Growing up around Catholic family & loved ones, I'm familiar with the imagery of Virgen de Guadalupe. I recognize her image from murals, votive candles, necklaces, and even clothing. I personally do not have a relationship with her though, as I grew up in a Presbyterian Christian household. We were taught that working with saints was "idolatry" and to avoid it, though I was always fascinated by beautiful & intricate Catholic symbolism. I remember as a child I was swimming in one of the local lakes near my house, and I saw something shimmering among the shells I was collecting. When I went to inspect it, I saw that it was a silver pendant with her image on it. I brought it home, and at the time, it felt powerful and symbolic to me. I was very drawn to the pendant, which I kept on my nightstand for years. In hindsight, it's funny to think about the sort of abstract relationship I formed with her, without having any background knowledge of her religious implications. It was by no means a traditional relationship and was without standard cultural connection, but she served as a token to remember my spirituality. My father, who grew up Catholic but no longer practices, has an old Virgen de Guadalupe statue that he inherited from his mother, but she was more of a remembrance of my grandmother than anything. Reading everyone's blog posts, it's so interesting to see how much she has been an influence in other people's lives. She's such an iconic figure that even those of us who thought we didn't really have any connection to her have memories of her.
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