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On December 6, our family drove over 200 miles to spend time venerating the relics of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, "The Little Flower," a French Carmelite nun who died at the age of 24 at the end of the 19th century.
Her reliquary has been touring the US this Jubilee year, and this was the final stop. We all agreed without hesitation that the four-hour trip each way was worth it.
The morning we left, I woke up hours before my alarm and couldn't fall back asleep. When this happens, I typically turn to prayer.
Since we were planning to visit the relics of Saint Thérèse, I asked her to pray for our safe travels and to say, “Hey, if you see Ewan up there, please say hello and tell him we love him.”
(Ewan Eliezer Petermann was born with a congenital heart defect on September 18, 2010, in Seattle, Washington, to James & Kirsten. His younger siblings are Austen (13) and Streiter (11). After 16 days of life, several operations, procedures, and medical setbacks, he went home to be with his Savior on October 4, 2010.)
On the way out the door, I noticed that the Dracaena plant out front, a plant my Dad bought and planted for us over a decade ago to honor and remember Ewan, was about to bloom. In the 12 or so years we've had it, it's bloomed one other time. We call it "Ewan's tree."
On the drive down, we discussed as a family about being open to how God wanted to use this time, and to maintain a posture of receptivity for how He wanted to use this time to bless our family.
After arriving, we sat in the chapel and prayed quietly. We watched others walk up the aisle to touch the reliquary and pray, and touch their sacred objects to it. We took our turn to do the same.
After we arrived at home, it was dark, but I noticed the Dracaena had erupted in fragrant blooms. It was only later, after I had begun to relax, that I remembered my early morning prayer, and put it together: my prayer, our visit to "The Little Flower," the tree blooming entirely out of season, our discussion about being open to the graces God wanted to bestow.
Perhaps you'll think it a merely charming coincidence, and that's perfectly fine.