_Prayer of St. Gertrude_.--O Mary, Mother of Jesus, and my own dear Mother! clothe me with the fleece of the true Lamb, your Son Jesus, that His love may receive me, nourish me, possess me, and sanctify me. Shining Lily, my only hope, after God, deign to speak to your Beloved Son in my favour; say an efficacious word to Him, and faithfully and earnestly plead my cause. I beseech you, O my Mother! by your love for Jesus, to accept me as your child; be solicitous for my welfare throughout the whole course of my life, and especially at the hour of my death take me entirely under your protection. Amen. _Ejaculation_.--Mary, Virgin and Mother! make me a Saint. _Practice_.--Let all your actions this day be done in union with Jesus and Mary. THIRD DAY. CONTINUATION OF THE PRECEDING SUBJECT. THE second point presented to our consideration in the presentation of Our Lady is that in order to consecrate herself to God in the Temple she was carried part of the way by her parents, and walked the remainder, being, however, always assisted by them. When St. Joachim and St. Anne arrived at a spot where the road was level they placed the little maiden on the ground, and allowed her to walk, but even then she lifted up her little hands to clasp theirs, that she might not stumble, and when they came to the rougher parts of the road they again took her in their arms. It should not be supposed that the intentions of her parents in allowing her to walk was to relieve themselves; they allowed it because of the satisfaction which they experienced in seeing their little daughter directing her first steps to the Temple of the Lord. Now, it is in these two ways that our Lord leads His faithful servants in their pilgrimage through this miserable life. At times He conducts us by the hand, making us walk with Him; and very often He carries us in the arms of His Providence. He leads us by the hand when He makes us walk along the path of the exercise of virtues, because if He did not help us it would be impossible for us to take one step along this blessed road. And do we not perceive that the steps of those who have abandoned the paternal hand of Providence are almost always so many falls? The Divine Goodness wishes to lead us by the hand along our road, but He also wishes us to make use of our feet; that is to say, that we ourselves do all that is in our power, by the assistance of His grace. Therefore Holy Church, like a tender mother desirous of the good of her children, teaches us to recite daily a prayer by which we beg God to deign to accompany us during the whole course of our pilgrimage upon this earth, and to succour us by His preventing and by His accompanying grace, because without both these graces all our efforts to make one step in the way of virtue would be unavailing.