I was thinking about my mom this morning; about what I called "our last good day" before the pain overtook her. We went to St. Anne's. I actually ended up there by accident, but sometimes with God there aren't any accidents. I vividly remember Mom looking up at me—the rheumatoid arthritis has shrunk her down to under five feet tall and bowed her right shoulder permanently—and whispering "I'm glad we came."

Me, too.

Saint Anne Parish and Shrine

Here are some pictures of the church but they don't really do it justice. It's very comforting to walk through the doors when the church is quiet, the candles glowing near the altar and from the little vaulted chapels in the rear, looking up to the beautiful arched ceiling and surrounded by the faint overlay of incense, walking past the straight-backed darkly stained pews and the solemn statues pockmarked with age.

A History of the Church

Labels: family, memories, online, travel

----------------------------------------------------------------
. . . . . noted and logged by Linda at 10:16:00 AM

Comments:

It looks like a beautiful church; almost European.

# posted by  Tina : 11:53:00 AM

 

Yes, it is based on Ste. Anne de Beaupre in Quebec, which is built on the European church model. The city of Fall River has changed a lot since St. Anne's was built, but you can still see the twin spires of the church over the homes as you approach Fall River from the south.

# posted by  Linda : 12:26:00 PM

 

Wait, Fall River? Fall River, MA? Where Lizzie Borden may or may not have taken an ax and...you know?

# posted by  Tina : 12:45:00 PM

 

LOL. Yep, that's the one. Sleepy little mill town once humming with textile factories. Now home to the USS Massachusetts and other military ships at Battleship Cove. (They also have a neat museum for the steamship lines that ran vacationers from Fall River--the end of the train line from New York--to Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard and other cool spots in summer in the late 1800s.) And the Lizzie Borden house, too. :-)

# posted by  Linda : 2:12:00 PM

 

Post a Comment