 |
| My pouch of sacramentals, including the tiny eyes ex voto I carry for Santa Lucia |
Exáudi nos, Deus, salutáris noster: ut, sicut de beátæ Lúciæ Vírginis et Mártyris tuæ festivitáte gaudémus; ita piæ devotiónis erudiámur afféctu. Per Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum, Fílium tuum, qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitáte Spíritus Sancti, Deus, per ómnia sáecula sæculórum.This year, I kept the feast of Santa Lucia di Siracusa, Virgin and Martyr, alone upstate beneath the bare branches and the pale winter sky. A small candle—no more than a trembling flame in the cold—was enough to mark the day, its fragile glow recalling the Queen of Light, who once carried brightness into the darkest corners of the world. The stillness around me felt older than the trees, and the flame seemed to waver between this world and another, as though the forest itself were holding vigil.
Letting the hush of winter draw me inward, I sat in quiet meditation. In that solitude, gratitude rose for graces received—for the Light-Bringer once interceded on my behalf when I injured my eye at work many years ago.
As dusk deepened and the candle burned lower, the woods dimmed to silver and blue. I offered a final prayer, simple and sincere, before letting the darkness reclaim the clearing. Walking back through the snow, the day settled quietly in my heart—a gentle radiance carried home. And there, waiting on the stove, was a savory bowl of cuccìa that had been simmering for hours—a humble feast to honor her light and warm me through the night. Santa Lucia, ora pro nobis.
Harken unto us, O God our Savior, that as we rejoice in the festival of blessed Lucy, Thy virgin and martyr, so we may be instructed by the affection of pious devotion. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who lives and reigns with Thee in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, forever and ever.~ By Giovanni di Napoli, December 13th, Feast of Santa Lucia di Siracusa