Roses of Therese

By: Geraldine Dern

I have never written a blog before, but my son, who is a Hard as Nails Missionary, asked if I would. It took me a while before I had an idea for what to write, but on one of my many walks with our dog, Mya, an idea came to me. My idea was to write about my experiences of St. Therese and her roses. Saint Therese of Lisieux learned to find joy and peace in the little things she was able to do in her life, and she offered all she did to Jesus. She died at the age of 24 due to illness, and before passing from this world to eternal life she said she would spend her days showering roses upon the earth. I have a very personal experience of Saint Therese and her roses, and I have heard of other beautiful experiences from others...my husband and a good friend.

It was the fall of 1996, and my husband and I were so excited to be pregnant with our first baby! What a beautiful miracle! However, we lost our little one through miscarriage. How sad we both were. Yes, I was a bit angry with God but I had to trust Him. I kept my faith and prayed. I asked St. Therese, known as the “Little Flower”, to ask God if He would let her send me a rose so that I would know that the little one we lost was in Heaven. At the time I was teaching Kindergarten. One of my students drew me a picture of a little person holding a flower. I asked her, “What kind of flower is the person holding?” She replied “A ‘roz’”. I framed that picture and it still hangs in our home.

Since that time, our gracious God has blessed us with 3 beautiful children! We would attend Sunday Mass with our children and quite often we would sit near an older woman who had and still has a very strong devotion to St. Therese. She still prays for our family and reminds me of how much our youngest daughter reminded her of St. Therese. Our family has been and continues to be blessed through the intersession of St. Therese.

My husband, Chuck, experienced a rose from Saint Therese as well. After receiving a Ph.D. in “Moral Theology” he began teaching a class. At the conclusion of the semester, he wasn’t sure if God was truly calling him to teach. He asked Saint Therese to ask the Father if He truly want him to teach. Still feeling discouraged, Chuck was sitting at the kitchen table when I showed him a beautiful plant a friend brought to me. Chuck asked what kind of a plant was it and I said a miniature rose plant. That was a sign from our Lord that He did indeed want Chuck to teach. St. Therese offered the little things in life that she did with joy to our Lord. She gives me a beautiful example of being a joyful servant, both on the inside and outside... a goal I strive to achieve with the grace of God.