today's faves

Inspiration for this post goes to Meg at Held By His Pierced Hands.  Her blog should really be in my sidebar....I just haven't updated recently.  I love, love, love her writing and thoughts.  In a recent post, she shared some of her favorites after someone had asked what her favorite parable was.

And since I seem to lack for ideas of my own lately, here goes.....

Favorite Parable:  The Prodigal Son (Luke 15:  11-32)  I think it is the story of most of us.  I also remember reading it during our First Confession Ceremony/Celebration/Liturgy all those years ago in third grade.

Favorite Image of Jesus:  The Good Shepherd  The fact that He leaves the 99 and goes off in search of the one lost sheep.  So, not only does He welcome us back when we come to our senses, but He goes out, searches for us, and carries us back.  See Matthew 18:12-13.

Favorite Bible Verse:  I'm pretty sure that can't be narrowed down to just one.  Tops on the list:  Be still and know that I am God.  (Psalm 46:10)  Draw close to God and He will draw close to you. (James 4:8)  Lord, I believe; help my unbelief.  (Mark 9:24).

Favorite Bible Study: Anything by Jeff Cavins and the folks at the Great Adventure.  I have studied James, the Bible Timeline, Revelations, Acts, and Matthew (twice).  Again it is difficult to pick a favorite, but James was short and had a great deal of practical application.

Favorite Liturgy:  This is an easy one....Holy Thursday...the Mass of the Lord's Supper.  It is beautiful.   It begins with an open, empty Tabernacle.  Even without the customary washing of the feet - an option that our pastor chooses not to exercise - there is so much symbolism and richness.  It is a Mass that doesn't end...at least not right then.  It concludes with Adoration, at the end of which the priest removes the Blessed Sacrament from the Tabernacle, leaving it empty as it was at the beginning of Mass.   A bonus on Holy Thursday is the Chrism Mass, which is held early in the day at the Cathedral.  Simply beautiful.

Favorite Prayer:  This would have to be the Prayer of St. Francis...Lord make me an instrument of your peace.  Where there is hatred..... I don't know why it's my favorite.  I'm pretty sure I don't know it by heart in its entirety,  nor do I pray it regularly.  Maybe it's the structure, the poetic nature, or just the simplicity, and the image of what we should all be.

Favorite Sacrament:  Of course, the Eucharist is the hands down (or hands-out) winner.  What is not to love?  Our God making Himself present to us - condescending to us - to be consumed in order that He can consume us.  But a really close second would have to be Reconciliation/Confession/Penance.  It is that one-on-one with Jesus.  That combination of nervousness and anticipation.  The grace, the encouragement, the warmth, the fresh start.  It is so worth it.  Every single time.


Favorite Penance:  I have had many that are thought-provoking and/or helpful, and my current priest never assigns the "say 3 Hail Marys" variety.  My favorite, though, "Go and bask in the silence and let Jesus speak to you."

Favorite Catholic Musician:  That would be Matt Maher.  Love, love, love.  And my favorite of his songs, "Deliver Me."  Loosely based on the Litany of Humility.

Favorite Catholic Devotionals:  This awesome series.  There is something for each day of the year that  matches up with the Scripture readings for the day.  Things that make you think, but presented so that normal people can understand.  In Conversation With God.  I got most of my copies from eBay.

Favorite "Catholic" thing to do:  Adoration.  This is the best thing ever.  Whether the Blessed Sacrament is exposed in a monstrance or simply present in the Tabernacle of whatever random Catholic Church you find yourself at.  What do you do when you go?  You can just sit in the Presence.  You can kneel.  You can kneel then sit.  You can pray prayers you know.  You can just sit and gaze.  You can tell God everything that is on your mind.  You can sit and listen to God whisper in your ear.  You can read.  You can write (one of my favorite things to do).  You can ask for forgiveness.  You can ask for wisdom.  You can ask for help.  You can surrender. You can praise Him.  You can thank Him.  You can do all of the above.  It is amazing the answers that come.  The peace that comes.  Amazing.

Favorite Lenten Practice:  The best Lenten "penance" ever was daily Mass.  I started part way through Lent one year, and committed to 3 days a week (because our parish had Mass at 6:30 am 3 days a week and I could go and make it to work at the required 7:05).  This was absolutely the best thing ever.  I was hooked long before Lent was over and felt like someone had been keeping this little treasure a secret.  It's not a penance.  It's a gift.  And it's certainly not just for Lent.

And that, boys and girls, are my favorites for now.  I'm sure there are more that I could add....and maybe I will....

done

 It's been a few weeks since I locked the door for the last time and left the keys in my box.

