You may recall several months back when we had articles about those who have lost something, only to have it turn up again, in a way that seemed miraculous. Angelic intervention? St. Anthony?

We recounted how rosary beads and a pair of sandals “lost” in Africa suddenly reappeared (the sandals in the middle of a room on Christmas morning). We can add to that an extra pair of “seed” rosary beads made in the area of Kibeho, Rwanda, have since turned up in a way that could not be explained — in this case not beads that had been lost, but instead an extra pair that had been sought (to no avail, until they suddenly appeared on a carpet with a subtle noise at the moment of genuflection in front of a Crucifix).

At any rate, as far as “lost” items, we have heard from many who had similar experiences.

To continue, there is Carmelo Valeno.

“When I was 18 years old, in Philadelphia, I took off my chain and lost my favorite medal of the Holy Family,” he informs us. “I knew it was right there in my room but for three days we were unable to find the medal.  I had a white carpet so a gold medal would show up quickly. We used flashlights, etcetera. However, my family and I kept praying that I would find it.

“On the third night, I had a dream to wake up and I would find the medal on the floor. Sure enough I woke up and in the darkness of the room there was the gold medal shining on the floor right where I had walked many times. I picked up the medal and then went back to sleep knowing that it was not a dream but a miracle. The next morning the medal was exactly where I had placed it when I awoke.”

There is also Barbara Stephens, who long has operated a Gospa center and recounts:

“My mother’s sister, a very dear aunt of mine, died in a tragic house fire where she lived alone. My mother was the executrix of that estate.  It was very difficult for her. One of the few things she had remaining from Lillian was a diamond ring which was on her finger. The diamond was thought to possibly be carbonized. We never had it checked but the ring was cleaned and when I returned from overseas a year later, my mother gave me this ring. I really cherished it and wore it every day.

“Now moved to  Florida, my parents visiting us, I was doing some yard work which involved the uncleared lot we owned next to our house.  Toward the end of my hour or so it began to rain and ended up in a deluge,  I continued to work as long as I could which included taking large armfuls of weeds, etcetera, and flinging them into piles to be placed in bags at the curb.

“Arriving in the house soaking wet  I realized my son would soon be late for altar service so we hastily prepared for Mass and headed to church.

“Kneeling in the pew, I clasped my hands and lo — the ring was missing!

“I never ever  removed it. I knew it had to be somewhere in those mounds of yard debris — or the part of the lot we had worked, an area of at least fifty by fifteen feet! I decided to put it out of mind and concentrate on Mass.

“I hated the thought of telling my mother that I had lost her sister’s ring.

“My husband and I picked through every bit of the piles of yard debris. Nothing! I wandered in the lot and again: nothing.

“My husband told me I should forget trying to find that ring because the downpour had driven it into the sandy soil and it would be irretrievable but I continued to pray and to beg St. Anthony (who had never let me down since I was a young girl).

“We still hadn’t told my parents of the loss.

“One afternoon as I sat on my bed while my parents had gone to nap, I prayed again. The thought came to me to go out into that lot with a flashlight after dark. I’d had that thought several times before when praying and always discarded it as being so impractical.

“The lot was dark. The flashlight made only a small circle of  light,  the area to search was so large, etcetera. For some reason this time I decided to act on that thought. As soon as it turned dark, out I went with the flashlight. I found a piece of tinfoil; then a small piece of cellophane gleamed.

“Then, a small glimmer of gold.

“There was the ring, directly in front of my feet and it was not the diamond sparkling in the light but the narrow golden band of an upside-down ring!

“I had promised St. Anthony I would place his statue in our church if the pastor would let me and, failing that, I would put one in the lot and tell everyone why it was there. The pastor declined the statue. Nevertheless I purchased a church quality statue. We went away in the summers in those days so, afraid that it would be stolen from the lot,  I placed it in the planter at one end of our screened  deck, closest to where the ring was found. I continue to tell anyone who will listen this story of the miraculously retrieved diamond ring. (My grandson has it today for his intended).”

Lastly, June Klins, who edits a Marian newsletter Pennsylvania.

“I have a story for you too. In June of 2009, I was asked to be a speaker at a retreat given at a shrine in Canada. I took my First Communion rosary and a rosary that my friend’s daughter made for me that has the ‘five stones’ of Medjugorje on it, one on each decade: Prayer, Fasting, Bible, Eucharist, Confession. It is a beautiful rosary and is my favorite. I took these rosaries to use as props for my talk. While there, my friend bought me a new rosary pouch in the gift shop and I put both rosaries in there after my talk.

“When I arrived home, I was upset when I realized I did not have the pouch with the rosaries. I looked everywhere in my suitcases. My friend called the shrine to see if they found it in the room, and she called the bus company to see if it had fallen out of my carry-on tote in the bus. No rosary to be found. My friend said that she would have her daughter make me a new one for my birthday, I told her, ‘No. I know I am going to find it.’  I knew in my heart I would find it. I just didn’t know when or where.

“I have had things like this happen before. And I don’t think it was a coincidence that the bus driver had told us a story about losing a special crucifix and finding it mysteriously in a parking lot next to his bus a while later. The bus driver said to us, ‘You’re going to think I’m nuts.’  I said, ‘No, I don’t. This stuff happens to me too.’ I told him another story about some plants my husband brought me one time from a trip. He had put them in his wet bathing suit pockets to keep them moist. When he arrived home he could not wait to give them to me. They were not there however. We both searched every nook and cranny of his suitcases. He called the hotel and asked if they found his bathing suit and they did not. Several months later, in late November, he was going on a trip again. He went up in the attic to get his suitcases, and when he opened the one, there was his bathing suit!  It was still wet after all those months and the plants in the pocket were thriving and even had new growth!  Those plants grew to be very big and lived about nine more years. I called them my miracle plants!

“Now back to my rosary story:

“I knew from my husband’s experience and the fact that the bus driver had just told his story about the Crucifix that I would find the rosary. In the meantime, my friend’s daughter made me a new ‘five-stones’ rosary for my birthday in October of that year.

“The following April (2010), I got my suitcase down from the attic to pack for a conference I was going to attend, and there, lo and behold, was my rosary!  I have had people tell me when I pray with this rosary in our Adoration chapel that it gives off a light. I tell them that is because it is a miracle rosary!”