The Very Best Place to Start Battling Cancer

The Cathedral Basilica of St. Mary of the Assumption.

At just about every stage of my life, the Catholic Church has been front and center. I was raised to be an active parishioner. I went exclusively to Catholic schools. As a teenager, I thrived in youth ministry activities. My father is a deacon in our diocese. At Thomas More College I pursued secondary education and theology degrees. Afterwards, I embarked on more than a decade and a half career as a Catholic School teacher. I have found my closest social and dating circles among the Catholic community. My boyfriend and I met and fell in love among these friends. The Catholic Church is my home; when I walk in the doors every Sunday I am showing up for the family dinner, and I feel an embrace that rivals any stereotypical Italian, Irish, or German Sunday dinner.

A Dream Date

On May 19 my boyfriend Daniel and I attended the ordination of the two newest priests in the Diocese of Covington. The Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption of St. Mary is a jewel worthy of its own blog entry, and I will explore it more in the future. It’s enough for you to know that any pontifical liturgy held there is done with attention to detail, reverence and love for all that is Divine. Afterwards we went to the reception and enjoyed hobnobbing with prominent people from the diocese. I was feeling fine, especially since I was attending this fancy function with the love of my life and my parents. It felt so good to have Daniel by my side and have him be known already by so many people. I have always loved the ritual, the sacramentality, piety, and overall dignity of special ceremonies of the Catholic Church at the diocesan level, and I dreamed of finding the man who would be in love with the Lord and His Church enough to attend such things with me. Participating that night was Daniel’s idea in the first place. That he took off half a day of work to make it in time meant the world to me. I was exceedingly happy that night and had no idea of the road ahead.

The First Signs I Was Ill

It wasn’t until early the next afternoon that I started to feel the cramping. I really just thought it was typical menstrual pain, so I took a nap and felt a bit better. Daniel and I decided that we would go to 4:30 Mass at the Cathedral Basilica since Mom and Dad were both there and it is my parish. On Sunday he and I were hoping to go to the visitation of a friend’s mother. We had a busy day planned, and I would not let feeling uncomfortable get in our way.

The ribbed ceiling from behind the altar

It wasn’t until Mass was under way that I realized something other than typical monthly pain was going on. During the opening song I found myself unable to stand, sit, or kneel without feeling like I was going to faint. I laid down in the pew with Mom at my feet and Daniel at my head. It was an interesting perspective for experiencing Mass. The ribbed gothic ceiling was so high above me, and rainbow light streamed through the upper stained-glass windows. I knew the window of St. Anthony, my patron, was above me. I said all the liturgical prayers, listened to the readings and homily, and even mouthed the words to the Communion hymn. During the first reading I heard how the apostles went about curing the paralyzed and crippled, and I mentally raised my hand “I’m here!”

He Came Down To Me

Occasionally Daniel would ask me if I wanted to leave. Since I still felt faint anytime I tried to sit up and reasonably good while lying down, I wanted to wait until after Mass. Leaving during Mass would cause a commotion, and I am not a person who likes drama. I figured I was in the very best place to be at that moment. How many times in recent years had I felt as if I were in Heaven, like the Lord’s front porch steps were right there at the altar of the Cathedral Basilica? It didn’t get any better than that! During Communion Daniel and Mom informed Dad, who was assisting as the deacon, I wanted to receive the Eucharist. He brought me Jesus’ Body to me as I continued to lay in the pew. It was one of the most spiritually enriching experiences I have had (and I’ve had many) at the Mother Church of the Diocese of Covington. It was the first time I had ever received Jesus while in need of physical healing. I needed His touch like any beggar from one of the Gospels, and I got to have Him come dwell within me! My Lord and King came down to me, little me, lying in the pew. The grace I received then stayed with me in the next ten days and beyond.

After Mass, one of the ushers who was an EMT and a parishioner who was a cardiac physician assessed me and recommended that an ambulance be called. Fr. Twaddel, who was the chair of the Philosophy Department at Thomas More College and well-known to my family, came over to give me the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick. This was the first time I received the sacrament, and I am glad that Father was the one to give it to me. The EMTs put me on a stretcher, and I was wheeled out the north transept to the ambulance. After determining that I was anemic and not just suffering from dehydration, the ambulance took me to the nearest medical facility about three minutes away.

No Place Like Home- Redefined

My first ever ambulance ride as a patient took me to St. Elizabeth Emergency Department in Covington. I was nervous leaving the bosom of my beloved Cathedral. I was a stranger to emergency rooms, vital signs, consent forms, and regular needle sticks. I had the three most important people in my life with me, as Mom, Dad and Daniel were immediately at my side in the ED. Really all it took to put me at ease were the words of the ED doctor. He told me, “The very best medicine you have is prayer.” And he then prayed with me for peace and healing! I was astonished to find that my doctor was as concerned with my spiritual and emotional health as my physical health. I was still Home.

The very best medicine is prayer and the sacraments.