The Assumption! ~ Maria Von Trapp / Ideas to Make the Day Special

Happy Feast of the Assumption! Make sure you do something a little special today to remind your children what a special day it is! For inspiration see this post.

Here are some other ideas to make it special:

• Attend Mass Together – Since it’s a Holy Day of Obligation, make a special effort to prepare with a Marian hymn on the way to church and dress in blue or white in honor of Our Lady.

• Pray a Rosary or Decade Outdoors – If possible, pray in a garden or under the sky to reflect on Mary being assumed body and soul into Heaven.

• Read the Scripture Passages – Share Luke 1:39–56 (The Visitation and Magnificat) and Revelation 12:1–6, talking about Mary’s role as Queen of Heaven.

• Create a Marian Litany – Have each family member name a title of Mary they love, adding it to your prayer time.

• Flower Crown Making – Gather wildflowers or garden blooms to make a crown for a Marian statue or a picture of Our Lady.

• Blue & White Candle Decorating – Use ribbons or washi tape to make pretty candles for the table or prayer space.

• Paper Star Garland – Symbolizing Mary crowned with stars (Rev. 12:1), make a gold star chain to hang in your dining area.

• Marian Coloring Pages – Let children color images of the Assumption, then hang them around the home.

• Heavenly Blueberry Treats – Blueberries or blue-tinted frosting to honor Mary’s traditional color.

• White Angel Food Cake – Decorate with whipped cream and fruit for a “heavenly” theme.

• Herbal Dishes – In many European countries, the Assumption is a day to bless herbs. Make bread or tea flavored with fresh garden herbs.

• Crown-Shaped Bread or Cake – Braid sweet bread into a circle and decorate with edible flowers or sugar pearls to symbolize her queenship.

• Mary Procession – Carry flowers to place at a statue of the Blessed Virgin, singing Marian hymns as you go.

• Family Picnic – Share a meal outside in honor of Our Lady’s beauty and connection to creation.

• Star Gazing at Night – Talk with the children about the “woman clothed with the sun” and the promise of Heaven.

• Blessing of the Garden or Crops – Ask your priest if he can bless your flowers, herbs, and produce on this day.

From Around the Year with the Trapp Family

The day of the Assumption, August 15th, is the oldest and most important of all the feast days of the Blessed Mother.

In the old country it is also known as “Great Flower Day.” All the women and girls come to church on this day with their arms full of neat bundles of herbs, which they put down in the sanctuary at the Offertory procession.

On this feast day the Church blesses the herbs immediately preceding Mass. The priest, standing before the altar and facing the people, pronounces a long and solemn blessing at the end of which the herbs are sprinkled with holy water and are incensed.

There are special herbs which traditionally have to be included. Days before the feast the people are collecting them in the meadows and woods. Every family sends one such bundle to be blessed.

Afterwards it will be kept in the corner at home near the picture or statue of the Blessed Mother.

In cases of sickness a leaf is dropped into the food of the patient and during heavy thunderstorms one of the herbs is put into the fire on the kitchen stove–it is a sacramental and is meant to protect us in body and soul.

The connection between the feast of the Assumption and the blessing of herbs is told in an old legend.

When Mary the Mother of Jesus felt that her end was drawing near, she sent her guardian angel to summon the Apostles, who had gone out into the world to preach the Gospel of her Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ.

When they received the summons, they came in a great hurry and were just in time to witness the happy death of their dear Mother. Everyone had come except Thomas. He was three days late.

When he heard that the Blessed Mother had been resting in the tomb for days, he cried bitterly and pled with the Apostles to open the tomb once more and let him glance at the beloved features.

The other Apostles yielded to his plea, but as they opened the tomb, they found it filled with flowers, which gave out a heavenly scent. On the place where they had laid the body there was only the shroud left–the body had been borne up to heaven by the angels, where it was joined by the holy soul of the Mother of God.

According to the legend, all the flowers and herbs on earth had lost their scent after Adam and Eve committed the first sin in the Garden of Eden. On the day of the Assumption of the Blessed Mother, however, the flowers were given back their scent and the herbs their power to heal.

The Legend of the Empty Tomb and Flowers

According to ancient Christian tradition, when the Blessed Virgin Mary’s earthly life came to an end, the Apostles gathered around her. After she “fell asleep” (the Dormition), they laid her in a tomb — often said to be in the Garden of Gethsemane.

A few days later, when St. Thomas arrived (he had not been present for her passing), he wished to see her one last time. The Apostles rolled away the stone from the tomb, expecting to find her body. Instead, they discovered the tomb was empty — and filled with a heavenly fragrance and beautiful flowers.

Some versions say the flowers were roses and lilies, symbols of purity and heavenly glory. The Apostles then understood that her body had been taken up into Heaven, just as Christ’s had been after the Resurrection — the event we celebrate as the Assumption.

Meaning of the Legend

• Flowers → Purity, heavenly joy, and the reward of holiness.

• Fragrance → Symbol of virtue and the incorruption of the saints.

• Empty tomb → Mary shares in her Son’s victory over death.

This imagery has inspired centuries of art, hymns, and feast day customs — such as blessing flowers and herbs on August 15th, which comes from this very legend.

Looking for a fun craft with the little ones today? Take a look at this post!

“Let us run to Mary, and as her little children, cast ourselves into her arms with a perfect confidence.” – St. Francis de Sales
Happy Feast of the Assumption!

A sermon for this wonderful feast day!

Your children can celebrate with these coloring pages!

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In this joyful and charming book, Maria Von Trapp unveils for you the year-round Christian traditions she loved traditions that created for her large family a warm and inviting Catholic home and will do the same for yours….Mary Reed Newland wrote numerous beloved books for Catholic families, but The Year and Our Children is her undisputed masterpiece. Read it, cherish it, share it, put it into practice and give your kids the gift of a fully lived faith, every day and in every season….

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