5/06/2018

Saint Anthony Comes Through


Some stories I want to write out so they aren't lost.

A week ago I lost Jim’s watch which I have worn since he died 6 years ago. Hopeful I could find it I looked everywhere in the house and in the car. I retraced my steps from the last time I saw it on my arm. First and last I launched prayers to St Anthony asking him to help me find it. No instant luck. I felt heartbroken.

I lost the watch on Sunday. Tuesday I was scheduled to travel to Cape May, New Jersey to perform Ready to Serve. With the watch missing,  I was not as happy to go asI had been. But people were expecting me. I had to go.

Monday morning I took 3 old watches I had tossed into a box to the Clock Shop in near-by Kensington.  The repairman was on duty. In minutes he put in new batteries and the watches were ticking away.

Even when I was out of town I kept looking and hoping the watch would turn up in the car or somewhere else. As soon as I returned home I started the search again.

Friday night my daughter Karen shouted MOM and ran upstairs holding out something to me.
“What? " 
“ Dad’s watch, Mom. "

"Where? Where did you find it?"
"It was in the refrigerator - wrapped up with the extra bread. I was about to pitch it into the trash when the aluminum foil wrapping came loose and I saw a flash of gold...

Dad’s watch.”

 She waved it as she walked over to hand it to me.

I remembered how slicing the bread had been difficult because the crust was hard. The watch must been shaken loose when I was slicing the loaf of bread. It fell into the package and went missing. Because of my long-sleeved sweat shirt I did not noice it was off -

Tears and laughter from the both of us.
What a find -

Since then - thinking about the "find" - I remembered the warm afternoon Jim and I visited the Tomb of Saint Anthony in Padua, Italy.
I still wear the St Anthony medal I purchased at the Cathedral that day.

We had a special reason for our visit to Padua.
Jim was born on June 13 - the Feast of St. Anthony and his mother named him James Anthony  - - -

Today Jim's watch is comfortably back on my arm - a wonderful gift.

Thank you Saint Anthony.