Looking Back at a Year of COVID

 COVID has been with us for a year.  A whole year!  By now, everyone knows at least one person who has had COVID or who has died from it.  It has changed our ways of life dramatically.  It has especially had a profound impact on the way that we worship.  Private prayer has seen an increase, and that is both good and bad.  Remember, the reason we go to church is not because we love the building.  It is not because the music is wonderful.  It is not because we like the priest.  (Though all of these things can enhance our experience of worship.)  It is not even because we like the people who go to our particular church.  It is because we need to be a part of a community.  We get a sense of that community when we participate in online forms of worship – watching pre-recorded or livestreamed Mass or other prayer.  But nothing can take the place of gathering together, praying together, being together.

Now, a year into COVID, we have the option of three vaccines, which will soon be available to larger portions of the general population.  Soon, this will allow us to gather together safely once more.  We need to remember Jesus’ words, “Be not afraid.”  We would also do well to remember something that our former Bishop, George Niederauer often said.  “Jesus did not say, ‘Go take a hike, in remembrance of me.’ He said, ‘Do this [offer the sacrifice of the Mass] in remembrance of me.’”

Consider this your invitation from Jesus and from the Church as a whole to return.  Come back, and be fed, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually.  The door is always open.   

Preparing for Easter Now

 

Easter is a little more than a month away.  For some, a month may seem like a long time, and it is when you consider that a year is made up of twelve months.  But, it is also a relatively short amount of time.  Every day brings us closer to the holiest time of our Church Year – Holy Week, the Paschal Triduum, and the Easter season.  We would do well to prepare now for what lies ahead.

For our catechumens, who became Elect on the First Sunday of Lent, this is a time of intense preparation for receiving their sacraments at the Easter Vigil.  Our students preparing to receive their First Communion went to their first Confessions this week.  Yes, for those who are preparing to receive sacraments for the first time, this is a very exciting time.  For those of us who are cradle Catholics, or who have been Catholic for years, however, we might find ourselves slipping into the doldrums of Lent – slogging through these weeks of prayer, fasting, and abstinence to arrive at the final “reward” of lifted restrictions that Easter brings.  We may be eager for Easter, but for entirely different reasons.

How can we prepare for Easter now?  Lent is, after all, the season that the Church gives us to prepare ourselves – minds, bodies, and souls – for Easter itself and the season that follows.  Here are a few suggestions:

•        Go to Stations of the Cross.  If you aren’t comfortable going in-person, several parishes in the diocese are livestreaming them, or you can pray them privately at home.
•          Go to Confession.  Confession times at St. Ambrose are 3:00 to 5:00 pm on Wednesdays, 3:00 to 4:40 pm on Saturdays, or Fridays during Stations of the Cross (approximately 6:30 to 7:00 pm).
•          Take some extra time to pray each day.
•          Make an extra sacrifice – fast or abstain on a day other than Friday.
•          Give to the CRS Rice Bowl – either through a Rice Bowl throughout Lent, or make a one-time donation during Holy Week.

Whatever you do in these weeks of Lent, prepare your heart to receive the risen Jesus at Easter and to rejoice fully in the ultimate sacrifice he made for us through his death on the cross.

The Bible and Lent

 The way the lectionary is structured gives us a wonderful way to prepare our hearts for Holy Week.  Through the daily Gospel readings, we see Jesus preparing his disciples for his passion, and he also prepares us to recall these events in his earthly life.  Remember, God, who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, exists outside of time.  Each time we celebrate Mass, we commemorate, but we also re-present (make present again) Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.  Recalling that God exists outside of time may make it easier for us to believe that Jesus died for all, even those of us who live thousands of years after the historical events of Jesus’ passion.

When we read the Bible with this in mind, it may be easier for us to think about the Old Testament God speaking to us too through his prophets, about Jesus teaching us too, about the wondrous historical events as affecting us too today.  If you are looking for a way to increase your prayer this Lent, take a look at the daily scripture readings, and try to read them as God speaking directly to you in your present circumstances.  How does that change the way you read and hear even very familiar scripture passages?

