733. Who Is the Kind Lady Plasterer Who Helped Elderly Man Bong?

💌733. Who Is the Kind Lady Plasterer Who Helped Elderly Man Bong?

When I told the members of our Legion of Mary prayer group, of which I am the president, about elderly man Bong, who had received no visitors except my own family, they began visiting his home. They brought him the supplies he needed, helped clean his place and even cooked for him. 

I explained to them: "This gentleman wants to use coal briquettes for heating, but he is unable to because he is blind and can only use firewood. Even for those of us with perfect eyesight, using firewood is difficult! Just imagine how much harder it must be for someone who cannot see. So let us not grumble over the minor difficulties we face. Instead, let us live joyfully, always giving thanks to the Lord and to the Blessed Mother."

Seeing how hard his life was, the members felt deeply moved and said things like, "This makes me reflect on myself." From then on, they served even more joyfully, following me everywhere I went whenever I said I would go. One day, a sister named Mary Magdalene joined me on a visit to his home. She brought bread with her and offered it to him.

She kept saying to him, “Grandpa, you must remember me—Mary Magdalene who bought you bread! Say it with me: Mary Magdalene,” insisting that he, who was old, remember all syllables of her name. But how could he possibly remember “Mary Magdalene,” when he could hardly recall his baptismal name, Andrew?

The Lord taught us that when we give alms, we should do it in secret so that even the left hand does not know what the right hand is doing. Did He not say that God, who sees what is done in secret, will reward us? I have always believed that all glory belongs to the Lord, who works through us despite our unworthiness.

So whenever the elderly man asked who I was or where I lived, I never gave him a clear answer. I just said, “I am your daughter, Father. Please give your thanks to Jesus and the Blessed Mother. I have only done what I ought to do.” But whenever the Legion of Mary prayer members visited him without me, he would proudly talk about the person who had helped him.

When they said things like, “Oh, he is talking about the sister from the beauty parlor who helped him,” or when they called me the “parlor lady,” he misunderstood parlor as plasterer. From then on, whenever he referred to me, he fondly called me “a lady plasterer”.

After that, people would come to me and say, “There is a kind-hearted lady plasterer who has been secretly helping elderly man Bong, he said. Nobody knows who she is, but she must be such a good person!”

I wondered to myself, “Who could it be? I go there every day but I have never seen anyone else. Other than what I have done, I have not seen anyone else has helped him… Well, if a lady plasterer is bathing him and helping him, that is truly a blessing. I am so grateful to her.”

Then one day, I finished work late and ended up visiting him around midnight. As I stepped into the house and said, “It is me, Father. Your daughter is here,” he replied, “Oh! The lady plasterer is here!” I said, “Excuse me? I am not a lady plasterer.”

He answered, “Oh my, but your voice sounds exactly the same. At this hour, I figured it could only be the lady plasterer. Sorry, then… But then who are you?” “I said I am your daughter.” “Oh! Then, are you not the ma’am who bathed me, brought me food, fixed the house, cleaned my chamber pot, and took me to church?” “Yes, that is me.”

“Then why are you saying you are not the plasterer lady? That is strange,” he said.

And in that moment, I finally realized—the lady plasterer he had been talking about all along was me. So I said to him, “All right, Father, please call me ‘lady plasterer,’” so that I could hide myself and ensure that no one would recognize me as me, no matter who he spoke to.

Ever since then, whenever I heard people whispering things like, “Who is that kind lady plasterer? What does she look like? I would love to meet her…” I just smiled quietly to myself. “Oh, my beloved Lord, thank You. I am truly grateful to You for hiding what I desire to do unseen by others.”

“My beloved little baby! Your love and devotion in helping him while wanting nothing in return, will be rewarded 100 fold as you did not let your left hand know what your right hand was doing.”

“O my Lord, I have never thought of being rewarded in return for what I did.”

“I know, I know. That is why I love you so deeply.”

My personal reflection note with Mama Julia🌹💗 

Link 👇🏻

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScMn-IyINZ8oGN8Jv4M0-pozcdF67tEqzlPkk4s0EZKdnOdEw/viewform