Yard Statues Offer Reminders of Mary

Family Matters: Catholic Living

Photo courtesy of Tom Wetzel
Photo courtesy of Tom Wetzel )

Drive down most residential streets in America, and it is not unlikely that you will notice a statue of the Blessed Mother in someone’s yard. 

Some will simply be positioned near the front of the home in a flower bed, while others will have more elaborate settings that may include a rock grotto. 

These concrete or plaster statues of Mary seem to hold a near-timeless effect upon the residence and often remain the only constant for the home.

During the course of a family’s life, their house may get painted in several different colors over the years, and family members will go through different stages of life. The life in the home will experience joys and disappointments, beginnings and endings, births and deaths. Children will become parents, and parents will become grandparents. All the while, society will experience a variety of changes, some good and some not so good. 

But during all those times, that simple statue of Mary will probably still be positioned in the same spot it has always been. 

And that may be one of the most appealing aspects that these representations of Mary have for us: They allow us to have a constant reminder of her trust in God. 

In doing so, these concrete statues have indeed provided an important spiritual service to us.      

Throughout our history, so many Americans have held a special place in their hearts for the Queen of Peace, and it is hardly surprising that we have made these representations of her part of our homesteads. 

We have adorned and decorated these Marian statues with pretty flowers, taken pictures by them and prayed near them. 

And although they rest upon earth, they have helped us to focus our eyes heavenward. 

While looking upon them, we can grow closer to Mother Mary, God and his only begotten Son, which makes these simple sculptured pieces priceless.                 

Tom Wetzel writes from

Willoughby, Ohio.

Photo courtesy of Tom Wetzel