Have you heard of the Bright Maidens? They started out as these three lovely ladies in the blogging world, bloggers who I enjoyed and admired. I still remember the day when, at long last, all three of them were following me on Twitter. Truth be told I was a bit star-struck! Unofficially for a while now, I too have been a Bright Maiden, sharing ideas and inspiration with these lovely ladies, and this month I’m finally writing a post along with our theme for the month: The Saints!
Goodness knows how many stories I could tell you of the saints and their impact on my life. I picked my Confirmation saint because I thought her name was cool and didn’t sound really lame with my name. Little did I know what an impact St. Rose would have on my life and how she led me to St. Thérèse, to whom I owe the entirety of my relationship and engagement. St. Joseph, too, has interceded for me countless times. St. Anthony, St. Jude, St. Rita, and many others all have tales that interweave themselves into my life in a way that can only be defined as supernatural. These saints have all become my unexpected friends, friends I’ve never met but hope to meet in Heaven someday. They’ve guided my life, given my comfort, and brought me back to the heart of God.
Every year, right around the new year, Jen Fulwiler over at Conversion Diary encourage everyone to adopt a patron saint for the year using her saint generator. Last year I kept hitting the button over and over again until I got a saint I knew, or a saint that sounded cool and then I promptly forgot who my saint was. This year, however, I took the time and prayed before I hit the button and, I kid you not, I giggled with glee when I got my saint.
Ulric of Augsburg
I’ll admit, he doesn’t sound that cool, but the more I learned about him, the more excited I became. He’s the patron saint against vertigo, something I’ve dealt with since college, against dizziness (which comes along with my vertigo), and against mice, which I loathe. He’s also German like me, and did much to reform the priesthood in his time. He was the first saint to be canonized by the pope, which began a formalized process for canonization by a pope, which continues to this day. He also happens to be the patron saint against birth complications and for easy deliveries, which I’m all for when that day comes. It is said that women who drank from his chalice had virtually painless births (sign me up!). He’s also a patron saint for pregnant women, and considering I’m getting married this year…anything is possible. Who knows what is coming on the pregnancy front (my lips are sealed, God knows what He is doing though!), but I’m really excited to get to know Ulric (I should come up with an affectionate nickname for him…) better in 2014. So head on over to Jen’s saint generator, say a prayer, and get to know the first one that comes up! Then, if you want, head back and get a saint for your family, your spouse, your husband or wife to be, your children, your parents, whoever! Get to know the saints – you never know what kind of friends you will find!