What We Can Learn from Celebrating Candlemas

 This week, Cosgriff and St. Ambrose Parish Religious Education will present the students preparing for First Communion.  St. Ambrose Parish Religious Education will also recognize those students preparing for Confirmation, while Cosgriff will recognize those students next week.  It is fitting that these presentations and recognitions are occurring at this time of year, because next Tuesday, February 2nd, is the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple, known in the days of the early Church as Candlemas.

At his presentation, Simeon recognized Jesus as “a light for revelation to the Gentiles” (Luke 2:32).  Thus, the traditional name of this feast, Candlemas, signifies the important liturgical action the Church takes on this Feast of blessing candles to be used in the upcoming year.  Our Gospel reading for today from Mark 4 points to Jesus as the Light – the lamp that is brought in to give light to the whole house.  Jesus shows us the way, and hopefully, we follow Him.

As we present and pray for our young people over the course of the next two weeks, let us pray especially that Jesus will enlighten the eyes of their hearts, and show them the way to live as true Christians and Catholics.

The Benefits of Year B

The Catholic Church has three cycles of Sunday readings:  Year A when Sunday Gospels during Ordinary Time are usually from Matthew, Year B when they are mostly from Mark with some from John, and Year C when they are mostly from Luke.  Especially in these early weeks of Ordinary Time, I think there is a distinct benefit to our Year B readings.  It is the benefit of multiple perspectives.

As an English major in college, I studied literary analysis and writing as a craft.  I have always enjoyed creative writing as a hobby, but studying it gave me a greater appreciation for what it takes to be a compelling writer.  As I read and write now, years removed from my college studies, I find that I notice and appreciate differences in writing style.  Year B gives us the opportunity to experience these differences, to “see” the events portrayed in the Gospels through the eyes of different authors.  Each evangelist had their own distinct motivation for writing the way that he did and for a specific audience.  Because we hear from both Mark and John regularly during the periods of Ordinary Time in Year B, we benefit from these differing motivations.

In the early weeks of Ordinary Time, we hear first of Jesus’ Baptism and then we hear the deeper significance of it.  We see Jesus’ apostles coming to him in a variety of ways, but always staying with him of their own free will.  We are given many examples of the healing works that Jesus performed.  And because Mark is the shortest of the four Gospels, he doesn’t dither around, but gets straight to the point.  This is how it happened.  This is why it is the way it is.

In our Gospels from John, we are shown the deeper, more mystical truths of who Jesus is and the effects of his actions.  John is all about symbolism and the weight that it carries.  He writes in a much more artistic style, drawing us in to the mystery of Jesus as fully human and fully divine, in contrast to Mark’s very straightforward, almost journalistic approach.

It is good to have exposure to multiple forms and genres of writing.  It makes the act of reading much more interesting.  Hopefully, having a variety of writing styles presented to us in Year B helps us to be more attentive to the Gospels in particular and to the Mass as a whole.

When Should We "Curb Our Enthusiasm"?

 I was quite honestly disappointed by events in the news over the last few days.  First, there was the coverage of the opening of the new US Congress, touted as the “most diverse Congress.”  The US has elected the “most diverse Congress ever” for several years in a row now.  That wasn’t what was disappointing to me though.  What was disappointing was when, at the end of the invocation, Representative Emanuel Cleaver of Missouri closed with “Amen and Awoman.”  Quite apart from being complete nonsense, this tramples on literal millennia of the use of “Amen” as an expression of belief.  It is encouraging that as “One nation, under God,” the US Congress opens with an ecumenical prayer, but leave the politics out of it, especially if, in an apparent attempt to acknowledge diversity, you do so in a way that distracts from the purpose of prayer in the first place!

