A Gift from Our Lady Queen of the Holy Rosary

Last Friday an impulse brought me to the website of Little Audrey Santo.  She is a girl from Worcester MA USA whose cause for canonization is being considered in Rome.  The thought came while reading the beautiful story of her life that maybe someone from the organization for her canonization could speak at our Parish.  The first date that came to mind was the Feast of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary on October 7th.  I found as I read that they have in the past spoken at conferences or Parishes.  I called the number listed and left my information.  A short while later the phone rang.  A women asked for me and said she was returning my call.  I wondered could this be her mom, and so I asked her.  She said yes it is just me, her mom.  I could hear the clinking of dishes in the background and water running and could imagine her on the other end of the phone washing dishes. I loved this image because it is the way I like to think of Our Blessed Mother and other Saints such as St. Martha and Bl. Teresa of Calcutta.  Doing everyday things with love.  I told her that I was inspired by her daughter but I was likewise inspired by years of care that she gave her daughter while she was sick and confined to a bed.  She responded that this was not hard when you love someone.

Her mother, Linda, said she would be happy to come to our Parish on the Feast of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary.  After checking with our Pastor yesterday the date was set.  This morning after Mass I shared the exciting news that Linda Santo would be coming to Our Parish.  I mentioned that little Audrey is being considered for beatification and canonization and could be a new Pro-life Saint for Our time.  A member of our rosary group, who also is very active in the Pro-life group at our parish, said as her eyes filled up with tears "our group has been praying that a Pro-life speaker would come to the Parish one that our young people could relate to".  Her face became red and her eyes full of tears.  She smiled as she realized their prayers were answered.  The group meets weekly to pray the rosary and ask for the intercession of Our Lady.

Our Blessed Mother had answered their prayers and so many other prayers with Linda Santo's visit.  Who could doubt it was Our Lady's hand at work.  She had used the story of a small girl who suffered most of her life but was lavished by the love of her mother to unify a Parish.  Through this event many have already been drawn together and I feel this is only the beginning.

As I walked home from Church I kept thinking of Our Blessed Mother.  How much she loves us, how she cares for us like Audrey's mom did all those years.  I felt like a small child, safe with a mother who sees all and is taking care of everything.  I thought how silly I have been when I have worried.  I thought of the Beautiful Feast of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary and how Our Lady had found a way to bring so many to her.  How a simple mother who loved her daughter to the core of her being would be her words that day.  How a church would come together to pray the rosary on a day designated to Honor Our Lady. It will be a day I hope and pray when many will find a mother not only in Linda Santo but the one who has been with us from the moment we existed a mother whose hand is guiding us each day. Amen