HCH photo/Anna Weaver
Reflections off a Honolulu chancery office window are seen in this photo of a woman praying at the statue of Our Lady of Peace on July 1.
Under the window: a pause, a glance, a prayer to Mother
By Anna Weaver | Hawaii Catholic Herald
Over the last four years I’ve spied on a lot of people. Not like the recently uncovered Russian spies hiding out in American suburbia, of course. But since I’ve been at the Hawaii Catholic Herald, I’ve established an observation post. Every day, from my corner cubicle on the diocesan chancery’s second floor, I will pause to take short breaks from work by spinning my chair around from my computer to watch people down below as they pass by the Our Lady of Peace statue next to the cathedral.
This tendency is mostly because I’m a curiosity-seeker and an observer by nature. But my fascination with Our Lady was fostered at Sacred Hearts Academy, where our morning flag-raising ritual included singing to the school’s statue of Mary, “Our Lady of Peace, pray for us, protect us and save us.” The Sacred Hearts Sisters started this practice years ago to thank Our Lady for sparing the school and the islands from further harm after the bombing of Pearl Harbor.
With the feast of Our Lady of Peace on July 9, I’ve decided to confess to my spying. And here’s why I do it (beyond a work break occupier): Mary is a unifier. She gathers Christians under her motherly protection and guidance. But she also draws in the casual passerby who notices her flawless beauty and walks over to snap a cell phone picture or read the inscriptions on the statue’s pedestal.
It’s true that oftentimes people will pass by Our Lady without so much as a glance toward the golden mother holding her Christ Child. But sometimes I’m struck by who does stop. Recently I watched a man talking on his cell and walking quickly on his way somewhere, pause and make a sign of the cross in front of the statue before continuing on. And there are those downtown workers I see looking in Our Lady’s direction on their way to grab lunch.
Most times, though, I like the signs of faith I see under my window. Just the other morning a woman stopped during a brief rain shower, opened her umbrella and paused for a short prayer in front of the statue. Then there was the woman clutching a Starbucks frappuccino between her folded hands, her head bowed not to the caffeine gods but to Mary for her intercession.
A few months ago, while finishing up some work on a Sunday, I heard a roar of people outside and looked down to see a bunch of newly confirmed boys and girls taking photos with their families by the statue. Awhile before that, a grandmother was taking pictures of her ROTC-uniformed teenage grandson. I wonder how many photos Our Lady of Peace has been in.
And then there’s me, and the times I just stare at Our Lady of Peace’s serene face, her gaze directed down toward those that stop and pray, her left arm cradling the little man child that changed the world.
Something always seems to be happening by the statue, whether big or small, curiosity or pure devotion. Our Lady of Peace — she makes us pause, even for the briefest moment.
Anna Weaver is the reporter/photographer for the Hawaii Catholic Herald.