(it was on faith alone), we were not able to get an MRI on Alec until August-- and this was either June or July. After I prayed to St. Theresa (maybe a day or few days later), the four of us went on a walk in our neighborhood ( I think we were going door to door to collect money to donate to The Brain Tumor Society and The Leukemia Foundation, this now seems crazy that we were doing this, but I felt we had to do our part to help and make a difference as a thank you for having Alec with us).
On our walk , right there in the middle of a side street, I see a ROSE, one long stemmed RED ROSE just laying in the middle of the road. I didn't say anything to Keith , I couldn't, I froze in awe. I just kept staring at it. I wanted to pick it up, but I was so afraid of touching germs as we were so scared of Alec getting sick. So I just watched that rose til I could see it no more. I knew that was my Rose sent from Saint Theresa to let me know my prayer was being answered. I knew this because you don't just see a long stem rose laying in the middle of the street.
After this Saint Theresa became a very special Saint to us. She sent us many roses when we needed them. Also Alec was baptized at St. Theresa's Parish, I had been to baptisms there after we had Cassidy baptized at our Church of St. Mary's, and it was done much more beautiful at St. Theresa's, so we chose to have Alec baptized there. Despite the fact that I had to approve it with St. Mary's, whose secretary was very rude and said that we would not remember that we had one child baptized at St. Mary's and one baptized at St. Theresa's. Really lady.
This was all before Alec was diagnosed and it is proof that St. Theresa was watching over Alec then. Deacon Tom baptized Alec, and it was the most beautiful and touching moment, I couldn't stop the tears. ( I don't remember crying at Cassidy's baptism). After Alec was diagnosed, Deacon Tom would come over our house and pray and sit around and talk. We were nervous around him at first because we weren't church goers and didn't know how to act around him, we didn't know all the words to the prayers . He made us feel so comfortable , he was so real with us. I even felt comfortable enough to ask him the words to a prayer I didn't know, because I needed to know them for one of my prayers for Alec.
Just to show that St. Theresa has been with us all along, --
Back before we got married, I decided to receive my first Holy Communion and Sacraments because I never got to receive them. I had always wanted to and I knew if I didn't do it then , that I would never do it. So I went to RCIA, a program for adults held at St. Theresa's, even though my church was St. Mary's-- this is where the classes were. I did not understand anything. I tried but it didn't make sense, the bible was like reading a foreign language. But I did get to meet Father Mc Cormick there, we actually asked him to marry us, the first time Keith and I went to meet him, he told us on the phone to look for him, he'd be the guy wearing a Patriots sweatshirt, we thought he was kidding,-- he was not-- he had it on over his Priest clothes. He could not marry us because he had a family wedding to go to that day. But Father McCormick is amazing, he's a regular guy, he's fun, he's understanding and he makes you feel so comfortable and so special.
I had to go on a retreat for my Religious classes and we all had to go off on our own and then come back together and share how we had felt God. I was the only one that did not feel anything, I had nothing to share. I didn't know whether to make something up or be honest-- I was honest.
And I had my first confession face to face with Father McCormick there, he made me feel so comfortable, I was trembling with nerves. From then on I would only have my confessions with him, face to face. He too has become such a special part of our lives in so many ways. (He has even played hangman with all of us in the hospital and at home, and he's GOOD.)
All of this I feel was meant to bring us close to God, God was working and preparing us, and leading us to to St. Theresa's, because we would need God and faith and would find comfort and a home with the people of St. Theresa's.
I shared my story of The Rose that was sent to me with Deacon Tom, and he shared it with Father McCormick. They were in awe of this and asked me many times to repeat it for them. It made them so happy, and it even amazed them.