Preparing For My Son's First Holy Communion

Tweet Last weekend the most awaited moment of my son happened, his First Holy Communion.  We were preparing ...



Last weekend the most awaited moment of my son happened, his First Holy Communion.  We were preparing for it as early as four months before.  I remember, during my time, as early as Grade 2 I already received my First Holy Communion.  Today, most Catholic schools I know have their students receive the First Holy Communion in Grade 3.

Preparing For His First Holy Communion
  • Study Catholic Mass Parts and Responses - Months before, their Religion teacher gave them a copy of mass parts and responses for the students (and parents) to study.  Given that the responses had changed, we studied them together and ensure to practice it whenever we hear Sunday masses.  We also talk about their meaning and the relevance in our lives as Christians.
  • Practice Church Songs - My son and I love to sing and whenever he comes home from school he would continuously sing church songs and try to reach high notes.  Sundays before the day itself, I encourage him to sing during mass.  They say singing is a high form of prayer.  I tell him to sing from the heart.  Songs do help in keeping the children interested, attentive and responsive in the Holy Mass.
  • Attend Parents' Recollection - When their school invited parents to attend the recollection, I dropped whatever schedule I had on that day to be there.  Hubby and I woke up really early to ensure our presence and show our love and support to our son.  We learned a lot about the reason for the revision of the Holy Mass responses.  We were oriented on what preparations our children are going through for this momentous occasion.  This was the time we were asked to write a letter for our children which will be given to them on their own recollection.
  • First Holy Communicant Recollection - We are fortunate that our son's school strongly develop the children's spiritual growth by having deep faith in God.  My son had his first recollection where he had time to reflect and thank the Lord for all the blessings.
  • Parents' Confession - I have not gone to confession for as long as I can remember meaning I haven't been receiving the Holy Communion for quite a long time.  Hubby and I agreed to have a confession two weeks before his first Holy Communion so we could go with him to receive it.  It's also one way of preparing ourselves spiritually.  As parents, we all need to set a good example to our kids.

  • His First Sacrament of Confession - A few days before his own confession, we memorized the steps and the Act of Contrition to prepare him for this.  I even made him write a list of the sins he had to confess so that he won't forget it.  
  • Buy Communion Clothes - The boys were required to wear white long-sleeved button shirt, black pants and black neck tie.  We went to the mall a week before to shop for clothes.  I was so happy that there was an on-going sale.  I bought the top for only P400.00 (original price P600) and the pants at unbelievable P100.00 (originally at P450.00) only.  The neck tie costing only P80.00, was just a clip on so it's not complicated to wear if he has to put it on himself.  When he wore the whole ensemble at home, he felt good about how it fitted well which got him more excited about his special day.
  • Get Ready for The Day - His countdown of days went from 30 to 0.  We all woke up early, had a full breakfast, dressed the pressed Sunday clothes, looked our best and went to their school chapel before their assembly call time.  Avoid the stress and rush by sleeping early and preparing everything the night before so the following morning will be a breeze.  It was a beautiful sunny day.  We all looked our best.  We came prepared and excited for the momentous day in his life.  All the preparations paid off, we felt very proud when we escorted him to his assigned seat during the march. The children's singing voices were angelic which added solemnity and peace throughout the whole mass.  It was an unforgettable day indeed not only for him but for us as parents.
What I Didn't Prepare For
Amidst all the steps we did to ready ourselves on his First Holy Communion, what didn't prepare me was the part where I got emotional that I really shed tears (of great joy, that is) during the last part of their Holy Communion.  The children prepared a song number "You Are My Song" for their parents.  The children faced back to sing for the parents with a rose and a love letter in their hands. Recalling this moment is now making me weep again seriously.  After the song our son approached us to give the letter and the rose for me.  Hubby took a photo of us while I was teary-eyed, hugging my son.   

The next time there will be another "first" event in his life, I will make sure to prepare tons of tissue for those non-stop tears.  I rarely cry, I didn't expect that to happen.  If you have younger children who will have their First Holy Communion in the years to come, come back to this post and never forget my last tip: Bring plenty of tissue for your tears.


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2 comments

  1. Aww, natouch naman ako. I have lots of crying moments too during events like that and school presentations.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi @disqus_irdOYPBa4b:disqus super touching, now it's updated with pictures.... huhuhu! I rarely cry..

    ReplyDelete

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