Not sure how old I was, but from a very young age I noticed something unusual about women who were pregnant – something beyond a tummy that was suddenly growing larger with a child inside.
I noticed it in their eyes and their smiles. Even the color of their skin.
It was a glow.
Not like a tan when you spend a day at the beach. That is more of an external change of color.
No, this was more like an internal glow. As if something inside was illuminating her face.
Her eyes were brighter, her cheeks more flush with color, her lips more beautiful with every smile.
I’m sure I probably embarrassed my mom when I told these new mommies that they sure looked pretty … more pretty than before. (I was such a flirt).
But I still see it and still believe it.
And yes, I still probably embarrass expecting mothers (those I know and those I don’t) when I tell them that they are absolutely glowing and they look beautiful. (Yup … still a big flirt).
Now, medical officials have tried to explain this “pregnancy glow” as having something to do with increased hormones boosting the oil in the skin. Or they think it might have something to do with the increased blood flow created by the body.
Sorry, I think this glow is more spiritual, originating from the child within. A child – this child, that child … ANY child – conceived by a holy trinity of God, the mother and father.
But especially the mother, who plays such a key part of the miracle of birth.
Today’s Gospel is the story of Mary, who shortly after learning of her miraculous birth to come, went visiting her cousin Elizabeth, who was six months ahead of her in her own miraculous pregnancy, in which she would bear John the Baptist.
Prior to the trip, the Angel Gabriel explained to Mary what she was about to experience …
“And the angel said to her in reply, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.’
God worked a miracle within Mary, who chose to cooperate with Him and brought forth the child, Jesus. That same miracle is still at work today. Every child conceived in the womb is a miraculous work of God.
Mary had the glow because the power of that Holy Spirit was bubbling up from within. She would later tell Elizabeth that “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.”
All mothers have that same glow because that same Holy Spirit is within them – a spirit that breathed life into the child. What a tremendous gift God has given us … a chance to be, well, like Him.
Even if the timing is not perfect nor the circumstances ideal. By opening ourselves to the miraculous workings of God – especially in the creation of a new soul – we open ourselves to the power of the Holy Spirit, which can change us both spiritually and physically.
That glow is of God.
And it is truly beautiful.
