I read a really great story today. It was fast paced, funny and held my attention. I wanted to know what happened next and I cared about the characters. I liked how the story was woven of several threads that were followed by changing from viewpoint to viewpoint. Changing point of view is tricky in any story, and this one relied heavily on this technique. Over-all, in this case, I believe it works well to promote the storyline. It also needed to be developed more to give each viewpoint character more unique qualities to their voice and the point of … Continue reading
Category Archives: Vocation
The talented and skillful author Ray Bradbury has died. He wrote in many genres but is best known for his science fiction and fantasy novels. His diligence in his vocation should be taken as an example to emulate. His work is considered by some to be classic. Death Is A Lonely Business Something Wondrous This Way Comes Dear Lord, please have mercy on the soul of Ray Bradbury. May he rest in Your peace. Amen. … Continue reading
Writing, recommendations, reviews, and reading books delight me. I like to share with my friends those books I find particularly useful and helpful and today, I began reading a book sent to me for review by Aquinas & More Catholic Goods by Randy Hain titled, The Catholic Briefcase. This is a practical book is aimed at demonstrating how to integrate faith into a vocation regardless of what career or job you hold. I’m only through chapter 3 and so far all I can think is how wonderful this book would be for a small Bible Study group in a parish. … Continue reading
My vocation includes making our home exude comfort and simplicity. I grow spiritually and in the virtues when I work on my home with those things in mind. It is a battle ground for me. I look at clutter that has accumulated and ask myself, yet again, what does or doesn’t belong in this space? I look at my office because this was the room to which I first applied MY personal ideas of simplicity. At the moment it is a bit cluttered with stuff for the baby. Yet the bones of this space are still right. Every piece of … Continue reading
Writing is a skill that must be used to stay fresh. Writing is a vital part of my vocation. Writing, be it in a blog, book review or book, is a craft that I enjoy. In keeping with my goals, I have been writing this blog to develop a regular pattern of writing. Thus far, with a break to go visit my sister, I’ve been nearly regular enough to please myself. It is a good start. I added the newsletter for the Shire (an SCA group) in order to add my skills to the support of my local group. They … Continue reading
Divorce strikes at the heart of our vocations that include marriage. Divorce is a symptom of flaws in how we develop ourselves and in the way we choose our spouses. More study of those flaws and what needs to be done to correct them will go far in the effort to decrease divorce. Over at the Register they have an EXCELLENT article about the damage divorce causes children. This article highlights a conference focusing on the experiences of the children from marriages that break up. Divorce causes them emotional problems and while not insurmountable, the damage is real. By severing … Continue reading
The government is not commanded by the Lord to care for widows and orphans. It may very well have programs to do so, but the responsibility is not given to the government. Christians were given this commandment. The pattern is in the New Testament. Widows and Orphans were to be fed, clothed and cared for, but those able bodies who would not work, Paul wrote, should not eat either. How could that look today? Well, PARISH planners spend a lot of time on this and that but not a lot of time on fulfilling this commandment at the parish level. … Continue reading
My husband loves salads. The other day I had lots of nice roma tomatoes, half an onion, perhaps two teaspoonfuls of capers, a couple handfuls of calamata olives, part of an avocado, and perhaps two pounds of diced up nicely seasoned pot roast leftovers. I did not have any lettuce. Creating a salad from these ingredients to feed the hungry comes under the umbrella of my vocation. Writing about my no lettuce salad comes under that umbrella too. Here is how I tackled making my salad: For each person, I cut up two tomatoes, a little bit of onion, a … Continue reading
August 28-31 is a cluster of Catholic Conferences in Arlington Texas. This is an opportunity for expanding one’s understanding of one’s vocation. I blog and write, so this conference cluster that includes both the Catholic Writers’ Guild Conference and the Catholic New Media Conference is a rich opportunity. The Catholic Marketing Network (CMN) Trade Show begins with an education day on August 28, and the Trade Show floor closes at 1 PM on August 31(CMN Schedule). This is a business oriented conference and shares quite a few speakers with the CNMC. The Catholic New Media Conference (CNMC) begins August 29 … Continue reading
“You want to do something for the Lord…do it. Whatever you feel needs to be done, even though you’re shaking in your boots, you’re scared to death — take the first step forward. The grace comes with that one step and you get the grace as you step. Being afraid is not a problem; it’s doing nothing when you feel afraid.” — Mother Angelica Over at the National Catholic Reporter, Jennifer Fulwiler’s article on what she learned from Mother Angelica resonated with me. Years ago, my spiritual life had stalled. The evangelical church I attended had invited a charismatic potential … Continue reading