I have attached a picture of a rose blooming next to the statue of Our Lady in front of our parish school, Holy Cross Academy.

When I saw this bloom on a rosebush that had been planted this summer, I thought, “whoa?!!? Is that a miracle?!” So I prayed to Saint Google and discovered that no, it is not a miracle: “Newly planted roses will bloom in their first year, but the quantity and quality of the blooms will depend on whether the plant is grown in a container or grown bare-root.”

It may not be a miracle, but it was a nice little sign of hope! Because God holds all things in His loving hand, there are no coincidences. I’ll take an unexpected rose as a sign of God’s love.

Pax,

Father John Mosimann