THE AWAKENING OF CECILIA: THE LEGACY OF A MATURE WOMAN

I. A CRISIS YEARS IN THE MAKING

Dr. Velazco’s office had the air of a place that had witnessed too many souls searching for answers. There were no framed motivational quotes, no soft music playing in the background—only a dark wooden bookshelf filled with worn-out books and a bronze crucifix dominating the room with its imposing presence.

Cecilia sat in the farthest chair, like someone who had arrived late to an appointment with herself. She dressed with the elegance of a woman who had never allowed her world to completely fall apart, yet her posture betrayed something—a weight invisible to the eye, the wear of years of unspoken words.

Dr. Velazco closed a notebook and observed her patiently.

—How can I help you, Cecilia?

She sighed, an exhausted exhalation that seemed to come from the deepest part of her being.

—I don’t know, Doctor. But something isn’t right.

Velazco nodded, as if he had heard that phrase too many times before.

—What do you feel?

Cecilia drummed her fingers on her purse before responding.

—I don’t feel anything. Or rather, I don’t feel what I should. I did everything right. I was a good wife, raised my children, kept the house, went to Mass on Sundays. But now, nothing makes sense.

The doctor intertwined his fingers.

—How long have you been feeling this way?

She looked at the ceiling, as if the answer were written among the beams.

—I don’t know… A year? Five? Maybe more. Sometimes I think it all started when I stopped being needed. My children are adults now, they have their own lives. Vicente and I… well, we’re together, but we could just as well not be, and nothing would change.

Velazco picked up his pen but didn’t write anything.

—Do you still love him?

Cecilia shifted in her seat.

—I think so. Or at least, I think I would if I knew how. But he’s not the same. We used to talk, argue, laugh. Now we just inform each other about things: ‘I bought bread,’ ‘I’ll be late,’ ‘We’re out of coffee.’ Is that all that remains after 30 years? A news bulletin?

The doctor smiled slightly.

—And what do you do to change it?

Cecilia frowned.

—Me? Nothing. Isn’t he supposed to do something too?

Velazco picked up a book by Saint Thomas Aquinas and opened it with studied calm.

—Cecilia, Saint Thomas says that love is an act of the will, not a fleeting emotion. Do you know what that means?

She shook her head.

—It means you’re waiting to feel before acting, when in reality, you must act in order to feel.

Cecilia scoffed.

—Are you saying I should pretend everything is fine until I believe it?

The doctor shook his head.

—No. I’m saying that love doesn’t die all at once. It falls asleep. And what falls asleep can be awakened. But someone has to do it first.

II. THE INVISIBLE CRISIS: WHEN A WOMAN QUESTIONS WHO SHE IS

Cecilia remained silent for a long moment. Then, slowly, she lifted her gaze and let out a confession she had never spoken aloud before:

—Doctor… what if this isn’t just about Vicente? What if the problem is me?

Dr. Velazco rested his elbows on the desk, attentive.

—Go on.

Cecilia felt a lump in her throat.

—I’m afraid. Afraid that I’ve lost something I don’t even know if I ever had.

—What do you mean?

—That… I don’t know who I am anymore. I spent years being a mother, a wife, a daughter… and now I’m none of those things in the same way. I feel invisible.

Velazco observed her calmly.

—Why invisible?

—Because I’m no longer at the center of anything. My children don’t need me like before. My husband feels like a stranger. I’m no longer young, no longer desirable, no longer essential to anyone.

The doctor picked up an old volume of Saint John Chrysostom and leafed through it unhurriedly.

—Cecilia, do you know what Saint John Chrysostom said about mature women?

She shook her head.

Velazco read aloud:

“The woman who has walked the path of motherhood and marriage does not become a soul in disuse, but the pillar that upholds the faith of generations. If she falters, everything falters. If she stands firm, everything stands firm.”

Cecilia shivered.

—Are you saying my role isn’t over?

Velazco nodded.

—Exactly. Until now, your life has been about building a family. Now your life is about sustaining it.

—But if my children are already grown…

—Now they need your guidance.

A heavy silence followed. Cecilia swallowed hard.

—I never thought of myself that way.

—Because modernity has made you believe that a woman’s worth is measured only by what she produces or how she looks. But your greatness lies in what you transmit, in what you protect, in what you leave behind.

—Then… what should I do?

Dr. Velazco looked at her firmly.

—First, recognize that your life is not over; it has entered its most important stage.

—Second, abandon the idea that your mission was only to raise children. Your mission now is to ensure that your home does not lose the faith.

—Third, embrace your role as the pillar of your family—the woman who will keep the light burning in times of darkness.

Cecilia felt the weight of truth pressing on her chest, but it was a different kind of weight—not the weight of anguish, but the weight of a mission.

—I had never seen it that way…

—Because no one had ever told you. But now you know. And now, you must act.

III. THE FIRST STEP

That night, Cecilia arrived home. Vicente was sitting on the couch, his gaze fixed on the television.

She stood in the doorway, looking at him with new eyes. He wasn’t a stranger. He was the man God had placed by her side to walk together until eternity.

She approached him slowly and sat beside him.

—Vicente.

He looked up, surprised.

—Yes?

Cecilia took a deep breath.

—I want us to start praying together for our family.

Vicente raised an eyebrow.

—Pray?

—Yes. It’s our turn to uphold our family.

He watched her in silence for a moment, then nodded.

That night, Cecilia ceased to be a woman in crisis and became the guardian of her home.

There was nothing left to wait for. It was her time to act.

OMO