Miracle Moments

Twenty four years ago today, April 27, 1987 the Blessed Mother allegedly appeared in Hrushiv Ukraine with a warning and words of consolation. She came on the Feast of the Ascension, exactly one year after the nuclear reactor disaster at Chernobyl saying "Do not forget those who have died...Chernobyl is a reminder and a sign for the whole world." In 1990 while producing a television documentary in Ukraine, I visited Hrushi and interviewed a handful of people who had witnessed the apparition above the church of the Holy Trinity. In all, some five hundred thousand witnesses claimed to have seen the Virgin Mary over a four month period. Mary apparently told them she came to thank the Ukrainian people because they had suffered so much at the hands of a raging lion who had been prowling around seeking whom he could devour. She said their suffering would come to an end and one day Ukraine would become an independent state. She then urged disciplined, Christian fortitude, ...

We cried buckets of tears, carried heavy bags under our eyes from all the sleepless nights, harbored a heavy, broken heart that felt like it was going to burst-and then suddenly-without warning-relief. Nothing could have prepared us for that moment, no one could have told us it was coming. We simply would not have believed them. On the day our sons or daughters entered community, we entered a profound feeling of freedom that we had not known could exist. We experienced a new sense of peace and joyful hope that somehow overrode all the past pain and fear. For the first time, in a long time, we felt like living, really living. When the doors of community opened, the door to a new way of life flew open. This weekend I was reminded of that remarkable reality during a parent's retreat sponsored by Comunita Cenacolo. As I sat and absorbed the talks and the prayer, the testimonies and the teachings, I felt the continuing evolution of all the spiritual principles I have held dear. Ou...

My friend Kat is celebrating her birthday today enjoying God's hand in creation along the beautiful California shoreline. She is spending a few days with my sister in Mendocino California which is surrounded by the Pacific Ocean and nestled among an artist colony. They sent us beautiful pictures of the cliffs and white peaked waves and I wondered why anyone would ever want to leave that vision. I'm so happy for her getaway because she's deserving of abundant blessings and lots of old fashioned merry making--having given others more heartfelt Love then I could ever describe. Their dogs, Sophie and Boris made the cut and are traveling with them, enjoying the perks of parents who like to spoil them-and everyone else. My kids and I know this firsthand! So today we prayed for safety and lots of sunshine for the birthday girl, Kat...And we gave thanksgiving to God for giving her life and giving her to us so that our lives will be fuller and more fruitful-just by knowing her! ...

I had the most amazing experience last night. I witnessed what appeared to be the resurrection of a dying woman. I felt called all day to attend an evening women's 12 step meeting which I hadn't been to in a while. I really felt the urge to go, so after dinner I jumped in the car and flew up town. A few minutes after the meeting started, a girl walked in who looked and felt vaguely familiar. Thin and wiry and dressed in jeans and a modern t shirt, she looked like someone I had known...but I wasn't sure. I just kept glancing at her and then she spoke and shared some very eloquent words of recovery wisdom. As I listened I noticed her front teeth were decayed like the teeth of people I had seen who had been hooked on crack cocaine. It dawned on me, this girl had an uncanny resemblance to a drug addict I had helped about two years ago. A girl I had blogged about. I had been driving downtown on a Sunday morning when this young, emaciated woman fell to the ground in an empt...

I felt a great deal of Love from my sons this week. Caring compassion and outright concern. The kind of warmly inspiring qualities a mom wants to see in the men in her life. They were so sweet...taking me to dinner, asking me how I felt and embracing me tightly with lots of hugs and I Love yous. My children have been tested by fire, scourged at the pillar, agonized in the garden of life...They have pulled through those trials with amazing determination and faith even in the face of fiercely overwhelming challenges...And they are turning out to be gentle, loving young men...The kind of guys every gal would like to know. Zachary kept looking at me, "This too shall pass...I don't really know what that means, but isn't that what you always say?" "Yes," I laughed...giving him a big hug. And so it does...Time passes and with each passing moment, miracles are manifested in a myriad of surprising ways...and especially through my children. I've lost a lot o...

My son Mac turned 22 on the 21st, and for the first time in years he was safe, sober and sitting inside-rehab. It wasn't his idea of a Happy Birthday...However, that's what growing up is all about. Change and change and more change. Growing pains and painful growth. Giving up our reckless past and giving in to healthier choices. I know Mac may not feel good about himself right now, but I believe his Spring will come. It will take time and tough decisions, tears and tiny baby steps...But every day is a new day with the promise of new life and the Love of Christ who is watching over him every step of the way. On the day he was born, Mac kept me in labor all day...Entering the world just before sundown...Screaming at the top of his lungs...Announcing to the world that he had finally arrived-on his terms. I remember he was so tiny, almost fragile and much smaller than his older brother. Who would have guessed that one day he would be towering over the rest of us...Tall, dark...

Miracles happen all the time...However, if you're praying for one, purification may need to come first. Years ago as I prayed for a physical healing from the alcoholism that had crept into my life, I begged God for a healing. I spent hours in prayer, often in front of the Blessed Sacrament. I opened my heart, surrendered my will and pleaded for help. One day as I immersed myself in his presence I clearly heard that I would not be healed "faster than will benefit your soul." It brought me little comfort because I wanted immediate release from the bondage of pure pain that held me prisoner to this awful disease. I did not understand at that moment-that God had planned a glorious new life for me free from the pitfalls that had pulled me into the pit of hell. I did not know that he wanted to give me a healthy, wholesome way of thinking that would forever change the course of my life. I was so immersed in the revolving drama of my life that I could not see the problems th...