The second event that had me disappointed was the actions of the protesters at the US Capitol in disrupting the acknowledgment of the count of electoral college votes and ultimately causing the evacuation of the capitol yesterday.  Whether you agree or disagree with the outcome of this election, it is no excuse to resort to senseless violence.  The US Constitution gives us the right to protest, this is true, but it is the right to peaceful protest.  Further, in it’s document Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship, the USCCB quotes our patron, St. Ambrose:  “Prudence enables us ‘to discern our true good in every circumstance and to choose the right means of achieving it.’ (Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 1806” (quoted in paragraph 19).  It goes on to say in paragraph 20, “We have a responsibility to discern carefully which public policies are morally sound.  Catholics may choose different ways to respond to compelling social problems, but we cannot differ on our moral obligation to help build a more just and peaceful world through morally acceptable means, so that the weak and vulnerable are protected and human rights and dignity are defended” (emphasis added).

Further, paragraph 52 reminds us, “We are one human family, whatever our national, racial, ethnic, economic, and ideological differences.”

Obviously, emotions have been running high, discontent has been growing, and none of it has been made any easier by the restrictions imposed by the pandemic.  People are upset.  But it is important not to allow emotions to prevail over reason.

We are told repeatedly in scripture and in the writings of the Saints to trust in God.  Trust in his will.  God is so much bigger than us.  He is unknowable in his entirety to our feeble human minds.  Similarly, our human actions, while known to him, cannot influence the ultimate outcome of his plan.  As we come to the end of this Christmas Season, let us strive to say, with Mary our Mother, Thy will be done.

Putting 2020 in the Rearview Mirror

It has been two months since I have written for this blog.  I have missed it.  I hope to be able to resume regular posts in 2021.

2020 certainly has presented us with many challenges, changes, and disappointments.  The “new normal” remains elusive.  The shorter, darker days of winter have arrived.  But, as Christians, and especially as Catholics, we have hope for the future.  Jesus is born for us, as we recall each Christmas, and He remains with us always, as long as we do not lose sight of Him.

It is equally important not to lose sight of what 2020 has brought us and taught us, no matter how much we might want to forget some, if not most, of it.  Here are a few things I learned from 2020:

• There is usually a way to adapt your routine to fit a certain set of restrictions.  Change is hard at any time, yes, but it is not impossible.

• Just because “we’ve always done it this way,” it doesn’t mean there isn’t an equally effective way to do it differently, and more safely.

• Time with family is precious.  Enjoy it when you can, whether it be virtual or socially distant.

• Connecting with people in some way is good for the soul, even for those of us who are introverts!

• Work isn’t the be-all, end-all of life.  Finding time for hobbies is crucial to staying sane.

• God never abandons us.  Lean on Him when times get tough.

What lessons from 2020 will you carry forward into the new year?  What are you looking forward to being different in 2021?

Blog Hiatus

 

The blog will be taking a hiatus for the next several weeks.  We hope to be back to our regular posting schedule soon!

In the meantime, please enjoy some of our previous content about the rosary!

My Developing Relationship with the Rosary (originally posted October 2018)

What Have You Gotten Used To?

 There are many things in our lives that we tend to take for granted.  We have gotten so used to these things that we don’t realize just how fortunate we are to have them or have access to them.  Before the Pandemic (BP?), there were many things, I’m sure, which we discovered we had taken for granted when they were no longer as easily accessible.

Think how easy it was Before Pandemic to get your weekly groceries.  Think how automatic it was.  Now, there are many extra considerations involved with just going to the store.  Can we afford a certain item this week?  Do we really need it now after all, or is it something that can wait?  Think how automatic it might have been to send the kids to school each day.  Now, it could be a mess of deciding who needs the family computer the most at any given time for home-based learning, or it could be an added item to the checklist to make sure that everyone has the required mask among their other materials for school.

Life has changed.  Things we took for granted are no longer certainties.  Things we thought would always be there just aren’t anymore.  Even seemingly mundane tasks are no longer quite so simple.  How are we reacting?  And who, in our immediate circles, is watching how we react?  We can be certain that the ever-present and all-knowing God is watching us.  And yes, He knows why we are reacting the way we are.  He knows what our choices will be before we make them, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t our choices to make still. He knows our thoughts and motivations.  It can become easy to take even God for granted. 

