I was recently admitted to the Order of Secular Franciscans during a celebration of the Transitus, the memorial of the passing of St Francis form this life into the next. I was surprised by my own reaction to this event. In asking to be admitted, and in the minister’s acceptance of that request, I experienced a strong connection to St Francis and to the Franciscan family not only across the worlds but also across the centuries. God is at work in our lives in ways that are imperceptible sometimes even to ourselves until they burst forth in an experience of connectedness and grace. St Bonaventure records how Francis, despite being a bit of a party animal, had from an early age been inclined to be charitable to beggars. God was moving him slowly, inch by inch, to conversion, to an ever deeper appreciation of the reality of the indwelling of God in the Other. This movement burst forth ultimately in the moment of conversion, the moment when Francis stepped off his horse and embraced the beggar. Francis described the moment as sweet, a moment of grace. Our journey in the footsteps of Francis does not consist of long, strong, public strides. Christ draws us on in the charism, inch by inch, step by step, and allows us moments where we see the trajectory. In a moment we see how he has worked an continues to work on our conversion.