Twenty-four years worth of stuff sorted through, purged, and packed.  We relived a few memories along the way of kids who had come and gone.  We made many trips to the dumpster.  We hugged some kids and wiped away a little snot the last day of school.  Some of them loved us...

This is the sign that was on my door for the last few weeks of school.  One afternoon, the bathroom, the copy machine and the coke machine all had Out of Order signs on them.  I decided to join them, and trust me....it was v.e.r.y out of order in my room!

The days at the end were bittersweet.  I have loved the people I've worked with.  I've loved my cozy room.  I've even loved the kids.  But in the end, it was mostly relief that I felt.  We had a deadline of 9 pm on our last workday to have everything out, and we made it with hours to spare.  The later it got, the more we threw in the garbage can.  When the room started to echo, I knew that we were close.  

This was my corner of the room.  I took pictures when we were finished, but for some reason, none of them came out.  A friend took these for me a few days later, and my desk has been pushed against the wall and the student desks pushed to the other side.  The red cabinet door - a previous owner had painted them, and I thought the red was awful.  So we kept them covered with blue paper.  

The view from my desk.  I will miss my Promethean board.  

The side with my assistant's desk, the kids' desks, and the computers.  

The view outside my door.  Unique architecture for a school, but I always thought it was pretty.  Our custodians kept it nicely landscaped and clean.

I have defined "done" in different ways...the empty room, the boxes stacked in my garage, the pile of clothes that I won't wear in public again...

They say when one door closes, another opens, and I am looking forward to that.  I have had one interview, but hiring is frozen in our system right now.  Some teachers are waiting to retire/resign, so it is hard to get an accurate picture of what is available.  

The last five weeks of the school year - when I knew that I didn't have to go back - were the best ones of the entire year.  It feels great not to be stressed and to be able to turn my head without pain.  I feel for the people who chose to stay.  

In the end, I packed what I wanted and disposed of the rest.  But the most important things that I took didn't fit in a box.  Each and every person that I worked with touched my life in some way...and that is the real treasure of what I took away.  

catching up

That's a title I use a lot, I think....catching up.  It's a good subject line for emails, too.

Here, summer vacation is breathing its last.  I start school in 5 days - next Monday.  I spent 2 good hours today sitting for a deposition in a lawyer's office wreaking of stale cigarette smoke, regarding a lawsuit involving one of my students.  They said I get to go with them to court next week.  Can you sense the excitement??

We had our annual altar server appreciation pizza lunch a few weekends ago.  I love that our pastor comes and eats with us.  I love that he brings the credit card and is more generous towards those who tag along with the altar servers than any one should expect.  I love that he was willing to [patiently] answer follow up questions from our conversation earlier in the week.  He does a nice job of imitating Jesus, who ate with sinners, invites us to the table, paid our debts, showed us the way, and was much more generous than any of us deserve.

We didn't take our annual group picture this year.  The lone picture of my 15 year old tuning the toy guitar that he selected with all of the tickets that he won from the games.  He was so proud.  And so funny.

Last week was the feast of Sts. Ann and Joachim, the grandparents of Jesus.  My sister-in-law invited me to a St. Ann Novena that a church near her was having.  I went one morning.  Being there at 6:15 a.m. was a little difficult.  It was the first I had heard of a St. Ann Novena.

They prayed a shortened Rosary - a St. Ann chaplet or rosary??  One group of Hail Marys was prayed in French.  There is a strong French heritage in the area, as you can see in the inscription on the statue.  Good St. Ann(e), pray for us!

My 17 year old and I went to the local art museum one rainy afternoon last week.  They had an exhibit featuring artifacts from local Catholic churches, and that was what I wanted to see.  I think I enjoyed the photography exhibit from some local artists more, however.

The Catholic church has many breath-taking works of art, vestments, vessels, etc, but I found little at this one that inspired too much awe. The Bicentennial vestments were just a bit over the top, I thought.  Our local pastors have chalices that are more exquisite than the ones featured in the exhibit, and if you ask, they (local priests) are usually more than happy to let you see it close up and tell you some of the history.  Our previous pastor's chalice had incorporated his mother's antique engagement ring in the design.

Anyway, here is the picture that I was allowed to take to document this event.

The big event of the past week was my 30th reunion.  My favorite part was the tour of the renovated school....$50 million + in renovations.  We were quite disappointed when we got there too late for the official   tour and found the doors locked.  Our little group on the front steps....I am on the left.