How can you strive to keep God a welcome presence in your life?  How can you make your relationship with Him stronger and more intentional?

Hearing God in the Silences

 As I originally wrote this blog on Thursday of this past week, I could hear my neighbor’s generators humming in the background.  This week sure threw us a curveball with the Great 2020 Windstorm (as I have been calling it) affecting the Wasatch Front.  I was very fortunate to have power myself, but across the street, they were still in the dark up until yesterday (Friday) afternoon, if not for a generator providing some small amount of electricity.

It’s amazing how much we as a society have come to rely on electricity, especially in recent decades with the advent of the World Wide Web and almost ever-present technology in our lives.  I can sympathize with our neighbor kids who couldn’t participate in online learning or anything else online due to a lack of electricity and internet connection for the past few days.  Our own Vaughan Center was still “in the dark” as of Thursday.

Such natural disasters are often classified as “acts of God,” sometimes even for insurance purposes.  Let’s examine that terminology and thinking a little closer.  Yes, God can act in grand and sometimes even destructive ways.  We see this in the symbolism of Genesis when God the Father sent the Flood over the entire earth, when He destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, and when He scattered the people and confused their language at Babel.  But there are also times in the Old Testament when God acts in a much more subtle way.  We read in 1 Kings 19:11-12, that God was not in the great rushing wind, but rather in a still small voice, or according to the NABRE translation, “a light silent sound.”

Often, we are tempted to look for God in the grand gestures.  We ask Him for a sign.  How often do we take time to be still and listen for God in the silences?  He is always at work.  We just have to put in some effort to see it sometimes.

Where Two or Three are Gathered

 I read a reflection for this coming Sunday’s Gospel reading earlier this week which indicated that the familiar passage, “Where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them,” (Matthew 18:20) might be taken as alarming due to our current situation.  How are we to know that those two or three are doing everything they can to limit the spread of the virus?

Personally, I see this as a hopeful passage for this moment in human history.  Even though we are not able to gather in larger groups safely, God is still with us.  He is always with us.  Further, if we entrust our prayers to God, we can be sure that He listens to them, whether or not we get the answer that we want, and whether we do so as individuals or as a community.  Of course, having a community behind you can’t do any harm.

This is an excellent moment for us to consider how we are reacting to our current situation.  Are we being prudent and cautious?  Are we being alarmist and potentially over-reacting?  Are we being reckless and careless toward those we might interact with on a regular basis?  Take some time for reflection, and try to discern how you can strike a balance between caution and practicality.

Above all, put your trust in God.  He will never abandon you, no matter how isolated you may feel.

Trust the Process

 We all have our own way of doing things.  When that way comes into conflict with someone else’s, it can lead to tension.  Sometimes, the other way is actually more efficient than our way and it leads to good changes in our own processes.  Other times, a different way just doesn’t work for us.  That’s okay.  We can respectfully move on with our lives, being grateful for the exposure to a different method, but leaving it for the other person to take advantage of.

The problem is, that is not what we as humans are inclined to do.  We may want to rebel.  We may want to change everyone else, to bring them around to our way of doing things because our way is obviously better (in our minds, at least).

This can lead to difficulties when we come up against a process that doesn’t work for us, but is the required way of completing a task.  When this happens, it helps to stop and try to understand why this way doesn’t work for us.  What can we learn about the way it must be done that might make it easier for us?  What might we need to change about ourselves in order to make it easier?

Rigidity can turn into a very bad thing if it is not maintained for good reason.

Often, you might hear the phrase “Trust the process” in regard to behavioral changes that are meant to better ourselves.  The same can be said for much more mundane processes, such as planning for an event and facing hurdles along the way.  What are we meant to learn from this struggle?  Is it something about ourselves?  Is it something about the process itself?  Is it meant to be a larger life lesson for us?

If you find yourself struggling to adapt as we enter the beginnings of our “new normal,” think about these things.  Take your struggles and feelings of uncertainty to God.  He is always present in our church buildings in the Eucharist, and He is always with us, even when it might feel as if He has abandoned us.  Never lose hope and faith in Him.

