If sitting on a burro is too distressing for the little one, there are peaceful grottoes, with the figure of Juan Diego kneeling before the Blessed Mother, that can serve as a background. Mexicans adore their children. They are their delights, each one a gift from heaven. On December 12th, Mexicans celebrate their spiritual indigenous roots by bringing them to the Virgin of Guadalupe. She sees all of the nation, rich and poor, exalted and humble, as her children, and holds them in her protective grace.
Land there is dry and rocky, favouring only cactus and lizards under a blistering sun.
The conquering Spaniards had destroyed this and most of the other sacred places of the indigenous people, forbidding them to pray to their protecting spirits. They were spiritual orphans, then, not yet embracing, as foster-mother, the Catholic church. They had to hide small idols and talismans, to worship and pray in secret. As he passed this once-revered place, he stopped and stood still, disbelieving the heavenly fragrance and celestial music which surrounded the spot. Before him shone a radiance, like a glowing cloud surrounded by rainbows.