St. Agnes-Patron Saint of Young Girls, Innocence & Gardening

St. Agnes Holding the Lamb of Innocence

Today I received an order for a St. Agnes statue from a mother looking for a confirmation gift for her young daughter.  St. Agnes is a frequently requested saint for this occasion.  She is a beautiful statue, depicted as a young woman holding the lamb of innocence with a serene look on her face.  She is the Patron Saint of Chastity, gardeners, girls, engaged couples, rape victims and virgins.  Her name is derived from a Greek word meaning chaste, pure and sacred, of innocence.  She was born in 209 AD.

When I paint a St. Agnes statue, I am reminded of the innocence of my own childhood and the things that impacted me the most.  I am reminded of the people I love who taught me what was important and how they unknowingly influenced  my life.  Not a day goes by when I don't remember the things I learned even though at the time I didn't realize I was learning a thing.

The Seedling My Aunt and  I planted when I was seven 

When I was 7 years old my Aunt Gertrude lived in New York City over looking Central Park.  It was exciting when she came to visit.  One evening she took me for a walk, carrying a bucket and a shovel.  She was determined to find just the right seedling.  Finally, she dug up a tiny fir tree that was  no more than 6 inches tall as she explained the importance of the taproot.  We carefully placed it in a bucket and carried it back to my house.  We planted the seedling in an area of the yard where there were no other trees.  She taught me to water it regularly and she said "Someday this tree will be bigger than you."  I simply couldn't imagine.  Today when I look up at that tree I think of the great lessons I learned from that one simple act. 

She taught me that time passes and things change without ever saying a word.  She taught me that nurturing and caring is something important to do for other living things.  She taught me that one modest deed could make me remember her every time I look at that tree even 56 years after we planted it.  How did she know the effect it would have on me to see a 6" seedling grow into an 80 foot tree?

"Clasp your hands together and interlace your  fingers.  Now, make a steeple with your index fingers and put your thumbs up to make the doors."  To this day, I have never clasp my hands in prayer without remembering my mother teaching me how to pray.  With those modest instructions she taught me symbolism and the meaning of prayer.  She taught me how to be respectful and how to be humble in my requests.  Did she know with that one simple lesson my heart would swell with love every single time I clasp my hands, especially after she was gone?

On my 5th birthday, I had a swim party with 6 other little girls.  We went to the river at the park on a hot day in June.  We swam, ate sandwiches, made sandcastles, and swam some more.  Then with sun-burnt noses, we went back to my house to have cake and ice cream.  It was then that the sheriff knocked on the door looking for a little girl who had been celebrating her birthday at the park where we had just been.  She had disappeared.  And for a split second, before we sorted out the details, they though I was that little girl.  For my entire life, I have wondered why she drowned and not me.  We both had birthdays on the same weekend.  We both had friends to play with, adults watching us and cake and ice cream to eat.  I have never had a birthday where I didn't think about her. I have since looked up her name and I know she would be 63 this year. Her name was Cheryl Johnston and she had a brother.  I have not forgotten her or the day we unknowingly shared.

St. Agnes Statue from Chris Hart Studio

That same weekend as the sheriff posse searched for her, I learned to tie my shoes.  Even though I had just turned 5, I had struggled to learn that task because I preferred to go barefoot and tying them wasn't important to me.  As the search party moved across the bottom land of my parents ranch, I wanted badly to go outside and watch their horses.  My brother said, "When you can tie your shoes by yourself you can go out." and he showed me one more time.  I have never tied my shoes without remembering my brother and appreciating his knowing how to motivate me that weekend so many years ago.

When I look up at the tree Aunt Gertrude and I planted so many years ago, I appreciate St. Agnes, the Patron Saint of Young Girls and Gardening.  When I interlace my fingers in prayer as my mother taught me so many years ago, I think of the virtue of St. Agnes at a young age challenged for what she believed.  When I have a birthday or I tie my shoes, I remember the innocence of a young girl as she finds her way.   

The simple acts of others in our lives  become the fertilizer out of which grows something meaningful. Our experiences get tossed in and turned under, then percolate and transform into something richer. St. Agnes helps us appreciate the innocence of our childhood and the influence of others as we grow.