Everything I Really Need to Know, I Learned from...

 It has been a running joke in my family that we “kids” (adults now, but we’ll always be the “kids” to our parents) can quote just about any Disney movie from our formative years at length.  This includes a LOT of Winnie the Pooh.  My dad is known to lament our lack of knowledge of “the greats” like Shakespeare, in such depth…  To which I respond:  “Life’s but a walking shadow – a poor player who struts and frets his hour on the stage and then is heard no more” (“Macbeth”, Act 5 Scene 5).  In other words:  Life is short.  Let us get our enjoyment where we can!

Give us a lead in, and we’ll give you a quote. My sister-in-law is a self-proclaimed Disney addict, so now, it’s even more true.  Disney has a life lesson for just about every situation.  It’s true, some of the older Disney animated classics are “problematic” when viewed through the lens of our modern world, but that doesn’t mean the life lessons and core values are any less meaningful.

Some examples:

Jiminy Cricket from Pinocchio – “Let your conscience be your guide.”

Dumbo – Be accepting of those who are different from you.

Thumper from Bambi – “If you can’t say somethin’ nice, don’t say nothin’ at all.”

Cinderella – “I know it isn’t easy, but we should all at least try to get along with one other.”

Alice in Wonderland – “‘Be patient,’ is very good advice, but the waiting makes me curious.”

Peter Pan – “Sooner or later … people have to grow up.”

Sleeping Beauty – Perseverance in the face of adversity and evil.

One Hundred and One Dalmatians – Taking charge of a situation. – “The humans have tried everything, now it’s up to us dogs.”

The Aristocats – Not judging based solely on first appearances

The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh – Acceptance of people as they are (Rabbit accepting Tigger for who he is) and the importance of loyalty

Beauty and the Beast – Looking beyond someone’s outward appearance to the person they are inside

Pocahontas – Respect for nature and respect for other cultures

The Emperor’s New Groove – Respecting others and not being full of oneself.

Ratatouille – following your dreams – You can be anything you set your mind to being.

There are, of course, many, many more.  What are some of your favorite life lessons and Disney quotes?

Constant Vigilance is Unrealistic for Us but NOT for God

You know why everyone pretty much ignored Mad-Eye Moody (or really Barty Crouch Jr., who was pretending to be Mad-Eye Moody) in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire?  Probably because he was always harping on about constant vigilance, and people were tired.  People were tired of having to keep their guard up all the time.  They had lived through eleven years of Voldemort, followed by thirteen years of relative calm and they thought the worst was over.  Not Moody!  He knew what would happen when and if he relaxed, and it did.

Constantly being on alert is tiring.  We are tempted to give up when things get difficult or drag on for weeks or months on end.  We are merely human after all.  But that is not how God works.  God can maintain constant vigilance because He is a divine being.  He does not suffer the same “weaknesses” of humanity.  That is why we can and should always place our trust in Him.

Fr. Erik mentioned in his homily this past weekend that if God ever stopped caring for us, we would simply cease to exist.  This same theme comes up in our Gospel reading for this coming Sunday.  Peter goes to Jesus across the water of the Sea of Galilee and when he starts to doubt, he begins to sink.  But Jesus is there to lift him up again and help him back on the path of following him.

When our vigilance wavers, God is always there waiting for us to return to Him.  In what ways have you lost your path, and how can you ask for help to return to God?

Affirmations for Making it Through Your Day

I get it.  There are some days when it’s just hard to keep going.  These kinds of days may have become more frequent since we have been dealing with COVID-19 restrictions and restructuring of work and school routines, not to mention simple, everyday routines like going to the grocery store or taking a walk.  Something that might help in dealing with the stress of facing yet more weeks of the ominous “unknown” might be coming up with an affirmation to repeat to yourself throughout the day.

