The beautiful women of St Pius in Kentucky!

[UPDATED WITH SOMETHING I COMPLETELY FORGOT ABOUT WHEN WRITING THIS POST BECAUSE I WAS SO TIRED!]

I have returned from my visit to the women of St. Pius in Edgewood, Kentucky. It was a whirlwind of a trip. I traveled all day on Friday and gave a presentation Friday night and traveled the entire day Saturday to get home. Of course, it was well worth the time and energy! :) The women were so very gracious and just beautifully faith-filled. I really loved meeting each and every one of them.

My trip was interesting! I brought my husband along this time. It was the first time he traveled with me on one of my away trips. He generally drives me to my more local events and helps me with my books since I can't lift anything heavy due to injuries from a car accident.

So, we arrived at the airport in NYC Friday morning in time to check our bags and would have plenty of time to catch our breath after a long trip to the airport before boarding our plane. BUT...we were told that we couldn't take that flight! It was about one minute after they shut down the flight! It didn't seem right at all - but that's what happened. Airlines over-book their flights all the time these days.

I pleaded with the personnel telling them that I was the key note speaker for an event that evening and the next flight would get in much too late. They would not let us on our flight even though it wasn't scheduled to take off for another 45 minutes. You better believe that on the feast of St. Joseph (my hero), I was praying very hard for his intercession for us.

So, we had to work with a gentleman there along with a woman who kept checking the computer for all kinds of scenarios to get us there. Nothing worked. We had to take a much later flight that wouldn't get us to the Cincinnati airport until well after I was supposed to begin my talk! And, I would still have to be driven to the parish, find somewhere to freshen up and change my clothes. Like I said, it was interesting. I called ahead and explained the dilemma. The women assured me that they would stall things and all would be fine.

After all of that figuring out with the people at the airport, I reached in my purse for something special I had put there before leaving my house and I took it out and told the kind gentleman that had worked with us that I wanted to give him something. He said, "On no, I don't accept money." I said that "this is something better!" I handed him a Rosary I had purchased near the Vatican and had blessed by Pope Benedict when I was in Rome in November. I told him what it was and who had blessed it. He thanked me. The woman by his side said wanted to hold it and he drew it back from her teasingly and said "no" it was his. So, I told her that I had something for her and took out the one Miraculous medal I had in my purse that was blessed by our Holy Father too. She gladly accepted it. So, I don't doubt that our change of flight schedule was all in God's hands allowing this little gift giving to take place. God is always in control!

[Here's the part (in CAPS) that I forgot to include the first time]

WE LANDED A WHOLE HOUR BEFORE SCHEDULED TO LAND! REMEMBER I WAS ASKING ST. JOSEPH TO INTERCEDE. NO ONE COULD BELIEVE IT! A MAN SITTING BESIDE US LEANED UP AND ASKED THE FLIGHT ATTENDANT HOW THAT COULD BE POSSIBLE BECAUSE HE HAD NEVER LANDED A FULL HOUR EARLY. SHE SAID "I GUESS WE WERE REAL LUCKY!" I TURNED TO MY HUSBAND AND SAID "SAINT JOSEPH!!!"

I called the woman who would pick us up at the airport to alert her about the earlier schedule and she was so surprised. We arrived in Cincinnati and were picked up by the very nice woman who got us to the parish in Kentucky. The festivities there for the evening event had begun and the women in charge had wisely stalled off my presentation a bit by getting the attendees involved in other things.

Someone pointed the way to the Ladies Room and downstairs I trotted, my husband carrying my suitcase and I entered the Ladies Room knowing that I had about two minutes to zip open my suitcase, grab out my toiletries and start changing my clothes. My husband and one of the women stood guard on the outside of the door while I freshened up and changed my clothes (remember we had been traveling for about eleven hours by then). This was a first for me, to get ready in a Ladies Room just minutes before a presentation, whipping things out of my suitcase and throwing myself together so fast! :)

I then fit in a very quick visit to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament nearby as one of the women in charge was already introducing me to the women seated in the hall. So, with another quick prayer, off I went and walked in the door and up the aisle of the long room, through the crowd of women to reach the podium. A quick breath and "Hello! It's wonderful to be here! Let's pray a Hail Mary together..."




After my talk, I did a book signing (still have to get those photos) and met most of the almost 200 women gathered together that night. Afterwards, as exhausted as I was, I went out with a group of them to finally have something to eat and enjoy some wonderful faith-sharing.






Thank you women of St. Pius and visiting women for your very kind hospitality. You are in my prayers! It was so lovely to meet all of you!