Praying the Rosary

H/T toPadre Steve

Meditation on the mysteries of the Holy Rosary has often been a source of trouble for me. I would recite the Hail Marys very quickly. I often rushed to get my obligation of saying the rosary out of the way and over with for the day. I actually thought that as long as I fulfilled this obligation, Mary would be pleased with my efforts. How wrong I was and not only was I wrong, I was robbing myself of the beauty of actually meditating and contemplating on the life of Christ.

With the grace of God, I am now finally able to not only meditate on each of the 20 mysteries of the Holy Rosary, but I actually look forward to seeing where my meditations would lead me.

This accomplishment did not come easily though. It was more of a "baby-step" attempt on my part and a conscious effort not to let my mind wander on anything but on each particular mystery.

It started with the Joyful Mysteries, the first of all the mysteries. The First Joyful Mystery is the Annunciation. On each and every bead of that decade, I would think and apply one word to describe part of the Mystery of the Annunciation. For example, on each of those ten beads I would apply some of the following words: 1. maiden, 2. room 3. angel 4. surprise 5. announcement 6. wonderment 7. Holy Spirit 8. Emmanuel 9. Obedience 10. Fiat

After a while of focusing on the mysteries in this child-like manner, my mind and heart now can visualize the place where each mystery is occuring. Dialogues, feelings, surroundings are easier for me to think about and thus I am now meditating much better. For an even deeper meditation, I try to pray the rosary with my eyes closed. However, when I pray the Holy Rosary in front of the Blessed Sacrament as is usually the case before daily Mass, I love to "gaze on the loveliness of the Lord"

"...That I may gaze on the loveliness of the LORD
and contemplate his temple."

Source

For me, meditation on the Holy Rosary is still a work in progress. I thank the Blessed Mother for obtaining this grace for me.