One that I am particularly fond of, which I have as my laptop wallpaper is a saying popularized by John and Hank Green of YouTube fame.  Just some of their channels include vlogbrothers, scishow, and crashcourse if you want to check them out.  They remind each other, as well as their YouTube audience, “Don’t forget to be awesome” or “DFTBA” for short.  I like this one because it is an invitation to evaluate my own behavior.  It is a chance for me to think about the consequences of my actions, in the immediate sense as well as in the near and distant future.  Also, it ties into a pop-culture trend I was a fan of in my college years.

Another affirmation I am reminded of recently is one of my grandmother’s sayings.  “Don’t be that helpless.”  Take control of your situation as much as you can.  Don’t just be a spectator in life.  I shared this affirmation with a group of music teachers who invited my mom and me to be a part of their Katinka Day, in honor of my grandmother being the founder of their organization chapter.

An affirmation we get from a saint is St. Julian of Norwich’s “All will be well.  All manner of things will be well.”  It never hurts to have a hopeful outlook on life, even when the situation seems dire.  It’s a good reminder that things won’t be terrible and awful forever.

And of course, there is the classic, “Keep Calm and Carry On,” which speaks for itself.

What affirmations do you use or might you use to help you get through rough days?

Parabolic Language

Is “parabolic” a word?

Yes, it is, but not in the sense I would like it to be for the purposes of this blog!  We’re in the summer months of Ordinary Time, and especially in Year A (this year’s cycle), we’re hearing a lot of parables about the Kingdom of God.  Jesus told parables to make things easier for merely human minds to comprehend.  After all, the true nature of God, and of Jesus Christ possessing both a fully human and fully divine nature, is hard for us to wrap our heads around.  Some older Catholics might recall being told, “It’s a mystery!  We’re not meant to understand it.”  But, Jesus tries to make it easier for us to try to understand by putting heavenly realities into earthly context.

This past Sunday, we heard about the weeds and the wheat, the mustard seed, and yeast leavening dough.  The week before, we heard about different kinds of soil.  But it goes beyond the physical elements of each simile.  As Father Erik mentioned in his homily on Sunday, It’s not about the seed itself.  It’s not about the soil.  It’s about our souls and the being open to God’s Word at work in our lives.

This is what I would like to call parabolic language!  It isn’t hyperbolic – making something grander than it actually is.  it’s making things more relatable!

Yes, Have Trust, But Be Prepared Too

This past weekend, I got to put the saying, “courage under fire” to a very literal test.  Saturday’s Crestwood Fire was mere streets away from my house.  I never thought I would ever spend an evening eating dinner and watching flames out the kitchen window.  I never thought I’d ever be so close to a wildfire that I could actually witness an air tanker dropping water or a crop duster plane dropping retardant.  To be quite honest, it’s an experience I hope I never have to repeat.

Smoke from the Crestwood Fire:

 

The resulting burn scar:

It was one of those moments when you realize, it can actually happen to you.  Those events in life, like natural disasters or personal tragedies, that always seem to affect other people can and will affect you too.  I also think it’s interesting to look at people’s responses to these kinds of events.  My parents took the view of wait and see what happens.  My neighbor across the street went closer to the fire to check it out.  I was of the opinion that, since fires can be unpredictable, we should be ready to evacuate.  I was running contingency plans through my brain at a pretty decent clip.

At first glance, my response might not seem very trusting, either in the first responders or in the power of God’s protection.  BUT, there is a saying, “God helps those who help themselves.”  Yes, it is important to trust in God, but if you don’t take action on your own and use the gifts He has given you to respond to these kinds of events, are you really trusting fully in God and recognizing how He is working in your life?

Thanks be to God, the firefighters were able to get control of the fire before it got out of hand.  No homes were affected, and no one was hurt.  It could have been so much worse.  That doesn’t mean it wasn’t unsettling still.  It was definitely a reality check, a wake up call. 

“It” can happen to you.  Inevitably, it will.  What will your response be?

