
Charisse Tierney shares a profound experience she had recently as she witnessed the final days of a close friend.
I got to spend time in the presence of a saint recently.
One of my closest friends, who was diagnosed with stomach cancer just over a year ago, made her journey to heaven on October 21.
I have confidence when I say she made her journey to heaven because I have no doubt that I witnessed God’s final touches on the masterpiece of a saint over the last year.
Surrendering all
From the moment she was diagnosed, my friend Jaylen began her process of surrendering all to God. Homeschooling her kids, being an active Catechesis of the Good Shepherd catechist, time with her friends and family, her energy level, her hair … and so much more that I don’t even know about.
At first, I thought these sacrifices would be temporary. A few rounds of chemo, a couple of surgeries, and she would be cured and back to normal. After all, how could God possibly take a young, vibrant mother of four?
But I think she always knew. She told me from the beginning that she thought this would be a long process, that God had “a lot of work” to do with her.
She knew that she would ultimately end up surrendering growing old with her husband, being physically present at her children’s future weddings, and countless other moments on this earth.
She’s gone now. I miss talking to her, sharing homeschool ideas with her, and taking our kids on nature outings together.
But most of all, I just miss being in her presence. Because during her last weeks on earth, a visit with her was like standing on the edge of heaven.
Trust in Him
At one of our final visits, she talked at length about God’s love, how she couldn’t wait to be Jesus’ bride, how she’d had a vision of St. Therese leading her into God’s arms, and how important it is for all of us to just “let go and trust in Him.” She spoke all of these words with such fervor, joy, and purity that those of us listening were awestruck and moved to tears by the visible power of the Holy Spirit working through her.
Even her parish priest asked her to bless him by the time he finished one such last visit with her.
And then the intense suffering of her final few weeks set in.
When I saw her three days before she died, her appearance could have been described as shocking. But I saw someone who loved Jesus so much, she was willing to take on His crucified appearance. She could surely count all her bones as she had come to the point that her body was rejecting even water.
But she had been able to consume the Eucharist in those last days. The one thing she could cling to and unite with was Him.
Become friends with the saints
Jaylen taught me what it really means to be friends with the saints. And how, by being in their presence and seeing the ways they live their faith in every tiny aspect of their lives, our hearts are infused with more wisdom and more spiritual inspiration than we can ever gain by reading the Catechism or a spiritual text with our heads alone.
I have been encouraging this friendship, this intimacy with the saints by reading substantial books about them with my children. Shorter saint reflections are wonderful also, but by reading books that take us weeks to get through, we can hear more details and more stories of their daily decisions, their habits, and their responses to a variety of circumstances.
The saints then become our familiar friends, and they can more easily and more comfortably lead us to God.
That is what Jaylen did, and continues to do, for me. That other worldly, wonderfully aching feeling of inspiration that I got every time I was with her was her leading me to God down that complex path where suffering and joy unite.
I can only hope that my own children can have even one earthly friend like that.
But until then, we can bask in the stories of the Communion of Saints.
Choose a nice thick book about a saint to read with your kids, read a little each day, and marvel at how wonderful it feels just to be in their presence.
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Copyright 2024 Charisse Tierney
Images: (top, center) copyright 2024 Charisse Tierney, all rights reserved; (bottom) Canva
About the Author

Charisse Tierney
Charisse Tierney lives in Wichita, Kansas, with her husband Rob and seven children. Charisse is a stay-at-home mom, musician, NFP teacher, and a Catechesis of the Good Shepherd catechist. She is also a contributing author to The Catholic Mom's Prayer Companion and Family Foundations magazine. Charisse blogs at Paving the Path to Purity and can be found on Facebook.
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