Jody was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis at the age of twenty-five. MS affects each person differently. In Jody’s case, it primarily impacted the use of his legs. Initially, he used a walker in our apartment because it gave him some stability. Sadly, within two years, he needed a wheelchair to get about especially over long distances. Despite his physical obstacles, Jody was determined that he would walk again. “All I have to do is keep my muscles strong,” he would say.

Several times a day he would trudge up and down the hallways in our building using his walker. It was a chance for him to maintain an exercise regimen for his legs, but it also aided his social interactions. As he prowled about the building, he would run into neighbors and would stop for a chat, or “we shoot the shit” as Jody would say, to catch up on the building’s latest gossip. The frustrating issue was that Jody still needed my, or someone else’s, assistance to go out of the building using his wheelchair. We solved that with the purchase of an electric scooter.

That electric scooter gave Jody new opportunities for adventure and mayhem (which I won’t describe here.) He became a regular at the local playground where there are sets of exercise equipment provided for all age groups. Jody made use of most of them. A favorite was the parallel bars in the children’s area. He could situate the scooter, stand up, and walk back and forth, holding onto the parallel bars which were at just the right height for him. He would then drive over to the adult section and use other equipment like the hip abductor and adductor and the chest press. When he came home, I’d ask him how it went. And, he would always reply with his mantra, “All I have to do is keep my muscles strong.”

But, of all the places Jody traveled on his daily journeys, the most important to him was our church, The Shrine of Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini. On the walls of the shrine, there is a large mosaic depicting scenes from the life and ministry of Mother Cabrini. Jody was immediately attracted to a section of the mural which depicts Mother Cabrini reaching out to a young man in a wheelchair offering comfort. He would sit below that part of the mural and his head would bow in prayer. Jody told me that he always believed that Mother Cabrini would look out for him and help him to be able to walk again. Jody’s faith was very important to him.

Of course, his dream of again walking independently ended with his passing from COVID-19 in April 2020. Since then, though, I have had sensations that Jody has come back to pay me a visit. Every time he appears, he is walking on his own without a wheelchair.

July 7, 2026, will mark the eightieth anniversary of the canonization of Mother Cabrini as a saint of the Catholic Church. I’m sure Jody will be celebrating. Six years later, when I look at the mural, I don’t see Mother Cabrini offering her hand in solace to the young man in the wheelchair. I see her extending her hand to Jody encouraging him to get up and walk. I’m sure it’s true. Jody’s faith and determination make it so.