Farm Confusion

  This past Sunday at Mass, one of the petitions was for the farmers to have a good harvest. I'm confused because I thought that here in North America, crops are harvested in the fall. Right now it is winter, soon to be spring. I thought crops are planted in the spring.
  Did something change when I wasn't paying attention??

Lent 2012 - Starting Off

 I must admit I did not make it to Mass on Ash Wednesday.

 I am very grateful to God and all those who prayed for me and helped me for my temporary work assignment. The adjustment has been fairly smooth, and I feel like I fit in. I'm filling in for a woman on medical leave. My employment there all depends on how quickly she recovers from surgery or how well I do, etc.. The office is a short drive from my home.

 For Lent I am, of course, praying for my prayer buddy. 

 For my Lenten sacrifice & growing spiritually activity I have decided to pray for X. Who is X? She is a close relative with whom I have a very stormy, tension-filled, anger-filled relationship. Every now and then we have moments of peace between us. But mostly, it's plain crappy. I will pray for her to ______. The blank is because I don't know what she needs (well, I do. Ha-ha). I'm sure I need a conversion in my heart towards this relative. You know, I am leaving it up to the Holy Spirit to work for us, between us. God knows how to use my prayers for good. I'll let Him sort out the good, the bad, and the ugly. And oh, the ugly does need to be made nice. Also, I don't know her intentions. 

 Sometimes I don't even like thinking about her, so thinking about her in prayer will be my sacrifice and hopefully develop good will in my heart.

 What does Blessed John Paul II have to say about prayer? Let me check my new favorite book that I am so glad to own.

 "Prayer can truly change your life. For it turns your attention away from yourself and directs your mind and your heart toward the Lord. If we look only at ourselves, with our limitations and sins, we quickly give way to sadness and discouragement. But if we keep our eyes fixed on the Lord, then our hearts are filled with hope, our minds are washed in the light of truth, and we come to know the fullness of the Gospel with all its promise and life."

 John Paul II, Meeting with Youth, New Orleans, Louisiana, 1987.

 John Paul II An Invitation to Joy is my new favorite book.

  

  

JP II: Truth, Happy Picture, Gift of Gold

"To all of you, dear young people, who hunger and thirst for truth, the Church offers herself as a traveling companion. She offers the eternal Gospel message and entrusts you with an exalting apostolic task: to be the protagonists of the new evangelization."
                  John Paul II - Message for World Youth Day, Vatican City, 1993.

I was an unhappy young adult back in 1993, so he was speaking to me. I was dipping my toe into young adult activities at church and not sure of anything. I'm glad I am further along in my journey now.

Leila at http://littlecatholicbubble.blogspot.com/ speaks of the truth. So does Gerard M. Nadal, Ph.D. at http://gerardnadal.com/.

Here's another happy picture. Look at this LUCKY and blessed baby being baptized by Pope John Paul II. He (or she) is Catholic forever! The caption of this picture (from the book John Paul II An Invitation to Joy) says "Sistine Chapel, Vatican City. 1997" So today this baby is a teen-ager. I wonder how he or she is doing. 

Maurizio Brambatti/Reuters/Piekna/MaxPPP

Are you baptized? I am. I was baptized into the Catholic Church as an infant. My parents gave me this great gift. If you were baptized as a child, thank your parents. If you are not baptized, you can be! You too can avail yourself of this gift by hopping down to your local church and going through faith formation classes. The Church is for everyone who wants it. If you are open to receiving the gifts, yes gifts, of the church, you may have the gift.

It's not always an easy gift to open, but it's a wonderful gift full of brightness and light. It's gold, but better and more precious. Unlike gold, there's an infinite amount.

Hey, note to those of us who go to church. Whoever approaches us, whoever crosses our path, whoever sits near us may be searching. Let us be friendly, welcoming, and helpful. 

Temp Job to Start

Next week I have more interviews and I start a new temporary work assignment. I hope I do well.
Thank you for your prayers. Thank you, God.

A dream work station.

The More I Read, The More I Find or JP II and Housing

My father gave me a book: John Paul II An Invitation to Joy.  


I already posted one picture from the book. I keep finding more wonderful quotes from Blessed John Paul II. The book is filled with quotes and pictures.

Here's a quote for today:

(It's hard to pick just one.)

"Power is responsibility; it is service, not privilege. Its exercise is morally justifiable when it is used for the good of all, when it is sensitive to the needs of the poor and defenseless."  


           John Paul II, Evening Prayer, St. Louis, MO 1999.

It's easy to apply this quote to the pro-life movement, but what about the frail elderly? The blind? The paralyzed? The worker on the bottom rung of the career ladder? The naive? The sick? The unemployed? People who live in poorly constructed houses? Seriously, you pay good money to have a study home built according to code and one that can stand up to the elements. It's wrong for the contractor to take the money and do shoddy work. Your house could burn down due to poor electrical work, or the roof could fly off at the first big gust of wind.

Of course, Mother Nature will usually win, but you want a house that is safe as possible.

Somehow I managed to go from the Pope to home construction in this blog.

If you have power, use it wisely and for good. Help out whenever you can. Be kind and considerate.

Dear God, thank you for letting me help my father out. 

                   

Religious = Higher Wellbeing

In U.S., Very Religious Have Higher Wellbeing Across All Faiths says Gallup.

I'm glad I'm anchored in my faith even if now and then I get angry with God.

A synagogue. I've never been in one.

