The rosary has not been a lifelong prayer for me. Only about ten years ago did I start praying the rosary, and then not that often. Over the last few years, especially as my sister Jill was struggling with a multitude of illnesses, did I begin to pray it more often. I had made the Consecration to Jesus through Mary a couple of times. Each time that I made the promise, I would be faithful for a while but then drop away. It was difficult for me to “assign a time” for the prayer, and I didn’t see much benefit in it.

The year that Jill died, as I accompanied her during those final months, I began to be more faithful to the prayer. Now I cannot go a day without praying the rosary, even though some days I am praying the rosary as I go to sleep at night.

I prefer praying the Rosary before I get out of bed in the morning. After I rise, I know that the day will be busy. Things I didn’t plan will call out for my attention. Since it is still dark when I awake, it seems the perfect time to pray. I still struggle to meditate on the “mysteries”, though when I have difficulty as I say the prayers, I am silently thinking “thank you Mary”. Sometimes the questions or thoughts which arise during the prayer are enlightening and help me think about Mary and the Lord differently. Sometimes I find it helpful to stop after praying a mystery of the Rosary and spend a few minutes thinking about that mystery. I have been told that others repeat the verses from the Bible that describe that mystery, as they pray the ten beads.

I carry a rosary with me everywhere now; I have several throughout the house and even take one to bed with me. If I awake in the night and have had a difficult dream or just feel frightened, I reach for my rosary and know that Mary is there loving me. That gives me peace.