But not to worry....we found an open door - workmen are there frantically trying to finish the renovation before school starts in a week or so...and we gave ourselves our own tour.  It was a mixture of nostalgia walking the halls and reliving memories from 30 years past and awe at the beautiful additions and improvements.  The school "specializes" in academics and performing arts.  The library was amazing.  There are new radio and TV studios.  Several stages of varying sizes.  There was quite a bit of excitement over the two "black box theaters".  An outdoor amphitheater in the new courtyard.  My classmates remembered using a loading dock as a stage.

Much of the old beautiful detail in the main building had been restored.  The doors in the foyer.

The intricate work on the outside of the building and in the auditorium.  Windows that had long been covered over were found in the auditorium, and the natural lighting they provided was stunning.

They just don't make things like this any more!  It seems like just about everyone in the class had at least one tale that involved jumping out of windows in the course of their schooling.  I can remember doing so a couple of times.  In the back of the building, covered walk-ways provided a great exit point for the second floor windows.  Not sure the new windows will open as easily as the ones in our day.

The grand finale event was held in a ballroom overlooking the Mississippi River.  We remembered our deceased classmates...12 that we know of....

I am a small group kind of person, so those big extravaganzas are really not my thing, but it wasn't too bad!  I reconnected with a few people and enjoyed catching up with those who were close friends back in the day.

And so here we are today.  School starting soon.  I saw my classroom yesterday.  They painted it last week, and it is a wreck!  I have an idea of the schedule I will have!  First time I can ever remember that happening before school starts.  We are off to a school board meeting in a few minutes - my offspring and I - to try to knock out a requirement for their Eagle rank.

And maybe - since today is Chick Fil A Appreciation day - we will stop there and show a little love.  Love that they are true to their founding principles.  Too bad our country can't say the same.

Edited to add:  We endured the School Board meeting.  Oh my.  Upon leaving, my older offspring remarked, "That's what's wrong with the schools...."  We did go to Chick Fil A.  The picture below shows the line of cars at 7:45 pm waiting to turn in to the parking lot.  We parked and went inside.  Took about 15 or 20 minutes to get our food.  At that point in the day, they were out of chicken strips, grilled chicken and some salads.  We saw several people we knew.  One family had matching One Nation Under God t-shirts.  Another was taking pictures at the table.

Till next time....

reunion anticipation

Oh...how I am missing my laptop.  The screen has stopped working. So my options for blogging are to use the desktop or to disconnect the monitor from the desktop and connect it to the laptop (which pretty much turns the laptop into a desktop - just in a different location).  But the desktop is so old and slow, and it has no slot to put the SD card from my camera....

It makes blogging harder than it should be.  And my iPad - as much as I love it - is still not a fully functioning computer.  There are some things that it just does not do and interacting easily with Blogger is one of those things.  And posting pictures....still haven't figured that out.

Nonetheless...

My THIRTY year high school reunion is coming up at the end of this month!  I went ahead and pre-registered.  My high school was such a neat place.

(Image from http://www.waymarking.com )

It was built in 1925, and has undergone major renovations during the past 2 years.  It was a special place to be then, and I am excited to see how it has been updated.  I have memories of climbing out of windows and eating lunch on the front lawn.  When I attended there in the late 70's/early 80's the curriculum had been changed to a magnet format that attracted those interested in academics and fine arts.  Our football, baseball, and basketball teams had been discontinued, but we had gymnastics, cross country, and fencing that no one could touch!  No cheerleaders, but classical ballet and full scale dramatic productions.  Radio and TV stations.  German, Russian, Latin, French and Spanish.  No marching band, but vocal music, orchestras and jazz bands...sometimes playing at lunch.  It was a whole high school of the Geek Squad!

We came from hellacious middle school experiences (judging from this past week's Facebook postings) from all over the parish (the Louisiana equivalent of county).  Some of us arrived our freshman year knowing no one.  But I think the overwhelming majority of us found acceptance and freedom.  Because of that acceptance that I found then, I am not too nervous about our reunion.  We were generally drama free, even if we didn't move in the same circles.

A picture of me and my BFF - probably our Senior year.  I would guess that it is before school, and we are sitting in front of our locker on the third floor, outside of French class doing last minute homework.  I am the stick-figure on the right!

This is a picture of us 20-some-odd years later.... I'm a little sad that she won't be at the reunion...that darn vow of enclosure thing.

