DO NOT CRY, MY MOTHER

Carlos, a boy very devoted to Our Lady, fell gravely ill. His parents, deeply distressed, took him to the hospital. The doctors arrived, examined the patient, and said:

— He must undergo surgery; his condition is serious.

Preparations were made, and the nurse was ready to administer chloroform — a substance that makes the patient sleep and feel no pain during the operation — when he began to speak:

— No — he replied — I do not want chloroform; I promise I will remain very still.

Then, turning to his mother, who was at his side, he said:

— Mother, give me the crucifix; I want to suffer for Jesus.

Throughout the entire operation, he neither complained nor cried; instead, he offered his sufferings to God, his eyes fixed on the Crucifix. The doctors were astonished to see such courage in a boy.

From that day on, he could no longer speak; he communicated by writing.

His teacher, a Marist brother, gave him a holy card of Our Lady with the inscription: “Whoever loves me, follow me.”

And Carlos, taking that invitation from the Mother of God as addressed to himself, wrote:

— Mother, I love Our Lady very much and I want to follow her.

And as his mother began to weep, Carlos continued writing:

— Do not cry, my mother; I am going to Heaven, where I will pray for you and for father, and I will be with Our Lady; give me an embrace.

After embracing his mother, whom he loved dearly, Carlos looked tenderly at the image of Mary, kissed it, and died.