Living Faith writer Gail Goleas offers this remembrance:
I remember the afternoon we got our first glimpse of Pope Francis. I was at my desk when I heard the TV blaring in the parish office kitchen. It was never on during the day, so I went to check out what was going on. One by one, the rest of our staff gathered around the TV to witness the white smoke rising from the Sistine Chapel. It was a glorious sight. We stood there waiting for our very first glimpse of him. To watch that historic moment unfold with my colleagues in ministry made it all the more powerful for me.
There were tears in my eyes when Francis stepped out on the balcony. I loved him already. His eyes said it all. They were kind. They reflected grace and humility. As he blessed us all one last time on Easter Sunday, those eyes of his were as soulful as they were that very first time we caught a glimpse of him. Only hours before he died, he blessed us once more with that same grace and humility. May his legacy of faith and love touch us all.
