The Rosary is the most amazingly versatile prayer ever. Yesterday I prayed the Glorious mysteries twice, once on my own after Reconciliation and once with the congregation before Mass, so this lovely morning I did not wish to repeat the same set of Mysteries yet again. So I chose the Luminous Mysteries and made my focus on each those Sacraments and sacramentals reflected in them and how grateful I am that the Sacraments were given to us through the Church. Baptism of the Lord I cannot pray this mystery without thinking about how odd it used to seem that Jesus, … Continue reading
Tag Archives: gratitude
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
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
Well, this week my weight did not change much. I am down only a single pound from a week ago for a total one month weight loss of 18 pounds! I am very happy over this. This week had its challenges. I had to fast for blood work and ate a burger afterwards, and several times I have taken a bite of fruit that was not on my approved list. Too many carbs= little or no weight loss. On the up side, I can see that the small amount of cheating put me very much at a maintenance level of … Continue reading
GOODBYE 2012! It has been a year of many blessings and lessons. May God be Praised Forever! DEAR LORD, THANK YOU FOR THE YEAR WE HAVE HAD. THANK YOU FOR THE MANY BLESSINGS I HAVE HAD AND FOR THE MANY LESSONS IN HOW TO APPRECIATE THOSE BLESSINGS. THANK YOU LORD. AMEN. … Continue reading
I love the pristine hopefulness of a new year. A New year has so many possibilities, so much potential and a whole 12 months of adventure in it. I shall make plans and enter into the New Year eagerly and energetically. How will it turn out? Will the New Year be a disaster, or success, or something in between? I resolve to cling tightly to my personal goals. I plan to adhere to my healthy eating plan, geared to my issues with blood sugar, and my need to lose weight. How? I will combat the feelings of deprivation by pampering … Continue reading
My heart grieves for the families in CT who have lost loved ones in a senseless shooting at an Elementary school. There should never be gun free zones because evil will choose those places preferentially. Teachers and administrators need the means to defend themselves and their students. It is a horrible tragedy and I pray for all involved. An acquaintance is returning to work, placing her baby in a daycare, and grieving the necessity. This brings home to me how blessed I have been to stay home with my children. Even more, how blessed I am to be free to … Continue reading
This Advent burst in on me with a loud crash followed by LOTS of time to think. Someone commented that I have a difficult life and off the cuff, without any thought I said, “Actually, I think I have an amazingly charmed life and this week the universe decided to do a quick correction.” Now, that isn’t a particularly Catholic way to express how I see my life, but it fit the conversation at the time and caused me to pause and think on why I answered that way. Yes, First Sunday in Advent began with a crash. At first … Continue reading
Sunday, first Sunday in Advent, saw me happily leaving the house early to be early to an early Mass. Ten minutes later a car crossed my lane to make a left onto the road and caused a rather serious accident. I clearly saw her, saw the pickup coming down the road from the opposite direction to me, and suddenly, she pulls out directly into my path. She pulled out into my path with far too little distance between us for me to stop in time. It hurt, the impact. My seat belt did its job and held me tight, leaving … Continue reading
I experienced a marvelously refreshing silent spiritual retreat last week. This quiet time to be focused on God and not on the everyday stuff came just in time to help me find my center for Advent. Besides giving us deep messages from Scripture and Church teaching to ponder, daily Mass served faithfully and reverently, this priest spent several hours in the confessional so that if in our examinations of conscience we found anything requiring confession, that was available to us. This priest was so dedicated he was in the confessional so long that every participant in the retreat could have … Continue reading