, honouring the women who uplift, nurture, and empower them every day.){kind=link}
In celebration of Mother’s Day, The Catholic Weekly presents a heartfelt series of articles authored by the women of the Catholic Women’s Network (CWN), honouring the women who uplift, nurture, and empower them every day.
These testimonies underscore the vital role of women in fostering faith, resilience, and connection, highlighting the strength and love shared between daughters and mothers, grandmothers and mothers in law.
By Hazel Lim
From the moment of my baptism, my mother devoted herself to ensuring that, through her maternal love, I would come to know and experience the depth of God’s love. She named me Madonna, entrusting me to the care of the Blessed Mother—her greatest model, guide, and intercessor.
She taught me how to pray, helped me encounter Jesus, and nurtured my growing relationship with him. She encouraged me to call upon the Holy Spirit for guidance and discernment, always pointing me toward the path of truth.
Though she practiced as an optometrist for more than 30 years, she never wavered in her primary vocation as a devoted wife and mother. With grace and dedication, she balanced her professional life with a deep commitment to fostering a loving, joyful, and faith-filled home.
She made sure we attended Mass and prayed the rosary together as a family. Despite the busyness of daily life, she remained active in our parish community. Alongside my father, she ministered to married couples, supporting them in faithfully living out their sacramental vows.
She has been a shining example of what it means to embrace both the marital and maternal mission, upholding “life and love” as beautifully expressed in Evangelium Vitae by St John Paul II.
At 46, having already raised two adults and a teenager, she was unexpectedly blessed with another pregnancy. Due to her age and underlying health conditions, it was deemed high-risk, and her doctor strongly advised termination. But she stood firm in her faith.
In the spirit of Mary’s fiat, she surrendered herself completely to God’s will, responding with unwavering acceptance, trust, and obedience to His divine providence. My youngest brother was born healthy and strong—a true miracle and a living testament to God’s love.
What a blessing it has been to witness her selfless, receptive gift of love. As a child, I experienced it firsthand. As an adult, I came to understand it more deeply, especially in watching her freely pour out that same maternal love for my baby brother. It was a gift I carried with me when I became a wife and mother seven years later.
This year, she and my father celebrate 53 years of marriage. She continues to model for me what steadfast love and faithfulness, strength and courage, surrender and trust truly look like. Though older in years, she remains strong in the Spirit.
You’ll find her at daily Mass and adoration, counselling couples in crisis, bringing Communion to the sick, engaging in missionary work, and even “adopting” strangers she meets on streets, trains, or planes—always ready to share the depth of God’s love.
Her name is Anna Marie, God’s graceful beloved, my Mum.