Back many years ago, my husband and I were in Cozumel and we walked into a little shop on one of the backstreets and there she was.
My sweet Virgin of Guadalupe.
I knew she was mine. That shy, red smile and the long, long lashes which frame her eyes,
those tiny hands clasped together in prayer,
the funny little angel-boy holding her up. The wood that she is carved out of is light as a feather. Balsa? Who knows? Not me.
But there she was and I wanted her with all my heart and could we buy her right then?
Oh no.
No, no, no.
You see, Mr. Moon is a bargainer. Now I know you're supposed to bargain in Mexico. Goes without saying. But sometimes when you want something SO bad, you just don't want to fool around with such nonsense. You pay the price, you consider yourself lucky, you hold her to your breast and you float on home.
Too bad.
Mr. Moon stretched the purchasing of this little lady out for days. DAYS!
It was agony for me. I was so afraid that someone was going to come and buy her and we would walk into the store and she would be gone, taken by someone who could not have possibly loved her the way I did.
But that didn't happen and eventually, a price was agreed upon, she was wrapped in old newspapers and handed over to me and she has lived with me ever since.
And on this day, the feast day of the Virgin (and hell- I'll use that term but not in the strict, anatomical sense) when all of Mexico is celebrating their goddess and this Madonna Madness of twelve days of Virgins I've been participating in is culminating, I give you the image of MY little Senora and yes, I know, you've seen her before.
And I'd like to thank rebecca because her invitation to participate has been a joy to me. It has engendered a great deal of thought on my part and allowed me to debate the controversy in my own heart about why I am so drawn to images of the Madonna.
Three years ago today I posted here about the Feast Day of The First Saint of the Americas and it's short, if you want to read it, and includes a tiny bit about Tonantzin, an Aztec goddess who proceeded the Virgin. I am sure that if you go to rebecca's site and follow the links there, you will find at least one telling of the tale of how Mary appeared to a man named Juan Diego or you can go here and read it with links and pictures and so forth.
It is a good story, charming and filled with portents and symbols, as all good gods' and goddess's
stories are. Hit that link if you haven't already gone to see Michelle this morning as she shows us the incredible body-art she has received in honor of Ganesha. Be prepared to be blown away.
And there you have it. That's it. Although if I know me, there will be more pictures of madonnas and Our Ladies and yes, okay, "Virgins" in the future. Maybe even this one again, the one I have in my hallway who stands watch, night and day, the one whom someone carved and painted so cheerfully, so lovingly.
I am grateful to that artist. Whoever it was probably had no idea that the image of his (or her!) work might one day grace the hallway of a very old house in Florida and be shown on a blog site and be cherished by the blogger.
And oh- I do not know how her little nose got busted but she doesn't seem to mind that it is.
I don't either.
The Mother of God better be tough and willing to take on the bumps and blows of life. And this one obviously is.
She is mine and she lives with me and I'll light her a candle today. Not in any belief of the supernatural but because to me, she represents love and that is what I believe in, along with light, and if I can find her some roses, I'll put them in a vase beside her too.
Happy Sunday, y'all. Happy Feast Day of La Reina de America, the Queen of the Americas.
She may mean a great deal to you or nothing at all, but either way or whatever in-between, thank you for coming along on this twelve-day journey with me. And with her.
Love...Senora Luna