But at least a few from our gang will be there.  There is a walking tour of the school scheduled for Saturday morning, and then some of us will be meeting for lunch.  A big shin dig that evening, and that makes me the most nervous.  What if my purse doesn't match my shoes?  I don't like make-up and never wear it.  Should I make an exception?  What about my hair?  It so has a mind of its own,  Should I buy a new dress or just go with one of the two in my closet?  Sigh.

A picture of our gang.  ^^^  My BFF is second from the left. I think the two on the right will be with us on Saturday, plus a couple of others.  We determined that this was taken the morning of graduation rehearsal (probably with my Kodak Instamatic!)  Don't we look ready to take on the world??

So anyway...no real point to my ramblings.  Just recording, documenting, putting the little bit of nervousness and anticipation out there!

Anyone else with reunion anticipation??

blogging from the ipad

Something I have never done - at least not successfully.

My laptop, which I use for blogging, went dark one day last week. The brains still work, but the display - not so much. And hooking it to another display, makes it more of a desktop than laptop.

Have never had any success in adding images to a post using an iPad, and that still holds true. Even trying to use a URL from dropbox, the blogger software sends my image to someplace I have never located.

It has been a long week, but is ending on a good note. Had a great day yesterday visiting parents, grandfather, sister, and Godchild. My sister works at a library bookstore, and I visited and came away with some easy-reader findsnfor my classroom library and some possible spiritual reading for my library. I am most excited by one that I have been looking for -- The Little Prince! I read it in HS, and have been wanting to reread to see if I can catch some of the deeper meanings.

I am sending off the deposit and paperwork for Retrouvaille weekend. Very excited about this. When I saw it in the church bulletin last weekend, I had *that* feeling. Dear hubby agreed readily enough to the weekend, but balked at the follow-up sessions, which ticked me off. However, the local folks said that - while not ideal - I could attend the follow-up sessions alone, and that perhaps after the weekend, he would be more willing. So we are going with that for now.

Quite disappointed by the Supreme Court decision on the healthcare mess. I say pray. And hubs says we need to change the nation. I say prayer is how that happens, and you start with yourself, and go from there.

One of our air conditioning units was out for about a week. It has been replaced (thank you, home warranty), so we are glad about that. It has been hot, and when it is so hot, one feels like doing nothing.

But, alas, the laundry and the dishes, and whatever else await. So I will send this off to cyber blogdom and see what it looks like when it reappears on the other side...

journey

It is a journey that we are on.

I was raised Catholic in an average Catholic household in the 70's.  We went to Catholic schools, where the extent of religion class was "Smile!  God loves you!".  Our family went to Mass on Sundays, confession once or twice a year, and that was about that.  I continued on with that through college and into my 20's.  Then the 30's came.  I was pregnant, tired, and didn't like the new priest we had gotten.  It was easy to skip Mass, and it got even easier when I had a new baby and then, two.  Attending Mass didn't really get any easier with 2 toddlers.

Then 9/11 happened.  I was far away from Ground Zero, but the sense of vulnerability that day caused me to take a good look at where I was, and it wasn't really where I wanted to be.  We went to Mass that Sunday, and we've been going ever since - at least the kids and I, have.  A few months later, after finding no loophole, I went to confession.  I have blogged about that before, and that was really the beginning of an incredible journey for me.

We joined a church not too far from our house.  One Lent 6 or 7 years ago, I thought that I might try to attend daily Mass 3x a week.  Lent had already started when I made that commitment, so I figured 4 or 5 weeks left x 3 was something I could manage.  I did, and it didn't take long before I was hooked!  I felt for so long that it was a well-kept treasure.  It made a difference in my days that I noticed.  There was no Mass on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and it seemed like Thursday would never get here.  When Lent was over, I knew this was a keeper! This was the map and the Food for my journey.

My boys became altar servers, and a year or so in, I offered to do the monthly schedule for the servers.  It gave me a connection to the parish.  It is a job that I continue to enjoy today - a side trip on the journey.

One winter evening, as my boys and I walked to our car after our annual Advent Penance Service, my then-11 year old asked why we only went to confession once a year.  I had no answer for him, but we did start going more often.  Every three months, and then I started looking for opportunities to ask for directions on my journey more often.  (I am female, so I don't mind too much stopping to ask!)

When our present pastor arrived in our parish five or so years ago, one of the things that he said was a passion of his was Adult Education.  After a decade or more of "Smile!  God loves you!"  I jumped at the chance for this.  When he announced it in church, there was *something* that told me that it was for me.  His adult ed takes the form of the Great Adventure Bible Studies.  We have studied Revelations, the Bible Timeline (the 14 Narrative books of the Bible), Matthew, James, and Acts.   Each of these has been wonderful.  I have taken so much away from these studies.  GPS for the journey!

