done for me. Thank you for reading this, and I'm glad you came!

Are you Catholic? If not, I would love to be friends! Introduce yourself! Also, do you have any questions that you've been itching to ask a Catholic forever? That's what I'm here for!

Lullaby

Breathe in

Breathe out

See the Truth?

That's the Truth.

He died for you.

He's hanging there within sight--

never far away--

see Him now?

Take comfort, He's here.

You're not living a lie

if you hide in the outstretched arms of Truth.

Breathe in,

Breathe out,

Take comfort,

and sleep.