As I wrote this some years ago, on the desk beside me was my Olympus camera. Looking at it, I was reminded of an occurrence in Paris that is still hard to fathom.

My wife Ilka and I were there for a month-long stay. One afternoon we went to the famous Cathedrale de Notre-Dame-de-Paris, never suspecting that while there we would experience our own small miracle.

We strolled into the square adjacent to the colossal edifice, guidebooks in hand, and stared at “Our Lady of Paris” in wonder. The courtyard was bustling with tourists from all over the world. We approached the cathedral and entered, along with hundreds of others, at the back of the church. All tourists enter through the same portal, and then—we were to discover—follow a winding path through the church, and exit through a dif...

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