One thing that was a frequent struggle for me was finding time and space for personal prayer.  About a year ago, the Lord showed me that I could find about 20 minutes of time for that in the church near my work before school.  I'm sure some people would think I'm a little crazy going to Mass at one church and then later stopping at another church just to sit with no one there.  But it's a place to gather strength or to rest when I am weary from the journey.  I have also found Adoration chapels, and while I don't have a regular hour, it is a treat when I can sit in the Presence and stay for as long as I need.

I have met fellow travelers, and we have provided each other with mutual conversation and support on the journey.  People at daily Mass, Immaculee, others in our Seven Sorrows Rosary group, co-workers, other moms.

Missing in all of this, is my dearly beloved.  He has chosen not to travel with me on this, for reasons that only he truly knows.  Yes, some of it conflicted with his job, but the job is also an excuse - a way to avoid what just doesn't appeal to him.  And now...we find ourselves in different spots.  Me, very much enjoying the the trip, and him - angry that he has been left behind.  Fearful??  His response now is to try to hold me back.  I have done no more than to try to follow where Jesus has led.  But I am labeled a fanatic - measured by what the rest of the world does or does not do.

I asked my good priest the other night if he offers marriage counseling, and he told me who I could call.  We talked briefly....he knows my situation.  Our Bible study that night had coincidentally (?) mentioned something about Paul being a "fanatic".  I told him I, too, was now a "fanatic".  He looked at me and said, "Karen, I care about you enough that if I saw something that looked out of kilter, I would tell you.  But I don't see anything."  The next morning, we celebrated the Feast of Sts. Philip and James.  His homily centered on the Apostles, how Jesus called them and how he calls each of us.  We are all called to spread the Good News.  But just as the first original Apostles were martyred, we don't have to look far beyond our immediate family....spouse, children.... to find those whom the Gospel makes uncomfortable.  And we are called to respond with fidelity to His call.  I knew that homily was meant for me.  Encouragement and prayers for the journey.

More encouagement at Mass this weekend.  ...and everyone that does [bear fruit] he prunes so that it will bear more fruit.  Is God pruning??  Remain in me, as I remain in you.  Exactly what I plan on doing!!

ten things about me that you might not know...link up

Linking this up with my friend Allison (albeit a bit late...) on Rambling Follower.  Join me, if you wish.

By the time I get to the end, it might be "10 things you don't really care if you ever knew"...but anyways....

1.   I am of German, Hungarian, and Irish ancestry (in that order, I think), but I am married to a Cajun.

2.  I have been teaching for 25 years, and all but a year and a half of that has been with Middle School Special Education.  My first semester was with K-3 special ed, and I spent one very long year teaching a regular class of 29 fourth graders.

3.   I was born in Wichita Falls, TX, but have lived all but the first year of my life in Louisiana.  Most of my cousins, aunts/uncles, etc, still live in Texas, and as kids we visited often.  My siblings and I have all thanked my parents for moving.  Apologies to any readers who live in north Texas Tornado Alley.

4.  I was in a tornado once.  I was in second grade, and my brother was in Kindergarten.  I was in the church at school, and I remember a section of roof flying off.  And there was glass everywhere, and the new carpet was ruined.  And the priest was walking around inside the church with his umbrella open afterwards.  I was scared of bad weather for a long time after.

5.  I am far more likely to write about something than to talk about something.

6.  I am an introvert.  My husband is an extrovert.  Endless talking about useless stuff makes me crazy.

7.  There are a lot of things I do not share with my husband.  I wish he listened better.  Conversation shouldn't be a competition.  I have a best friend that I can share anything with.  She listens and she "gets" what I am saying.  I wish she didn't live 1200 miles away.

8.  Death does not scare me.  Suffering does.  But I try not to live life in fear.  Fear is a lack of trust in God.  Suffering is a tool that God uses to make us more like Him and bring us closer to Him.  If we allow it.

9. I have 2 brothers and a sister.  I am the oldest.  There are 17 months between me and my first brother.  Six years between him and my second brother.  And six more years between him and my sister.  My husband has an older brother and a younger sister...all within a 3 year age span.

10.  I am closely watching the weather.  While I was writing this post, I gathered my offspring (woke one up) and headed into the laundry room.  I could hear the wind howling, and then I saw hail.  Along with tornado warnings, etc.

Bonus.  I could probably keep going, but I will spare you!

If you are so inspired, you can create a similar post and put the link in your comments.