New Room Decorations

We have been absent from our family blog for one month exactly as our son Thomas was diagnosed with cancer. We were publishing over at CaringBridge (https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/thomaslauer/), but are now going to try to bring the two together seamlessly in order to continue the family blog I have written for 14 years. This blog post is copied from CaringBridge and is being published retroactively.

Before we leave at 6:30 a.m. for the hospital . . . 

I am happy I could add some religious items to the boys' room yesterday. I found an old prayer shelf I had not mounted since we moved in and I put up some of the new gifts we have received and a few items we had around the house. (Thomas' most treasured religious gifts remain in his backpack he carries to the hospital, where he wants them to be.)

Last night, Thomas received a St. Jude candle from his godparents, reflecting his Confirmation name of Benedict Jude. Chris and I are all about authenticity, everything real and original (like a real beeswax candle), but when I saw this plastic candle with a battery-operated light, my heart leapt with joy. When your child with cancer is four years old, you need a plastic candle, you need a battery-operated light for safety, so this precious child can actually use his candle. God is so good!

Little Thomas insisted on sleeping with the candle glowing right at his head and we thought that was a great idea.

Let me share another way God works all things for good. In our diocese, our parish was to have a solemn high Latin Mass for the Feast of Corpus Christi (today in the old, traditional calendar). However, during the coronavirus lockdown, it appeared no Masses would be allowed, so our priest cancelled the Mass and, from what I understand, since then the various priests who could say this Mass understandably filled their calendars. As Corpus Christi approached, one of our Latin Mass folks, M.F., went around begging for a priest to say a Mass. He found Fr. Matlak--a tri-rite priest--who was AVAILABLE  and he readily agreed to say a 7:00 p.m. Mass at our parish. 

Because this decision was arrived at, I believe, only yesterday, there was no intention already scheduled for the Mass: Therefore, Fr. Matlak agreed to make our Thomas his Mass intention, on the very day of his biggest and most important testing that will allow us to formulate a treatment plan.

God can take any brokenness (e.g., a cancelled Mass and busy priests) and turn it to good!

One could say that Thomas' cancer already is what it is, regardless of our prayers today, but we know that our good God lives outside of time, so we pray.

What a beautiful and important feast day for Thomas Vincent's testing: Thomas the apostle was the only person invited to touch the risen Christ's body (and all the way inside His sacred wounds!). Vincent (Latin: Vincentius) is a male given name derived from the Latin word vincere (to conquer): let this cancer be conquered! Our Thomas's body needs very bodily healing right now, so we pray for the Body of Christ to have mercy upon our boy.

Specific prayer intentions for today:

1. The tumor is operable.
2. The cancer has not spread.
3. The cell type is not aggressive.