Rose Cake and some things I have been pondering lately...

Sunday was Mother's Day, oh what a complicated day. 

So many women experience an incredible amount of emotions on that one day... the loss of a child, infertility, loss of a mother, oh so many things and triggers that can come up in this one day. My prayers go out to all women on this day, I've known the pain of infertility, of miscarriage, and of not having my own mother on this day.

It can also bring up the attack society places on moms. The feeling of not enough, of seing motherhood as a waste of your talents, time, and the saddest one it being a burden. 

But it is not, How magnificent it is that as women we get the gift to work hand in hand with God in creating and raising inmortal souls! As a mother your body has at some point held two souls inside of it at one time (or 3 if you had twins!) What a gift! Knowing that and how God gave you those little souls because He thinks you are the best person to raise them, with your shortcomings and flaws, with your gifts, and how we will help each other grow in virtue and get to Heaven. 

I've been learning a lot about growing in Virtue latelly by studying Mary, the mother of Jesus, I have not been particularly interested in understanding or learning about her but as a mom and having lost my own mom and all the feelings that have bubbled up I have felt drawn to wanting to learn more and ponder about her life.  So I can use her virtues as a guide and example of how to mother and try my best in imitating them in order to raise the little souls placed under my care. After all I am constantly reading random women's advise on the internet on how to be a better mom, so why would I not also learn from the one God picked for Himself? 

If you think about it she was picked by God to be His human dwelling, to form his body in her womb, care for, and raise Him. He was under her care and obidient to her until He was in His 30s to start His public ministry and His first miracle was asked by her... 

And by reading the old testament we all know how particular God was in His instructions for the construction of the Arch of the Covenant. Which if we go by that, it would mean that for His own body and life He had to have picked the holiest, purest, faith filled, and most virtues human there was. One who would put aside all selfishness and give her Fiat = the answer she gave the angel during the annunciation (I am the handmaden of the lord let it be done to me according to His will) over and over, when finding out heart would be pierced by a sword, when fleeing to Egypt because her baby was being looked for to be killed, all the trials she faces and sorrows yet remained faithful and trusting of God. 

How would she answer Jesus or Joseph when she was frustrated, or tired, or PMS? How did she still remain gentle of speech when Jesus was rolling around while trying to change a poody diapper or potty training?  Or remain humble and not bring up how she was the mother of God but lived simply and still took care of the home, cleaned, cooked, and drew water from the well like every woman in the area. Or how she remain patient and not get consumed by anxiety or fear during hardships? How did she bear, remained faithful, and filled with compassion while watching her son, her little innocent tiny baby she held so many times, get tied naked to a pole and beat with a Roman whip until chunks of skin fell off and be laghed at and ridiculed? ...it's been helpful to ponder these things to guide how show up in my calling as a mother. 

We as woman by our very nature, the way God created us, are called to be mothers whether spiritual ones or physical ones. We have been blessed with the gift to be caring, nurturing, and loving... the beautiful gift of Motherhood.

So, to celebrate this day I decided to try making a Rose cake. Roses are commonly linked to Mary, I can see that, being a beautiful regal delicate flower filled with it's sweet fragrance and in a way bloomed beautifully regardless of the thorns and hardships? I don't really know why but I like my take on it.

This recipe is a keeper! It would probably be super yummy made with tea instead of rose water or maybe lavender lemon,  oh so many possibilities ...

Wouldn't it be nice to get together over a cup of tea or coffee and a slice of cake and talk and ponder together these mysteries? But in the meantime I hope you get inspired to bake this cake and to ponder as well...

Artist unknown... if you know please tell me I love that painting