By your Light my life feels blessed

I have only learned about Bl. Carlo Acutis in recent weeks. At 67 years of age, I am humbled by the life he lived, and by the legacy of Love that lives in the memory of those who knew him, and who will come to know him, as does it live with me now.

I pray to Carlo every day, and I have formally offered him my intention via the Maria Vision Italia channel at YouTube.

Although for personal reasons relative to an estrangement within my family, I cannot share with you the finer details of what I believe to be a miracle presently happening through the divine intervention of Bl. Carlo, suffice to say, that after praying for an improvement in the health of a family member (they have renal failure), there has been a marked and decisive improvement in their renal function, and this in just 3 weeks. Their recent test results are such, that I overheard them say to someone, if they did not know the results they received were theirs, they would think they were for someone else.

I have seen the test results for myself, although they do not know this, that I have seen them.

I am sorry I cannot convey more than that, mostly because our relationship is such that I should not know, anything about it. which is a great sorrow in itself. I will continue to pray to Bl. Carlo for further improvement.

I believe with all my heart, as I am here to attest, that the improvement can surely be attributed to Bl. Carlo. There can be no other reason for such a dramatic improvement!

Other than that, I wish to share with you the following, if I may:

Every now and then, I pass a young beggar in the street where I live. He squats near to the local supermarket, huddled against the cold, his beanie hat on the ground before him, into which I will drop what spare change I have. Sometimes, he will cup his hands to receive the coins, and I place them in his palms. He thanks me.

He is thin and scruffy. Very scruffy. He wears a thick black beard which covers a fairly chiseled, yet child-like face. He has longish hair. He is calm. He is always calm, even when I hear him muttering to himself.

I saw him again today, huddled even more than before against the steel-cold winter air, whose icy breath it could be seen as he breathed it to fall away.

As I usually do, I gave to him what small change I had, and I asked him if he had been looking after himself. "I'm trying to!" was his gentle reply.

I then went in to the supermarket and bought for him a chicken salad sandwich, and a bottle of water, mostly for fearing he might only ever use what money is given him to buy alcohol. That concerns me.

I had not bought him food or drink before, so I wasn't sure what reaction I might get from him in giving him something extra; something other than my spare change. And so, I simply approached him again, placing the bag containing the sandwich and water by his side, saying: "You take care!"

He lifted the bottle of water out of the bag, looked at me, and said with the sweetest smile: "Thank you!"

In that moment, I saw Jesus in his smile. It was real. It is real.

It is as real as this: the Love of Our Lord is in the deeds of His will we do for one another, just as Bl. Carlo knows that holiness is not a halo, it's helping each other.

Inasmuch as my beggar-friend expressed his gratitude to me for showing him kindness, I am more grateful to Bl. Carlo for sending him my way, that I may offer him such kindness. And let me be clear on this, it is not to be charitable, where charity carries with it a feeling of expectancy, it is simply to be kind.

Truly, to be blessed by the smile of a beggar is one of the most beautiful things you can ever experience.

God bless, everyone! And, God bless Bl. Carlo Acutis, whose will it is the way of Love, that we should live as did Our Lord, Jesus Christ.

- Philip W, Australia