ROME, ITALY — While on pilgrimage in Rome recently with a group from St. Cloud, Minnesota, at the sign of peace during Mass at the Pontifical North American College, a friend from home, Jennie Korsmo, surprised me with a hug.

I knew she’d been touring the area that week with another group, but crossing her path was not on our itinerary. It was a joy to see her face in this place, so far across the ocean from Fargo.

A few hours later, after praying the noonday Angelus with Pope Leo in St. Peter’s Square, my husband, Troy, and I were walking to our next destination, on a time crunch, when familiar faces appeared near an Italian eatery: Deacon Rick Lagasse, a veterinarian from Rugby, North Dakota, and his wife, Denise. “Hey guys!” I said, waving as we walked briskly past.

That morning, we

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