I’m not really sure if I should be posting about what kind of *dog* I am, but here we go anyway:
You Are a Labrador Retriever |
 You are very optimistic. You approach life with enthusiasm and vigor. You aim to please, and you are a very quick learner.You can be a bit rowdy and unruly, especially when you don’t get enough exercise. While you are a bit wild, you’re never dangerous. You are a truly gentle creature. |
H/T to Kevin.
My brother called me a day or so ago and expressed an interest in going to Mass with me and then visiting our paternal grandfather’s grave. I hadn’t been there since his funeral in 2000, and I don’t think my brother had either, but I was glad to share this with him today.
He didn’t end up going to Mass with me, but I headed out to the cemetery after lunching with some friends. I had to call my mom to find out what part of the cemetery the grave was, and eventually found it. It had become a little overgrown with grass and weeds:
So, I cleared it off:
It was near the memorial of The Lord’s Supper:
Which had some great marble work, an example of which is this photo of the detail of Our Lord:
Then, my brother arrived, and he brought a flower:
We sat and prayed and remembered our Grandaddy, and told him that we loved him and we missed him. I think it was a hard, sad thing for my brother. But I was filled with peace and joy. I felt comforted, knowing that he was in the hands of God.
Here’s a close-up of his pretty rose, with The Lord’s Supper in the background:
After some time, we left, but as I was leaving, I felt compelled to go inside the chapel. There was a service going on, which I did not attend, but instead wandered around looking at things. I was, as a nuke, delighted to find these signs all over the building:
and was quite taken by some of the stained glass windows:
Before I left, I came upon a woman, who was visiting her mother who had passed nearly two years ago. I shared my faith with her, and I can only pray that it brought her some consolation and the same sense of peace and joy that I have found in Him.
Wisdom 1:13-14a, 15 [from Office for the Dead]
God did not make death,
nor does he rejoice in the destruction of the living.
For he fashioned all things that they might have being;
for justice is undying.
Tuesday, Jan. 2, 1990
Today Me and Clint were playing chess he quit after 2 games 1st a draw 2nd he won. Afterwords I played by myself. Mom said you have to put it away when your done. When I finished I put it in it’s box and went in Clints room and set it on his desk. He said put it all the way away, I’m not going to do it. I said No I cleaned it up its in your bedroom and I’m done. I walked out and banged my right ankle against the space heater near the bathroom, went into the living room where Dad said whats going on we went back to Clints room where I explained what I’d done and shouldn’t he put it away because I didn’t know where it should go and also because I didnt take it out. Dad took me in the hallway and told me to work on my attitude after I huffily said Okay where does it go and put it there. He said no one like a person with an “I’m better” attitude and left. I didn’t have an I’m better attitude and just went to my room and started writing. Its now 12:52 pm.
Sunday, Jan. 7, 1990
Tomorrow I’m starting a paper route of 37 customers. I’m taking over for Eva Kasmarack, 14 years old. We collect every 2 weeks and make about $36 a week. I’ll try to keep you posted.
Thursday, Jan. 11, 1990
I LOVE Aaron, Mom doesn’t know quite how much I do though. She just knows that I like him that sort of true, I’m heads over heels in LOVE with the sandy-haired blue-eyed 12 yr. old 7th grader. [Which, of course, was the beginning of a life-long attraction to sandy-haired, blue-eyed boys….] He’s in 3 of my classes 2nd, 5th, 7th Hr. I sit kitty corner to him in Math 5th Hr with Mr. Koehn. [Insert diagram here of seating arrangements]
Mr. Mason In Science 2nd Hr [Insert diagram here of seating arrangements]
7th Hr. L.A. Mrs. Milton [Insert diagram here of seating arrangements. Also of note, is the fact that I met up with Mrs. Milton again when I was going through RCIA a year and a half ago to enter the Catholic church…. 🙂 Small world….]
I even wrote a story about us [Oh boy] using the names Aaron Debrowski and Hart Freshwater in which in 5th Hr. Hart faints and Aaron gets concerned and everyone finds out. Later they go together, wouldn’t that be cool if it did happen. I wish it did. [Obviously, I’m a foolish romantic in need of saving….] I wish so much that we would go together. I probably would be very happy if that happened. Please…
Last year I had Aaron in 4 of my classes 1,4,5, + 6th Hr.
