Celebrating My New Release with St. Rita

I recently had the amazing experience of traveling to Rome for a Jubilee pilgrimage. The trip had been planned for nearly a year, and a few weeks before leaving, I found out that my newest book, A Summer to Treasure, was scheduled to be released while I was away. There is a lot to do in the days leading up to a book launch—final edits, social media posts, updating websites, interviews, requesting and gathering reviews, etc.—so being gone for the two weeks before the release was not ideal.

However, since the book is about a family summer vacation, my publisher, Perpetual Light Publishing, thought it best to get the book out before Memorial Day weekend and chose the feast day of St. Rita of Cascia for the release date—May 22nd. This seemed very fitting for several reasons: the date worked perfectly, St. Rita is known for peacemaking within families, and she lived in Italy, where I would be when the book released.

Before leaving, I looked to see where Cascia was situated in case there was any way I could travel there. While it isn’t too far from Rome, it just wasn’t possible to add it to our itinerary. This was a little disappointing as I would have loved to visit her remains in person to ask for prayers for the success of the new book.

While I would be unable to visit St. Rita, I did make a point to find the remains or relics of others in my Saint Posse—the Saints that I feel personally connected to, including St. Paul, St. Helena, St. Gemma, St. Therese, St. Zelie, St. Catherine of Siena, and St. Teresa of Avila. On our last free day in Rome, my husband and I set out to find The Basilica of St. Augustine so we could visit his mother’s relics.

While my goal was to visit St. Monica, when I stepped into the beautiful church, my gaze landed on the statue of a nun welcoming me to the space. I’m pretty sure I gasped when I realized the statue in front of me was none other than St. Rita of Cascia! I took a moment to thank God for leading me to this church, then lit a candle at the base of her statue for the release of my book and that it will draw families closer to each other and to God just like St. Rita worked so hard to do in her ministry.

Amazingly, this was not the only “God moment” I experienced during our trip. While in Rome, it was easy to see that these seemingly random incidents were not coincidences but blessings from God. It made me wonder how many times I ignore such moments in my daily life. One of the things I’ve been reflecting on since I returned is how to be more aware of these heavenly prompts, to notice them, and to take the time to contemplate what God is showing me through them. Maybe you can join me in the coming months to reflect on the “God moments” in your life, making this truly a summer to treasure.

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About the author: Leslea Wahl is a Colorado native who loves to travel with her family. She strives to write entertaining stories that encourage teens to grow in their faith. Finding a way to intertwine her passions by creating adventurous mysteries with positive Christian messages for today's youth has been an incredible blessing. Leslea also has become an advocate for families by reviewing faith-based teen novels on her website.