Why the old ladies in black still pray...

When I was around 9 or 10 years old going to the Catholic church, The Immaculate Conception, in Iron Mountain, Michigan, wasn't my greatest joy. Back in the early '50s the masses were Latin and itwas hard for me to get a whole lot out it, at that age. All I knew is that my knees and legs ached and it seemed as if the service went on for hours! It probably did go an hour-and-a-half, but that's what it feels like when your are a kid. Almost intolerable in todays world. My Aunt Mary, who had no children of her own, loved to dress me up and take me to church with her. My mother had five young ones to look after andI'm sure it would have been hard for her. My dad, for some reason, and almost all my uncles, including my grandfather (who at one time wanted to be a priest and studied for it in Italy, before moving toAmerica) never went to church. A running joke was that, if any of them ever did step foot in church it would fall over! Anyway, I'm glad I went! I've always been, even at a young age, and now as an older age, curious about people and why they do the things they do. It helps me understand more why I do the things I do, even if you don't understand why I do the things I do. Confusing? The old ladies, mostly Italian, dressed almost in pure black, including black stockings to hide (I assume) varicose veins. Some of the women had small beards or whiskers, common for old Italian women and as a kid scared me a little. They always sat in the very back of the church, not for just one mass but for maybe a couple of masses and all the time in between. They sat and (kneeled when they could) holding rosaries with arthritic hands. They would bow their heads and say the prayers of the rosaries. Up until today, I always thought they were praying to get into Heaven thinking they didn't have much time left on this earth. I now believe I was wrong. Those old Italian ladies were praying for you and me. I think they saw, even in the '50s, the atrocities of the world and were praying for it to be a better place. They were most likely praying for maybe husbands or sons that were killed during the wars or some misfortune in a friend's life. I still don't go to church very often and when I do, they are still standing after I walk out. I suppose an earthquake will hit when I'm inside one someday! If that happens, be sure and take a mental note of what I said. I know there are still old ladies and old men that say the rosary and spend hours in church. God blessthem! Joe