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Rose
is the loving mother of Maggie, an oncologist. She is also her office
manager, a meddler in her personal affairs, and a collector of various
superstitions and faiths. In an attempt to ease tension in Maggie and
her husband Brian’s marriage, Rose has planned a trip to Rome. She is
counting on her son-in-law and daughter to insist on accompanying
her. She thinks that if they make the trip to Vatican Square on
Easter Sunday to hear the bells of St. Peter’s Cathedral, the miracle
they need will happen. She has even gone so far as to hire Monica to
temp in the office while they are away. Unfortunately things don’t go
according to plan. When a patient named Annie dies, Maggie is
devastated, closing herself off to Brian, and canceling their plans
for Rome. Rose tries to persuade her, but Maggie erupts in anger at
her mother’s meddling. She even takes Rose’s fatigue to be nothing
more than a sympathy ploy, her blood-work however tells another
story. Rose has leukemia.
Maggie becomes utterly focused on saving her mother, but
continues to keep Brian at a distance. She tries to get her mother to
agree to a cranial shunt, a bubble-like apparatus that will administer
her doses of chemotherapy, but must be installed in the top of her
head. Rose refuses, saying that she bought a new hat for Easter in
Rome, and it won’t do to have something sticking out of her head.
Several weeks pass as Rose takes the more painful form of
chemo, and Maggie becomes more isolated and obsessive in her attempt
to save her mother without actually connecting with her. Just before
Easter, Rose, at her weakest, attempts to leave the hospital and catch
her flight. She collapses just outside. When they get her back
inside, the diagnosis is poor, Rose isn’t expected to live through the
night. As Maggie stands in the room with her dying mother, Tess, who
has been posing as a hospital administrator, gives her a revelation.
Despite the sense of Tess’s words, Maggie is still reluctant to
believe. Meanwhile Rose wakes up, stepping clear of the bed and out
of her body. Andrew is there, ready to take her to heaven, but Monica
intercedes, telling him that she has a message for Rose. Andrew nods
and exits, leaving Monica to talk to Rose. She tells her to trust in
God, not to immerse herself in the various superstitions and sayings
that she is so fond of. She tells her that she can’t go out in search
of miracle, true miracles come to you with the love of God. Rose nods
and listens, weeping with joy as the peal of the bells of St. Peter’s
echo throughout the hospital room.
The next morning, brings with it a miracle that even Maggie
cannot refute, Rose is alive, and her cancer is gone. Maggie is
overjoyed, and finally breaks free of her emotional shields. She has
no choice but to believe the truth of Tess’s words and to work at
being the best in all aspects of her life, not only professional but
personal as well.
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