The Story of MtM

Since becoming engaged in 2013 I have been on an ever deepening spiritual journey back into the Catholic faith of my childhood. Through sacramental grace and intense personal study I fueled the fire in my heart for knowledge, learning and re-learning everything I could about Catholicism. The more I learned about the rosary the more I prayed it. As a busy mom with a full life, it wasn’t long before I began to notice a marked difference in my days. When I grounded myself with the meditation I found I had more patience, the house felt lighter, I was focused on God and the peace was palpable. When I didn’t, my fuse was shorter, my emotions held more reign and I was quick to turn to distraction and things other than God to get me though. It quickly became clear to me that the strength and refuge I found in the rosary was a daily need. So I challenged myself to pray 5 decades a day of the prescribed mysteries for the entire week. At first the prayer felt so long and awkward but once I got the hang of it, my time in meditation didn’t seem long enough. So I prayed for a month, then 54 days then a full year. I prayed it everywhere. At the airport, in the car, during naptime, in adoration, on audio while I did chores, at the grocery store, on vacation, while I exercised and in bed before falling asleep. It wasn’t always reverent, silent or uninterrupted but each day I meditated on the divine life of Jesus and the motherhood of Mary. As I walked through joyful and sorrowful mysteries in my own life, I began to realize just how universal these mystical experiences really were. The human experiences of Jesus and Mary connected us through time and united us in Spirit. As the year went on I grew deeper in trust, bolder in faith, stronger in virtue and more mature in motherhood as the fruits of the spirit continued to grow in my soul. I felt different emotionally too. Calmer. The rosary was a tether to the anchor of Christ, steadying me through the ups and downs. I didn’t realize just how significant the change in me was until others began to notice too. My demeanor, my interactions with my family, what I surrounded myself with, even how I carried myself had changed. Now I am not claiming that the rosary worked like magic. My devotion didn’t take all of my problems away or make everything in my life easy. But it gave me the grace and support I needed to keep moving in the right direction. I still say the rosary to this day. Everywhere I go, at all hours, in good and bad times. I’ve added other prayers and taken up different devotions over time but the rosary remains a staple of my prayer life. This project was born of this true devotion and marries a love of storytelling and meditation in a way that I pray will promote peace, encourage empathy and speak to the hearts of modern Catholic women everywhere. In His Love, Caitlin Winters, Founder To read more from Cait visit her personal blog prayersoverthekitchensink.com