St. Valentine's Day

It's 4:30 in the afternoon, and the the florist has yet to bring me flowers from a secret admirer.  Sigh.

I did send a valentine to President Obama. Ha. Not really. Actually today I mailed him a letter protesting that HHS mandate.

A friend told me that she knows a lady who married for the FIRST TIME at age 73. I guess you are never too old to find love. This gives me hope, but I really don't want to wait that long.

One blessing of unemployment I am not in an office where female co-workers are receiving roses. Oh, I have an interview this Thursday.

If you're married, remember your single friends.

Here are some pretty valentines to look at. I love these; they look so romantic and feminine. 

One more thing: my dad sent me a lovely "To my daughter" card. I'm glad I have my dad.

Reinstated

I've been reinstated as a communion minister at my parish. What an honor it is to serve my fellow parishioners.

Lost and Found Father

Sometimes having an elderly parent is like having a child especially when a parent wanders off at the mall. After Mass, Dad and I and about 50,000 other people headed to the shrine of consumerism for lunch and a little shopping.

A certain parent of a certain blogger walked away. I spent at least a half-hour of walking around looking for him, riding up and down escalators, walking around this incredibly crowded place. My feet hurt, and I was very hot in my winter clothing.

I had to sit down to assess the situation and think it through. I thought of every lost and abducted child I heard about in the news. I never heard of anyone kidnapping an old person. How do I report a missing, legally blind old guy? What would the store do? Would they use the same procedures as they would for a missing child? Would they just laugh at me? When I found my father, would it be wrong to put a leash on him?

A large problem is that he has very, very, very limited vision, and sometimes gets disorientated because of his low vision.

There was only one thing for this Catholic woman to do: I prayed to St. Anthony. Then I got up, took about 10 steps, and there was my dad crossing my path! He too had been hiking around and riding escalators up and down. He said he even went outside to look for my car! Of course he couldn't find it because he walked out of the wrong door. Luckily he went back inside the store.

Thank you St. Anthony for finding my dad for me.

I did lose my hat though.

Happy Picture: Pope JPII with Babies

Picture Copyright: Giancarlo Giuliani/Edizioni San Paolo

This picture is from the book John Paul II An Invitation to Joy.


I wish you could see a close-up of this picture, so you could truly appreciate the smile on the pope's face.

gods of American Mythology

God: Consumerism
Icon: Credit/ Debit Card
Worship Place: Shopping Mall, McMansion, Internet

God: Sex
Icons: Birth Control Pills and Condoms
Worship Places: Bedroom, television, music, movies, high school, PP establishments, abortion clinics, magazines, Internet

God: Electronics
Icon: Smart Phones
Worship Places: Crossing the street while cars swerve around you, dinner, waiting rooms, restaurants, homes, Internet

God: Car
Icon: SUVs
Worship Place: Road

God: Food
Icon: Burger, Fries, and Cola
Worship Places: massive supermarkets, fast food places, the car while driving

God: Power
Icon: Capitol Hill
Worship Places: Washington, D.C., Corporate suites, offices

God: Antichrist
Icon: ___________
Worship Place: Public schools, abortion clinics,

God: Drugs and Alcohol
Icon: Cold Medicine
Worship Places: Schools, homes, street corners, bars, restaurants, parties, behind-the-wheel, concerts, celebrations

Well, this has been a depressing post, and I can't think of a suitable icon for the antichrist. Yes, some of the icons and worship places can be used for good.

Today I am Real

Today when I was calling prospective employers inquiring about open positions, I left a short message at one place. Within 20 minutes, the director called me back. After a short conversation, she requested that I email her my resume.

I nearly fell off my chair when she called me back. I am so use to being ignored by companies, hiring managers, etc. Today someone treated me like a real person. Today someone had the time and courtesy to return my phone call. Just for today I was a person with a voice. Today someone acknowledged my existence. 

I am here. I am real.

May I remember to acknowledge those whom I find so easy to ignore.

Dream (Nightmare) Ghost in the White House

The other night I dreamt I was visiting the White House, and it was haunted by the ghost of Ayatollah Khomeini. Remember him? Strange that after this week of the komen kerfuffle, I didn't dream the White House was haunted by the ghost of Margaret Sanger.

Upside Down Bowl (Revised)

Today, I was fortunate to go on a field trip to the planetarium with a friend. The best part was the sky show where you sit a reclining seat inside a giant upside down bowl, which is the screen. That way you feel like you are really looking up and around the night sky if you were outside in a rural area. Actually I remember the seats reclining more when I was a in grade school.

Apparently, I have been looking at too many pro-life, reproduction, biology blogs and websites because when I saw the supernova, I thought, "cytoblast." There was one graphic of a galaxy that looked like a placenta.  Another star looked like an eye.

I thought of the golden ratio I learned about in art class.The golden ratio exists in art, our human body, plants, and architecture. 


Also, the sky show said that someday our sun will burn out, and our Milky Way Galaxy will collide with another galaxy. Cool! Awesome! And since I have my Catholic faith, I'm not worried about any of those things happening.

We have an awesome universe created by an awesome God, who is a master mathematician and artist.

Milky Way

nebula

Candlemas, What is it? (Update)

What is Candlemas?

I know what Groundhog Day is, but not what Candlemas is. It's a religious day, right? Wrong?

Update: Now that I know what Candlemas is, I would prefer to celebrate that instead of Groundhog Day. No offense to any groundhogs that may be reading this blog.