So a couple of days ago a woman pulls her car behind my car and blocks me in, just as I’m getting ready to leave St. Peter’s in Covington. She gives me a long, excruciatingly detailed story that I don’t believe in the slightest bit, asking if I can give her gas money to get to the hospital to visit her dying mother.

I’m pretty sure I met this same woman a couple of years back in the Target parking lot with a similar sob story. I had told her to meet me at the gas station so I could fill up her tank, but she never showed up.

Everything in me is now recoiling from this woman, and I do not want to be shafted (again).  But I have just come from the adoration chapel where I had been daydreaming about this very scenario–a grifter asking me for money!

I had seen myself reach into the glove compartment of my car, pull out an old Magnificat prayer book with $5 in it, and then hand it to the person saying, “There are all kinds of treasure in here.”

Ten minutes later, and I’m now facing this exact scenario. Assuming the daydream was a nudge from God, I tell her to wait.

I reach into the glove compartment and find an old Magnificat. I flip it open to stick in a fiver, and it lands on the meditation for May 13, 2014, “Graces of Our Lady of Fatima.” I take notice but don’t have time to read it. Handing her the book I repeat what I had just mentally rehearsed in the chapel: “There are all kinds of treasure in here.”

It is just now hitting me that this was no mere coincidence, especially considering the CD I just released is dedicated to Our Lady of Fatima in anticipation of the 100th anniversary of the first Fatima apparition in 1917. So for what it’s worth, here is the meditation I flipped to from May 14, 2014:

This morning I felt the most insistent urge to go to Mass, though it was starting in 15 mins. and I was still in my PJs. I quickly threw on some clothes and jumped in the car, only to sit in the maddening construction traffic on Hwy. 21. Now running quite late, I decided to pop in my new CD to help me pray, and “Holy Is His Name” came on, ending just as I pulled up to the church. I had missed all of the scripture readings, and Fr. Otis was already giving his homily–a mediation on all the tender ways God loves us.

When he sat down I opened to the gospel reading I had just missed, and it was Mary’s Magnificat–word for word what I had just listened to in the car in “Holy Is His Name!” My heart was full as I stood up to sing that song at communion a capella (they indulge me at St. Peter).

Not only did God give me that sweet kiss on the cheek, Fr. Otis stayed late to hear more confessions, where I got to unburden my soul to the Lord and hear the words, “I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” Praised be Jesus Christ, now and forever! Hallelujah! Oh, how he loves us, my friends, so personally and tenderly, so sweetly.

If you’re feeling a restlessness, a distance from God, speak to him now from the heart. He thirsts for you. I’m headed to the Adoration Chapel right now and will pray for all of you who are reading this. 💝🙏🏻

P.S. Click here for the song: https://youtube.com/watch?v=ApxDhN4hRGU

So I walked into the bar at the Southern Hotel last night (my daughter’s choir was singing at the hotel), and a woman asked me if I was Kitty Cleveland. Her name was Mary, she said. She had just moved here from CA, and her late mother had given her one of my CDs at least 10 years ago. She recognized me from the CD cover (yay!).

Mary continued that after her mother passed away, she stopped in at a small church on the Sonoma Coast. It was Mother’s Day, and she was really missing her mom. To her astonishment, at the end of the Mass they played my CD–the same one her mom had chosen for her!  And here we were meeting for the first time 10 years later, in a bar across the country. Isn’t that cool? I love it when things like that happen. God’s mercies are endless. 💝

Johnnette Benkovic has Adrienne Price and me as guests on Women of Grace, singing our favorite Christmas hymns.  Reruns nightly at 10:30 pm Central time. Join us!

I had the strangest dream last night. I had been invited to sing at a Catholic church, where the whole parish was enthusiastic and welcoming. But when it was time to go to Communion, rather than being given the consecrated, living host, I was given a small, beautiful icon of Mary holding the child Jesus–and it was made out of white chocolate! Another one was given to my daughter. It was beautiful to look at and tasted delicious–but it was not the living sacrifice of the Mass. And on the flip side of the paper it came with a price: $11. The pastor had decided that they would charge people for the “Eucharist” as a way to support the parish, and everyone seemed happy to go along.

December 8, 2016. Thanks for your feedback on my new CD cover, friends. I took it all into consideration, made some tweaks, and am thrilled to announce that Hail, Holy Queen is now available for purchase! Just go to the Music section of this website.  For a special animated 3-D glimpse of the new CD,  click here.  And after you have look and a listen, please enter your comments below (if it will make me feel good).

P.S. I’ll extend my concert special to you online since I’m not having a Christmas concert this year: Any 10 CDs for $100, and FREE shipping! But…you need to send the money through Pay Pal (friends and family) to orders@kittycleveland.com for that deal.  Just put your address and the number of CDs in the memo.  Thanks!

May 13, 2016–Feast of Our Lady of Fatima

Dear Friends,

After Mass this morning I was moved to go to our parish Perpetual Adoration Chapel with my daughter–something I haven’t made time for in too long.  As I prayed with the day’s scripture readings, I heard deep in the recesses of my heart, “It’s time.”

For a couple of years now I’ve been telling people that my next CD will be all about Mary, as a token of love and appreciation for all that she has done for me as a spiritual mother over the course of my life (and usually without thanks or recognition).  I just haven’t felt like the timing was right for me to begin the hard work of creating a new CD, at least not until today.

It’s time.

It makes sense that my instruction would come today on the Feast of Our Lady of Fatima, as next year at this time we will be celebrating the 100th anniversary of her first apparition in Fatima, Portugal, in which she gave urgent messages for our times.  Many have speculated on the significance of this centennial.  All I know is that I have been given a mandate, and I feel called to give the CD to Lighthouse Catholic Media to manufacture and sell at a bare bones price ($2-3/CD) should they choose do so.

Will you help me honor Our Lady of Fatima on her 100th anniversary?Continue reading→

As I prepare to celebrate a big milestone birthday in September, and as I note the growing aches, pains and waistline that accompany it, a death of sorts is happening in me.  I saw a time-lapse video this morning of the life cycle of a dandelion (it essentially blooms twice!), and it reminded me of the joyful hope we have in the promises of Christ.  May our many deaths in this life bear the seeds of new life and abundant fruit, both in our lives now and in the Kingdom to come.

THE JUBILEE YEAR OF MERCY (from https://www.relevantradio.com/jubilee-of-mercy)

THE DIVINE MERCY NOVENA:

A novena is typically nine days of prayer in preparation of a celebration of a feast day. The Chaplet can be said anytime, but the Lord specifically asked that it be recited as a novena. He promised, “By this Novena (of Chaplets), I will grant every possible grace to souls.”

For each of the nine days, our Lord gave Saint Faustina a different intention:

1. All mankind, especially sinners;
2. the souls of priests and religious;
3. all devout and faithful souls;
4. those who do not believe in God and those who do not yet know Jesus;
5. the souls who have separated themselves from the Church;
6. the meek and humble souls and the souls of little children;
7. the souls who especially venerate and glorify His mercy;
8. the souls detained in purgatory; and
9. souls who have become lukewarm.”I desire that during these nine days you bring souls to the fountain of My mercy, that they may draw therefrom strength and refreshment and whatever grace they have need of in the hardships of life, and especially at the hour of death” (Diary, 1209).

THE FEAST OF MERCY ON DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY (The Sunday following Easter Sunday): http://www.thedivinemercy.org/celebrate/

For more information on Divine Mercy, please see my other blog post, “What Is Divine Mercy?“