In Honor of Mother’s Day

Laura Gabriela Lima da Costa Mourão*

| May 11^th, 2025

Mary, the Mother of Jesus, is considered to be a perfect example of a woman and Mother. The love that she demonstrates is true and unconditional and inspires many mothers to love their children with care and dedication.

This Mother’s Day, let us mediate on the greatness, the sincerity, and the depth of the Virgin Mary’s love, the Mother of Divine Love, the Mother of Jesus, and our Spiritual Mother.

The Virgin Mary received the mission of being the Mother of Jesus, the son of God. However, her mission was not solely restricted to Divine Motherhood. She also embraced as children those whom her Son entrusted to her. And so that this mission could be faithfully fulfilled, she received from God the highest capacity to love with her deepest love, a Most Living Love.

And on this very special day, I also direct my honor to the great and dearly missed Matriarch of the UDV, Mrs. Raimunda Ferreira da Costa, Mestre Pequenina. A mother to 11 children and my paternal grandmother, she wasn’t just a grandmother, she was also a mother to me and someone whom I carry great and special memories of.

For me, Mestre Pequenina is a great example of a woman and a mother. One of the things I always admired in my grandmother was her faith in Mestre Gabriel, and her courage and determination to face life with her head held high.

I have many good memories of her. However, one of the great examples that left a lasting impression on me of her as a mother was the way she took care of her children, especially my uncle José Gabriel da Costa Filho, known as “Rózeo” (in memoriam). He was like a big kid. Because he was special, he depended on her for everything. When I would visit my grandmother’s house, I often saw her sitting on the sofa in the living room and my uncle Rózeo sitting in front of her on the floor. She would place food in his mouth as if he were still a child. I often observed her, not only at that moment, but also at other times. I perceived the patience and the love that she had for him. I recall that someone proposed that she put him in a clinic to be taken care of. But she didn’t accept it, she rejected it! She wanted to take care of him herself with all the love, attention, affection and dedication – and she did so until her last days of life here on this earthly plane. When she disincarnated in October of 2016, Mestre Pequenina was 88 years old; of these, 53 were spent caring for a looking after Uncle Rózeo’s well-being.

Besides my father, Mestre Carmiro, and my uncles and aunt, I saw some other people call her “mother Pequenina” because they found in her the love and comfort of a mother, and always a friendly word. With her simple way of being, she always received everyone in her home with open arms.

I could write pages and pages about my grandmother, but here I leave these simple words through which I direct all my respect, love and gratitude for having her as my grandmother, and for having had the honor of serving her with all my love and affection. In this same way I honor my mother, Conselheira Mitonha, an example of a warrior woman and mother dedicated to her children. My eternal gratitude for everything that you, ma’am, have done and do for my siblings and me. I also highlight my aunt, Conselheira Jandira Gabriel, for whom I have love and admiration for and whose life story I respect.

To all mothers, I hope that God and Mestre Gabriel, our spiritual guide, continue giving us strength, equilibrium, patience and love, so that we may fulfill this sublime mission that is maternity – a gift granted to us by God.

Happy Mother’s Day!

*Laura Gabriela Lima da Costa Mourão is a member of the Body of Counsel of Núcleo Caminho do Mestre (Porto Velho – RO, 1^th Region, Brazil).