Wednesday, Jan. 17, 1990
I’m
[…obviously distracted.]
Sunday, Jan. 28, 1990
I’m scared, somethings happening to dad he even had to wear a heart monitor, we don’t know what it is yet, I hope it’s not serious.
Grandma’s going too her eyesight is getting extremely bad and everyone knows it’s from her diabetes. She eats sweets all the time, She’s going to kill herself.
My Grandma Barnard died (from cancer) before I was born or maybe I just don’t remember, my parents only talk about her when I ask questions. [Actually, before my parents were married.]
Memere (memay) is slowly losing it mentally, [Obviously, I’m the Queen of Tact at this age.] the way Uncle Jerry keeps a tab on her medicine she might die in a year or so, probably not but what do I know she’s 83 something (Alzheimer’s disease). [I loved my Memere. It sounds harsh, but I was trying to document things as I saw it.]
Pepere [Okay, I had no clue how to spell this.] (pepay) died of diabetes like Grandma’s going to. He made it to see me when I was 1 week old. I smiled at him. [What a morbid little entry, Little Me!]
What the earth has given and human hands have made; it will become for us the light of Christ:
Cute lunch story:
I’m in the cafeteria picking out my soup, and notice that they have cute little Halloween names, which is awesome. A man next to me looks over and says, “Oh, you shouldn’t have that. Day like today, you should be having the ‘Chili con Carnage’.”
I give him a big smile and gesture to my soup, “But this is the ‘Good Choice Chicken and Rice’.”
He looks at me again and says, “Mmm. Yes. I see your halo. Okay.” 🙂
Haha! That was one of the last things said at the talk this evening. 🙂 It’s true, too!
Some of you might know the anxiety I was fighting with over today’s meeting. I was trying really hard to just give over and trust in God, and in pockets, this did fairly well. I wasn’t nearly as anxious as I usually would be. I prayed all day (well, most of the week, but especially last night and today) to our Lord, God the Father and our Lady, I think maybe St. Michael, too, because he was mentioned last night.
I prayed about 50 psalms, too. [I’m reading my way through the psalms at the moment. I had to take a break from Leviticus, because it became apparent that I was in need of a bullock…. 🙂 Not quite sure what Fr. will do when I bring in the mooing creature and ask that he butcher the poor thing for me (because I’m too squeamish and would feel way too bad for hurting this thing because of my sins) and then decorate the altar with its blood and burn the fat and stuff. So…. Until I find a willing bullock…. Then again, maybe I should just stay away from the temple, because it’s also apparent that I should be presenting myself to Fr. for him to examine me for leprosy…. It’s just eczema! Seriously! No! I do not need to be quarantined for 7 days!]
Back to the original train of thought. My meeting came. It went as I had hoped, and not as I had [uselessly] feared. Thank you, God. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Mary. Thank you, all who prayed for me.
On to the gratuitous extras. 🙂 After work, I went to the Catholicism for Cradle Catholics Continuing Catholicism for Adults (like how I renamed that? I, not being a “cradle Catholic,” was feeling excluded, and “Catholicism for Cradle Catholics + Jenn” was a little long and cumbersome, and besides, I might not be the only “non-cradle Catholic” there…) Anyways, so I go to the talk and soak it all up, as I do. All too soon, it’s over. 😦
NOW, really, for the gratuitous bit. I know that I don’t have enough gas to get home. But, I’m not at the pushing stage quite yet. So, I decide to go into town and grab a hot chocolate from Starbucks (Oh, yum!) before grabbing some gas and heading home. Last time that I had almost run out of gas in Plymouth, I made it to the gas station, and as I recall it was a Speedway, which is a good thing, because I have been budgeting and bought $200 in gas cards to Speedway, since there’s one by my house in Troy and one right by work in Ann Arbor, so I was safe at either end. And the one in Plymouth. When I got to Starbucks, the barista told me that my prepaid card didn’t quite have enough money on it for my drink, which was okay since I had a couple of bucks on me. But as I was digging for it, he told me nevermind, my card somehow gave me a discount, which put me under by about 20 cents. Bonus!
