What's Going On

Wow. It’s been a while since I posted. Sorry about that. Much has been happening since I last wrote. Let’s see if I can remember it all…

First, the most exciting news is that we have a network that is interested in airing our show.  WE ARE EXCITED. It’s just amazing how, from the minute the interest became as official as it could be at this point, lots and lots of work and difficult decisions followed. I still haven’t quite had that “OHMYGOSH! I’M-GOING-TO-BE-ON-TV!!” moment… maybe I will when I’m actually watching the show on TV… LOL. Although, I don’t know. I’ve seen the show SO MANY TIMES, I’ll probably fall asleep. Ha ha.

Suffice it to say that that’s what’s been keeping me busy these last few months. While I can’t say which network is interested in airing our show yet, we think it’s a good fit and are excited about it. We look forward to becoming part of their line-up. Naturally, when it becomes official, I’ll say something about it here.

Since that happened, I’ve been doing a lot of work for the show. Cleaning up the color and sound of Episode 1 (Miraculous Medal) and down-converting it from the native HDV in which it was edited to SD for broadcast took a good majority of time and created a LOT of frustration. It’s so hard, when you shoot in a medium as gorgeous as HDV, and then have to deliver in SD, you can lose a lot of quality in the downconversion. That was our problem—we didn’t know how to do it. To make a very long and frustrating story short, a novena to Our Lady of Mt. Carmel not only solved the problem, but introduced me to someone who is not only a font of knowledge when it comes to television and film production, but who, I suspect, will just be an awesome person to know.

We are so blessed, it isn’t even funny.

We got our new cards and letterhead, which was really exciting for me (I’m a bit of a stationery freak). That enabled me to finally send out letters to places where we want to shoot next. The list is pretty awesome, I have to say, and I am praying very hard that the rectors at these locations will give us permission to shoot.

Will you please pray with us? Here is the list of what we’ve shot already:

Episode 1: Miraculous Medal Shrine, Philadelphia

Episode 2: St. Katharine Drexel Shrine, Bensalem, PA

Episode 3: St. Rita of Cascia Shrine, Philadelphia

Here’s our wish list for the next few shows:

• St. Patrick’s Cathedral, New York City
• Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral, New York City
• Church of the Blessed Sacrament, New York City
• St. Alphonsus Church, Baltimore
• Cathedral of Mary Our Queen, Baltimore

I told you the list was awesome. Seriously, PRAY that we get to shoot at these locations. They’re all so grand, I just can’t even imagine being able to shoot there. Fortunately, I know St. Patrick’s and Old St. Patrick’s like the back of my hand, from my time in NYC. While I think I’ll be nervous just being there on “official” business, fortunately, I know I will feel very much at home. I taught CCD at Old St. Patrick’s, and I used to go to daily Mass at St. Patrick’s when I worked at 46th and 6th. Man, what a life.

We also plan on visiting the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Shrine in Emmitsburg to see what we think, and the Blue Army Shrine in New Jersey. I’ve never been to either, so I don’t know what to expect.

I am, however, reading a very interesting biography of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton. I must ashamedly admit that I never was really interested in learning much about her. I wrongly assumed, because she was American, that her life story wouldn’t interest me. What can I say? I tend to be a bit of a romantic, so I like a lot of European saints.

Well, let me tell you—I was SO WRONG! I am riveted by this saint’s history. She’s SO interesting! And such a tragic, yet holy life. So much suffering, and yet she still managed to be joyous, even silly sometimes! I can’t wait to see how it ends, and I really look forward to checking out the shrine.

This Wednesday, the Miraculous Medal Shrine celebrated the Feast of the Miraculous Medal—St. Catherine Labouré’s feast was on Thanksgiving. They had an amazing Mass, celebrated by Bishop Daniel E. Thomas, of Philadelphia. Wow, does he say an amazing Mass! And he has a beautiful singing voice, so when he sings parts during the Mass, it really is very lovely. And he has a true devotion to Our Lady and her medal, which just made it such a special Mass.

After the Mass, we attended a nice lunch given by the Shrine. I always meet such interesting people there. I met Bishop Alfonso Cabezas Aristizábal, C.M. again—I met him last year—and he brought a bunch of young seminarians from Jamaica, Queens. All of them speak Spanish and come from a variety of Spanish-speaking countries. Many of them remembered me from last year’s celebration, which was so nice (of course, I remembered them!). One said he used my DVD to practice his Spanish! 🙂 I love it!

I was fortunate to sit at a table full of Vincentian priests and Sisters of Charity! I was in Heaven! I sat next to a brilliant Vincentian who seemed to know everything and everyone—Father Gregory Semeniuk, CM. Such fascinating conversation. He gave me a lot of great ideas for places to visit with the show. I also saw Father Abel Osorio, CM, whom I had met before, and who is in our DVD as one of the priests with the relics. He was a deacon at the time we shot the show, and when I met him again, I was so excited to be able to give him a DVD and tell him he was in it!! I also sat next to Father John Holliday, CM, rector of Immaculate Conception Church. That was fortunate, because I’ve wanted to visit that church for quite some time. I look forward to seeing it. And the Sisters were all from Emmitsburg! How great is that?!

On Thanksgiving, I attended Mass at our parish, and was so blessed—Bishop Thomas was saying the Mass there, too! Two days in a row. What luck. This time, I introduced myself and gave him two DVDs, in case he hadn’t received one. But he had, and he’d watched it and enjoyed it. That always makes me so happy. I had a lot to be grateful for this Thanksgiving.

Almost the entirety of this weekend has been spent finishing up the first episode of El Peregrino Fiel, the Spanish version of The Faithful Traveler. I’ve been realizing how hard it is to speak Spanish…. How did I do it when I was five?! But it is actually turning out to be a pretty cool show, I must admit. I met a wonderful seminarian at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary here in Philadelphia, who not only reviewed my translated script, but did the voice over for the interview of the English-speaking rector of the MM Shrine, Father Carl Pieber. His name is Deacon Nelson Pastor, and he is from Peru. He is in his final year at the seminary, and has a truly mellifluous voice! Peru will be fortunate to have him as a priest.

I’m almost done with the show—just need a few bits and pieces here and there. Then I pass it on to a friend who has a friend… we’ll see if any network will be interested in airing the Spanish version of our little show. Please keep that intention in your prayers, too, if you have room.

Other than that, just getting ready for the season. I hope you all have a blessed Advent.

Now… back to editing…