Growing up, I never had a devotion to Mary. I mean, I liked the idea of her . . . but I didn’t have a relationship with her. The Virgin Mother was a porcelain statue, a gold-etched picture on a Christmas card. She wasn’t real to me. My only connection to her, at best, was a panicked “Hail Mary” before a pop-quiz.

What I’ve learned is that Mary is way more than a boring stained glass window. She lived an exciting life and did amazing things. And outside of Jesus, she is one of the greatest gifts we’ve been given as Catholics. Although I didn’t have a relationship with Mary growing up, I have fallen in love with my mother since then, and let me tell you: OUR MAMA ROCKS!