Okay, okay, on the the REAL gratuitousness. I head down Sheldon (?) Rd. to the gas station. I don’t have any money in my bank account, only the gas cards. But that’s okay, because it’s a Speedway, right? WRONG!! Uh-oh. Now, I’m at the intersection, looking at the gas station that I had been planning on going to, and sitting there in dismay because it’s a Mobil. And my gas card won’t work there. And I don’t have enough gas to get to the next closest Speedway that I know of. Rats! Just when I was beginning to become concerned, but before I actually do, God has me look over to my right. And what do you know?
A Speedway!!!!! Thank You!!!!!
And now, to ask God about Saturday, because those who know what’s going on, know that I’m loathe to go on Saturday. I’m aching to run away and hide. I’m scared and terrified for reasons I don’t really know why. I’m scared to go and I’m scared to not go. And I just may be stuck in my indecision. So while I am hiding under my desk chewing my hair, I’m also praying that I will do the healthy thing (it’s really bizarre when you are praying against yourself like that).
Thanks for listening! God Bless!
… is the pretty fall colors on the trees. After that, I am all for skipping ahead to spring. Okay, okay, maybe one or two days of snow, but that’s it!
Look at how cute everything is!:
And, of course, because you are all clamoring for another picture of me, I will feed my narcissism grant your request:
Enjoy! 🙂
This is one of my favorite days! 🙂
Lord,
Please bless my amazing priests. May they always faithfully proclaim the Gospel, help people to grow in charity and love, defend Truth, and seek You. May they always find encouragement, strength and love when they are in need. Please allow them to know and feel Your love of them and know of the love, admiration, respect and support that their sheep have for them.
Amen.
Since my blog, I don’t think, supports embedding video — I will post a link here to a wonderful clip of a trio of priests singing Ave Maria. I want a copy of the CD/DVD! If any of you find out there’s one out there, let me know! Special thanks to AmP for sharing! If AmP isn’t already on your favorites list, he should be!
Today, I got to attend the Women’s Conference. There’s tons of stuff I could blog about from that conference, but for right now, I’ll just blog about the Eucharist. 🙂 At the end of Mass, Kasia came up to me and asked me if I would help consume the extra hosts, so Lindsay and I went into the “Clergy and Staff” room with her and a few others and began consuming the hosts. We weren’t really sure how to go about doing this properly, and as more people came in after Mass (so that there were now about 15 or so people to consume the 2.5 ciboriums/ciborii/however you call the plural), a few began questioning that we were “taking” the hosts, when we should be “receiving” the Eucharist. So, 3 people took up the ciborii (gold cylindrical bowl-thingys, are you happy?!?) and began going around to the rest of us as EMs, “Body of Christ.”
I have to say, I have never, ever received Jesus so many times as I did today. 🙂 After a little while, I saw that Jill kept handing out Eucharist, and wasn’t getting any for herself, so as she passed me by again, I asked her if she wanted me to take the ciborium, so that she could receive.
So, now you have *me* giving communion. Good thing for me I temporarily forgot Fr. John’s scary lecture about dropping the Eucharist, or I would have been too scared to do it. But today, the issue was not dropping Jesus. Quite the opposite.
See, as I was passing out the Eucharist, He didn’t want to leave my fingers and go into their hands. And I wasn’t about to toss Him into their hands or anything like that. So, while most Extraordinary Ministers that I’ve had serve me tend to look at me while they are saying “Body of Christ” and then wait until I say “Amen,” I was the one who was more focused on the Eucharist: staring at Him, placing Him in their hand and then kind of petting Him into place, so He would stay there with them.
So, I’m not sure. Do I get negative bonus points for excessive fondling of the Eucharist??
… you look in the mirror and say, “Yes! I am DED SECKSI! Who wouldn’t want this?!?” as you look over your nighttime attire:
a red and cream colored striped long sleeve shirt
tangerine shorts with yellow and pink butterflies on them
bright cerulean and lime colored ladybug socks
Move over Paris! The fashion capital of the world is relocating!! 🙂
Paroxysm of Giggles / Critical Mass 