One Mystery at a Time

Praying the rosary is part and parcel of being Catholic— more so in the Philippines. As a young girl, I remember the wooden rosary beads that moved through my mother’s hands.



I remember also how the Franciscan sisters in my school would make a big event of praying the rosary during the month of October. A giant “living rosary” with selected students representing the beads would be the highlight of the celebration.

Alas, the rosary took a backseat when I went to college. There was too much fun to do besides spending time praying the rosary. Praying the rosary continued to be relegated to the bottom of my priorities even as I joined the workforce. There was a job to be done and relationships to be formed.

It was when I got married that praying the rosary re-entered my life. But I did not pray regularly. I sought the comfort in the repetitiveness of the prayers only when I was anxious.



When my husband did not come home early, I prayed. When I had problems with my first pregnancy, I prayed. When the children got sick, I prayed.

Fifteen years ago, praying the rosary on a daily basis became a strong habit.



I found that praying the rosary at the start of each day gave me the fortitude to face the challenges waiting for me at the office.

Now three years into retirement and I still pray the rosary every day. Not so much as to shake off anxieties but so as to deepen the meditative experience. I have more time for contemplating each mystery. And if properly done, I hope to find serenity.



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Last Sunday, I decided to attend mass at Sto Domingo where the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary known as Nuestra Señora de la Naval was being celebrated. While waiting for the mass to start, I prayed the rosary and at the end, added a little request for a massage from Mama Mary. I tried to quiet my mind but instead a multitude of concerns came flooding through. My reverie was interrupted when a lady seated at the other side of the church bench handed me an envelope. She said that a lady requested her to pass it on to me. The envelope had a picture of Mama Mary holding baby Jesus while looking on at a rosary in their hands.

I had goose bumps as I opened the envelope to find a simple brown rosary and two cards containing excerpts of messages given by Mama Mary at Fatima and Sr. Lucia. Tears ran down my checks as I read in particular these two lines:

“I am the Lady of the Rosary. Continue to pray the Rosary everyday.”

“There is no problem so great that it cannot be solved by the Rosary.”

I would understand if skepticism cloud your opinion of my story. It could have been coincidental. I may have been one of the many inside the church that day who got the same envelope being passed along by some well meaning stranger.

Nonetheless, you could not remove the joy I felt as I sang with great vigor the entrance hymn to signal the start of the mass and my undying gratitude.



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A bevy of vendors crowd the entrance of the church. Religious items, fancy jewelries, flowers and native kakanins vie for the attention of the exiting masses. Among the conchintas, the putos, and turons were bundles of different kinds of suman or bud-bud. The making of which is too tedious to do at home. Also calling for attention were slices of sapin-sapin, bibingka and maja blanca.

If like me you love the creaminess of coconut milk, you will certainly enjoy trying out my recipe for maja blanca. Deliciously simple to make that you would want to make this on a regular basis.

Maja Blanca

1 cup coconut cream (the first squeeze) or you can use canned coconut milk
1 cup water
Mix together and set aside: ½ cup corn starch + ½ cup sugar + ½ cup water
½ cup canned whole corn kernels, drained
Latik (optional)

Bring to a quick boil then simmer the coconut cream and the 1 cup of water. Stir constantly. Add the sugar-cornstarch mixture and continue to stir to prevent lumps from forming. Then add the drained corn kernel and stir. Cook for about 3-5 minutes or until mixture is thick enough to coat a spoon. Grease a container with a little coconut oil or veggie oil. Spoon the maja into the container; allow to cool and set. Slice, arrange in a platter and serve topped with latik.



How to make latik:
Boil thick coconut cream until oil comes out and there is the formation of brown flakes or latik. Strain the latik from the oil and reserve as topping.

Extra coconut oil can be used for hair treatment. Not only will your hair smell delicious but it will be luxuriously shiny.