It is impossible to know from external appearances what kinds of interior burdens people carry with them throughout life. In fact, if we knew the inside story of most people’s lives, we would gain a deep reverence for them and a respect for their perseverance through the difficulties that only they have experienced and [...]
In 1910, a newspaper column carried the following story: Jimmy, age 10, was a devoted brother to his sister, age 6. He nearly panicked when his sister fell off her bicycle and cut a large artery in her leg. The bleeding was profuse, and by the time a doctor arrived at the scene, the [...]
If you were to consult a dictionary for terms like “heroism”, “loving perseverance”, “fidelity”, and “longsuffering goodness”, you would likely come across a reference to a little Chinese mother known as Mamma Martina (her Christian name). A retired Italian missionary, who personally knew Mamma Martina, worked in a parish I used to visit some [...]