Happy Mother's Day and Urgent Prayer Request

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms, grandmoms, and great-grandmoms out there! Motherhood is challenging and not very glamorous but few vocations have so great an impact on others. May God bless all the women out there who have accepted His call to become mothers!

On a sad note, I learned yesterday that my cousin's wife was rushed to the hospital on Thursday. She is expecting her second daughter in July and the doctors have discovered abnormal fluid in the baby's lungs :-( According to my dad, they aren't sure yet what is causing the fluid on the lungs but there's high probability it will result in severe complications or even death. It's too early for the doctors to induce labor but trying to treat it in utero is risky too. There's only a 1% chance that the baby will be born healthy.

I can't even begin to imagine what my cousin and his wife must be going through right now! Their oldest is nineteen months and my uncle by marriage (my cousin's stepdad) has been going through chemotherapy for stomach cancer so they had a lot on their plates to deal with even before this latest crisis.

Please say a prayer to St. Bernardine of Siena, the patron saint of lungs/respiratory issues, for his intercession upon the behalf of my cousin's baby. May God watch over her and may He help my cousin and his wife cope with the challenges they face.

I found a nice prayer for healing on the "Our Catholic Faith" website: Lord, You invite all who are burdened to come to You. Allow your healing hand to heal "Baby D". Touch her soul with Your compassion for others. Touch her heart with Your courage and infinite love for all. Touch her mind with Your wisdom, that her mouth may always proclaim Your praise. Teach her to reach out to You in her need, and help her to lead others to You by her example. Most loving Heart of Jesus, bring her health in body and spirit that she may serve You with all her strength. Touch gently this life which You have created, now and forever. Amen.