Une Minute avec Marie
Faire connaître et aimer Marie
It all happened in Medjugorje during Holy Week 2010. I am 39 years old, and grew up in a practicing Catholic family. I was raised in the faith from a very young age. But when I was 15 years old, I completely turned away from my faith, preferring to go out with my friends who were not what I’d call "good kids." We went out drinking and doing drugs. I had very low self-esteem, and fell into depression.
In 2003, I had a baby boy. His father left me when I was three months pregnant. I fell into another major depression and tried to end my life several times. I started drinking heavily again. My son Mathis suffered the full brunt of all this: I would drive while drunk, and do crazy things. I had become an alcoholic and reached my lowest point.
I had lost my faith in 2003 and refused to enter a church. For me, God could not exist! How could he let me suffer so much? I lost my job several times. In March of last year, seeing that I was sinking deeper and deeper and in danger of dying, my cousin and my aunts insisted that I go to Medjugorje. I went with my father, while my mother looked after my son.
I was amazed to see all these pilgrims praying the rosary on the bus and I thought to myself: "What the heck am I doing here with these crazy people?"
Then…I had the enormous surprise to hear Mary speak to me on the hill of apparitions! She told me that she and Jesus loved me as I was, and that I was precious to them! I broke down in tears, overwhelmed by a torrent of Love, a feeling of floating between Heaven and Earth, a total Reconciliation!
I began to pray, I relearned my prayers with fervor, and above all I put all my heart into praying. I was happy and at peace as I had never been for a very long time.
This is the most beautiful gift I have ever received, and I can't thank my family enough for pushing me to go there!
Since this pilgrimage, I have completely quit drinking, I have never thought about it again, I love myself and I know that I am loved, and my life has changed radically. I live each day as a grace, I pray a lot, I say my rosary and I go to mass.