Kindred Spirits in a Time of Pandemic

Okay, I’ll admit it, I’m a millennial.  I grew up in the time of almost nobody having a computer at home, and now, almost everyone has one.  I still marvel at the fact that schools now are working toward a one-to-one student-to-device ratio, because that’s just how education works right now (especially with online learning and home-based instruction).  When I was in elementary school, first at Cosgriff and then at the Madeleine Choir School shortly after it opened, “computer class” was Oregon Trail, and typing games, and that was pretty much it.  When I got to high school at Judge, the library had two rows of big chunky iMac computers.  I didn’t have e-mail until college, and I didn’t have social media until my second year of undergrad.  Now, technology has taken over almost everyone’s lives, right down to toddlers who can navigate an iPhone.  Life moves pretty fast sometimes.

When I was growing up, “screen time” wasn’t a thing.  If someone referred to screen time it meant how long a certain actor was actually on-screen during a movie or television show.  Now, that phrase is used to refer to the amount of time people spend on the computer or looking at their mobile device.  I’ll admit, I spend way too much of my time engaged in “screen time.”  I can justify some of it as necessary to do my job, but a lot of it, I could probably do without.

But even with its definite downsides, technology can serve to connect us during times of social isolation, like the last several months have been.  It can serve to create a virtual community.  It can connect us to our “brick and mortar” communities when we aren’t able to visit them in the physical world.  One can also find groups of like-minded people to connect with.  An example of this is Fr. Gray’s morning coffees with his St. Mary’s parishioners in Park City over Facebook Live.  Using technology to build community rather than to escape from it is a wonderful thing.

At St. Ambrose, we on staff have been working hard since the pandemic restrictions really began to impact our city and state to keep people connected to the parish through social media and YouTube Masses.  We are learning and evolving together.  Let us hope and pray that technology will help us to remain kindred spirits in community even during isolation.

If It's Broken, Fix It!

Here we are in a new month.  Finally.  Or is it already?  Or is it both?  Time can be funny like that, seemingly plodding along when one is in the thick of things and then seeming to have flown by.  The beginning of a new month typically feels like a good time for me to hit the “reset” button.  July usually is doubly so because it’s my birthday month.  It’s a good time to take mental stock – what has been a distraction?  What has been a detriment to me in the last month that I can try to get rid of?  What was a good and constructive way to spend my time?  How can I budget more time for the good activities and less for the detrimental ones?

Typically, one of my monthly “resolutions” will have to do with taking care of certain things I’ve been neglecting to do, whether in my secular life or in my spiritual life.  I ask myself, what feels broken or out of place?  Can I do something about it, or is it out of my control?  If I can do something about it, how can I fix it?  Do I need help to fix it?  How can I get help if I need it?  It’s an interesting mental exercise to go through, and most of the time, if there is a problem in my secular life, adding something to my spiritual life is a good way to try to fix what is “broken.”

Is there something in your life that feels “broken” right now?  Do you have control over it?  If you do, what could you add or change to “fix” it?

Taking Stock

My brother and his wife were over this past weekend to celebrate Father’s Day with my parents and me.  After dinner, my mom sent all of us down into the basement to go through what seemed like mountains and mountains of STUFF.  (I can hear Mrs. May, my sixth grade religion teacher, in my head right now…  “Stuff is not a word!”)  This was the moment to go through things in the storage room because we will need to have some major repair work done in the basement soon.

It is sobering to go through years’ and years’ worth of STUFF that has accumulated.  It’s like looking back at a past life.  My brother had “projects” from his years at trade school down there that he looked at wistfully but ultimately resigned to the trash or charity piles.  There’s still quite a bit of stuff down there, and it brings back memories of good times and of bad ones too.

I myself have been doing some cleaning out as well, both of my personal belongings at home and of things at work.  Now that I’m two years in at my job, I know what I use, what I need, and what I can safely give away.  Summer is a good time for me to take stock, since in theory, there are fewer things for me to juggle during the summer months.

If you are finding yourself with extra time on your hands, consider taking stock of your own spaces.  Make piles to throw away, piles to donate, and piles to drop off for the Knights of Columbus garage sale in August.  You never know what you might discover.  And if you can’t use something, there is surely someone out there who can.