With God’s blessing, my wife and I will celebrate Christmas next week. We have spent many Christmases together, and I thank God for her. She is the best gift I have ever received.
We are both New Englanders, and, at this time of year, we think back to wonderful times spent with our families in the snowy and chilly North. Many of them are no longer with us, but they will always be part of our Christmas celebrations.
We thank God for the many friends we have in Florida, and have already heard from many through cards and emails. Some will be joining us on Christmas Day, which will make this year special again.
In my Christmas column last year, I recalled one of the wonderful things about Christmas in my home town of Attleboro, Massachusetts. The holiday light display at the Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette has always been a major Christmas tradition.
We visited La Salette online. The pictures can’t do justice to the real thing, but it made us think of home and family. The shrine is particularly special to me because my parents’ names are on a plaque listing supporters of LaSalette.
La Salette is holding its 59th Annual Festival of Lights through January 6. “Words are inadequate to describe how the 350,000 lights will develop this year’s theme…Descending Dove,” says the website. I certainly agree.
Earlier this year, our good friend Emily Lilly, who just retired as events specialist for the city of Boca Raton, told me she planned to visit La Salette this year. I certainly hope she does, because I know she is the type of person who would appreciate the message of the Christmas display.
“Jesus is the reason for all these lights because He is our Descending Dove in good times and bad,” said Shrine Director, the Rev. Bob Russell. “Jesus is always the one in whom we trust. It is my prayer-filled hope that each of our visitors will be touched by Jesus and be reborn once again.”
It’s not just the display that attracts people from all over the northern United States and into Canada. Special events and concerts are scheduled. (Hopefully, they will be indoors. The outdoor chapel can get nippy this time of year.) If you get chilly, you can always head for the shrine cafeteria for coffee or hot chocolate.
My best memory of La Salette is standing at the edge of the display, looking over the vast expanse of lights. In my mind, I can see tall mounds of snow pushed to the side by plows clearing the parking lot. In the distance is the chapel and its brightly lighted windows. Adjacent to that are buses spewing clouds of smoke and steam into the cold air.
I hope Emily enjoys her visit as much as we have through the years.
While I was on the web, I noticed a story that said the Rev. Andre Patenaude (“Father Pat,” as he was affectionately known), is recovering from a pancreatic infection he suffered while visiting France earlier in the year.
“He’s doing very, very well,” said Fran Gunning, Father, Patenaude’s secretary and administrative assistant at La Salette, quoted in The Anchor, the newspaper of the Fall River Catholic Diocese. “He’s beginning to sing a little bit and play the guitar,” Gunning said, noting she speaks with him “every few days.”
Father Pat, a fixture at La Salette for many years, usually performs during special events such as the Christmas celebration. He has a wonderful tenor voice, and, to me, he sounds like Neil Sedaka. He has an international following, and has released more than 16 albums.
Our prayers are with him, and our wish is for all of you to have a wonderful holiday season.
By: Dale King