“Time just flew by, Mary! Life is so short.” Even as she said it some time ago, I wondered and I remembered. My 85-year-old grandmother is one of the holiest people I know, having attained tremendous graces throughout her life, and claiming four children, 29 grandchildren, and one great-grandchild to her name. This courageous woman packed more action in her 85 years than I could expect to live in a century. And yet, she marvels at life’s speed and seeks each day to serve Him more in these latter years of her life.

I find myself reflecting on my grandmother’s words often when time becomes a burden. Because sometimes, I gauge the timeline of my own life – where I’ve come from, where I’m going, and wondering when its “too late” to put aside certain hopes and dreams for my future. And whether she knew it or not at the time, my grandmother’s words continue to help me keep my eyes focused on the goal of Heaven in the timeline of my own life.

Last week, I thought a lot about my only surviving grandparent, mainly because the Church celebrated the feast of one of her favorite saints, St. Anne. Considering that St. Anne was a grandmother herself (and the ultimate grandmother, I might add!), I think these two have a lot in common. I imagine St. Anne would have her own advice to add to my grandmother’s words of wisdom: “It is never too late. You are never too old.”

Feeling old. Behind. Too late.

Even in the complete surrender of our hearts, a piece of our timeline is often reserved with hope and a bit of expectation of how things should be. We do it with all areas of life… earning a college degree, getting married, having children, buying a home.

For me, this timeline is most often reflected in the active wait of the single state for marriage and family. And it shows it’s ugly head in every stage…

I remember a young 16 year old once telling me she “didn’t want to be me” when referring to me still being single at the age of 25. Back then, I wouldn’t have wanted to be the me of today, still single at 32. But here I am – and do you know what? I wouldn’t give back one single year. And that’s saying a lot. As I get older, age takes on a whole new viewpoint. 40 becomes the new 30 and women reassess their own biological timeline.

I heard a 24 year old recently bemoan her age in comparison to where she thinks she should be in life. What may seem like impatience, I believe, is an eagerness met with the frustration of not having control over the ball of time – which is in God’s court. So she too, in her youth, feels “old”.

At the heart of it all and in the minds of most is the nagging question, asked more often than it should in the moment of feeling old: when is it too late?

Dear sisters, let me wrap the answer up in the advice of my own two grandmothers: if life is so short, than it’s never too late.

Marriage, family, college, house – they are the goal. Heaven is. Even at 85 years old, my grandmother is not too old to offer each breath of each day she has to the God who created her. It’s not too late to tell Him again just how much she loves Him. It’s never too late to let Him work through her. There is still so much work to be done – so much to bring to the Master of the Vineyard. 

And then, there is St. Anne, who by her very life leaves open the door of Hope in our unanswered prayers and future God has in store for us. She tells us to be faithful and hopeful in the Lord – to be the tool of God and not of the world. Her story gives us courage to live out the story God has planned for us. It is so much better than our own and transcends time, age, and the biological clock.

St. Anne was, to the world, the most unlikely candidate to become the grandmother of God and mother to Mary. But God chose her – the one to whom it seemed unlikely and incapable. God the Father looked down from His throne and pointed to Anne for his mother’s mother… gifting the tears of her barren womb with a sinless soul.

Her story tells us to keep asking and trusting. The gifts He wants to give us are not exactly made to order. They are better than we could ever order!!! And they are given in His perfect time. 

He chose St. Anne to be His grandmother. And with the same singular love, He is choosing you to be that soul who is like none other. The one who loves Him like no one else can, serve Him like no one else is serving Him, and be the daughter who’s place in His heart cannot be filled by another. And there is no timeline to this great privilege!

Have a lovely week!

Mary