Members of Parliament struggle daily to untangle the problems and catastrophes that various bureaucracies have inflicted upon their constituents. In between times they try to ensure that legislation in Canada is unfolding as it should. Only rarely do they have the chance to make life’s dreams come true.
But, less than 24 hours before Mother Teresa’s visit to Parliament Hill as a guest speaker at the Christians for Life “Fill the Hill” rally, Rob Nicholson decided to give it a try. He had just learned that for one of his Niagara Falls’ constituents, meeting Mother Teresa of Calcutta would be a dream come true.
Pat Stewart, a high school teacher confined to a wheel chair by Multiple Sclerosis, has for years been inspired and strengthened by the work of Mother Teresa. When Pat learned late Friday afternoon that the Nobel Prize winning nun would be in Ottawa the next day, she mentioned her dream to Rob’s wife, Arlene, who mentioned it to Rob.
Several phone calls to Ottawa later, no promises had been made, but the pro-life network had been alerted, an airplane seat had been reserved, and Nicholson arranged for Pat to be met at Ottawa airport by his Parliament Hill assistant, Kevin McIntosh.
As a result of Rob Nicholson’s efforts and some fine tuning of pro-life gremlins, Pat Stewart was able to spend a few precious moments privately talking with Mother Teresa, as she had always dreamed.
“Some people dream of going to Disneyland. I have always wished that I could meet Mother Teresa. This is a dream come true,” she said, holding tightly a biography of the great nun which Mother Teresa had lovingly inscribed for her.
And for Rob Nicholson, the joy of Pat Stewart’s dream come true may well make up for the daily plague of bureaucratic and legislative nightmares.
