Everyday Beauty II

People in our culture are starving for beauty.  I remember when Trudy Krise, a wonderful woman, would bring her deserts to class for the snack.  Those days we had standing room only! People stood around the table exclaiming over the beauty of her deserts. They were indeed a work of art, and what is more, they tasted BETTER than they looked! People are so starved for beauty that knowing her art would be at the next class was all it took to get standing room only. Why the popularity of the Extraordinary form of the Mass? We often call it … Continue reading

Beauty Of the Everyday Kind

Beauty is missing from our culture. Oh, there are still a few beautiful buildings put up, and you can buy pretty things, and you can find artists making art, but the everyday making of beauty is missing.  We have devalued it until it has almost completely vanished. The mentality that if your work is not producing a paycheck then your work has no value is killing off everyday beauty. Home making is both work and an art form that is almost dead from neglect because it does not bring in a paycheck. Few are those who knit or crochet beautiful … Continue reading

Patron Saints for Writers

I saw a wonderful blog post about Patron Saints of Writing Professionals which lists 7 excellent patron saints and tells a bit about each one. Noting that not one of my favorite Saints were on the list, I decided that I needed to do my own blog post about my “7” patron saints for writers. Each of these Saints were writers who left behind a body of work that has had a deep impact on me. Their books are cherished volumes on my shelves and their prayers I request every day. Saint John the Evangelist: writer credited with the gospel I … Continue reading

One Mom’s Search for Kindergarten Social Activities

What a difficult decision! I want more good adult influences on my Kindergartener, and reinforcement of her Catholicism. The main groups suggested by other home school moms are Girl Scouts (GS), American Heritage Girls (AHG), and the Little Flowers.  The last has no group here. Leaving Girl Scouts and American Heritage Girls as the sole options at this time. Girl Scouting, at the national level, holds many positions and alliances with which I do not agree. I will leave the listing of them up to other persons. On the up side, the local troop is run by Catholic Moms, meets … Continue reading

NFP–Some Thoughts

Sex talk really has no place on a Catholic NFP list.  Recently I wandered into an NFP discussion and found it to be one long complaint about all the physical sex acts that were not allowed during fertile periods.   All I thought was FIRST, not one of those people had a clue about real intimacy and SECOND the discussion was almost pornographic. The world is full of sex sex sex.  Love is equated with the reproductive act, rendered sterile, and promoted as a right and this mentality has followed young couples right into the Church. So much so that … Continue reading

Dealing with Mom Job Loneliness

I like the title up there, but truth is, I have never found a satisfactory way to handle the stress of loneliness while staying home with small children.  I enjoyed taking graduate classes and found that I could study genetics while sitting on the floor as the kids played around me. Getting out to class was really good for me and it helped me to feel very good when I was home with the little ones.  I currently have a special interest group I joined and that is fun too. But the truth is that finding ways to support your … Continue reading

The Down Side to the Mom Job

The Mom Job is great but even the most perfect vocation has its difficult aspects. For the mom who is at home all day with her beloved children, the biggest down side is loneliness resulting from isolation from other adults.  It may be hard to believe that a woman who cannot even use the restroom without a train of toddlers joining her in the room could ever be lonely, but indeed, it does happen. Some of us turn on our favorite television to have the sound of adult voices.  I particularly enjoyed EWTN and a smattering of cooking programs.  I … Continue reading

Prayer for our Country

Over at Lay Catholics: National Association of American Lay Catholics is a marvelous posting of a prayer by St. Augustine. As Catholic lay persons it is imperative that we include our country and our leaders in our daily prayers; we are to be salt and light in the world and as such, it is important that we be realistic about the communal nature of sin and the importance of communal repentance. Just as we ask the prayers of the Saints for our intentions, expecting that their holiness will be an aid to us, so too we must realize that our … Continue reading

First Causes of a Catholic/Orthodox Crisis

Today, over at LifesiteNews, I read a very very good post by a priest who sadly had to close their elementary school. It is an excellent article about how most parishes have contracepted themselves nearly out of existence and then people object to schools and parishes closing. This good man has written an article for discussion that is worthy of discussion. Here is a bit from the article: In my January 2010 letter to my bishop asking his permission to close our school, I wrote: Bishop, it is with a heavy heart that I request this of you. As you … Continue reading

Lenten Silent Retreat

Silent Retreats are a means of stepping away from the usual business of life and focus hard on God. As always, what I got out of my silent retreat is not what I expected to get out of my silent retreat. God always has plans that differ from what I expect even when I don’t think I expect anything in particular. The retreat I participated in was held at Featherock Conference Center in Schulenburg Texas. As ALWAYS, the facility was spotlessly clean and well appointed inside, the grounds immaculately presented and beautiful, the food excellent, and the program well designed. … Continue reading