When my mother was still alive some years ago, the doctor’s clinic and hospital admittance became part of the last five years of her life. Being the one who has the most flexible schedule of my siblings, I would always accompany my mother. Eventually, I noticed that regardless of the type of doctor we would visit, it was her heart that was first checked. During any hospital admittance, regardless of the sickness, it is the heart that is first checked. Once I asked the nurse, “why always the heart”? The response was simple and profound, “It is the heart that determines, whether there is life or no more life.”

Today we celebrate the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Tomorrow we celebrate the Most Immaculate Heart of Mary. Two feasts of hearts one after the other. In the Gospel, we hear of Mary, “She Kept All These Things in Her Heart.” Why did she do so?

1. First, Life is meant to be lived. There were many things happening in Mary’s life that she could not understand. What exactly did Jesus mean when after being searched for three days, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know I must be in my Father’s House?” She too did not fully understand the words of Angel Gabriel, the Shepherds when they saw Jesus, and Simeon in the temple. Many things in life are not meant to be understood but they are part of the life that we go through.
   
2. Second, God has a plan. In the life of Mary, the will of the Lord was most important. Notice these were the very words of Jesus as well, “Not my will but the will of my Father.” This should not be a surprise if these words that Jesus said, He would often hear from Mama Mary. Mary may not have fully understood what was happening in her life, but she knew God had a plan.
   
3. Third, Mary knew everything happens for a reason and a purpose. Humanly speaking, when things happen in our lives that we do not understand, we react. We get angry, we blame, we are full of fear, and we even blame God. Knowing that all happens for a reason and a purpose, including the most difficult situations, Mary pondered, Mary waited, and Mary prayed – “Be still and know that I am God.”

Hence all of us are experiencing many things that we cannot necessarily understand: what is happening in the world, what is happening in our country, and what is happening in our personal lives.

We ask Mary that we may have a heart like hers:

• A heart that may not understand all of these, yet we go through life with hope
• A heart that knows that God has a plan in all aspects of our lives
• A heart that knows all happens for a reason and purpose