DULCEDO. Our sweetness. Think of her sweetness all through her life--when the Angel came to her; during the three months that she helped Elizabeth; when there was no room for her in the inn at Bethlehem; when her Son seemed to take no notice of her during His ministerial work; when she met Him on the Way of Sorrows; when she stood by the Cross; when she gently bathed His wounds and prepared His Body for the grave; when she consoled the mourning disciples; when He appeared to her on Easter Day; when she kissed His footprints as He ascended to Heaven; when the Holy Ghost came down upon her. Even from her body after the soul had left it, and even from her grave after the body had left it, there came a delicious odour, reminding all who enjoyed it of the _sweetness_ of the Mother who had left them. And this sweetness her children must try to copy. Is my sweetness for ever proclaiming itself to all with whom I come in contact--by my patience under the little trials of everyday life, by the kind word with which I meet the sharp, sarcastic one, by my extreme care of the feelings of others, by my universal kindness, by the humility with which I bear humiliations, by the ready way in which I prefer everybody else to myself? O my Mother, pray for thy child, and teach me how to copy thee! ET SPES NOSTRA. How necessary is _hope_ to the poor banished children! Without it they would indeed be in a desperate condition; but Mary is ever inspiring them with hope. _Ego Mater sanctæ spei._ (I am the Mother of holy hope.) And her hope is all for her children: she has no need of it for herself. She is a true Mother--always hopeful of her children, never giving them up. It is impossible for a child of Mary not to share her Mother's holy hope. A child of Mary _cannot_ despair! When we think about death and final perseverance, what holy hope at once fills our hearts as we remember that we have put that terrible moment into the hands of our Mother! _Ora pro nobis, nunc et in hora mortis nostræ._ (Pray for us now and at the hour of our death.) "Hail, our hope!" Before these words all fears disappear. For never has it been known that those who appeal to the Mother of holy hope appeal in vain. SALVE. We repeat our salutation. We do not want her to forget us. The importunate are ever dear to the heart of Mary as they are to the Heart of her Divine Son. Let us constantly greet her with our _Salve_--it will be enough to appeal to her Mother-heart, and she will give us whatever we are needing. AD TE. To _thee_. To whom should we go if not to the Mother whom JESUS has given us. "Behold thy Mother!" It is only natural that we should turn to thee. _Monstra te esse matrem._ Show thyself to be a mother by hearkening to our cry. CLAMAMUS--_do we cry_. It is a direct cry for help now--we make no secret of it--the children are calling aloud for their Mother--their need is so great that they care not who hears them.