A savior is born

You never know how much light you have within, until you try to shine it for others.

The Changing Seasons of Life



Fall

Seasons put my life into perspective. I stare under the trees in the area where I live and know not only that some of them are older than me, but will be here for many generations to come long after I’m gone. It puts things into perspective for me.

In a flash, I have aged.  I have propelled myself through another 5 years in my life.  And before I know it, I’m in my 40s, 50s, and finally 60s.  Decades seem to fly by and before I realize it time can fly by me.

Nowadays, I find ways to ensure that I am enjoying life as much of it as I can and most importantly living the life I want to live



Winter

Life is not a dress rehearsal.  When I was younger, I did not act in the moment because I thought there would always be another moment. No longer do I let so many opportunities and possibilities pass me by.  I pursue every opportunity that presents itself, and try and live as much in the moment as possible.




Spring

It is not always easy.  I lose track of days and weeks that dissolve into months and before I know it, another season has come and gone.  I look back on those days and say, “What do I have to show for the last three months?”  Sometimes, not a lot.  Sometimes I will think only in terms of my work, and put aside my own spiritual and emotional needs.

When a change of season is upon me, I realize that I have to try and as much as possible be a whole person.  And work on all areas in my life as much as possible day to day, week to week, and month to month.

Sure, some weeks, some area may suffer from a little neglect. But I should never let months or seasons go by without paying attention and taking care of my needs.  None of us should.



Summer

Fog can cover you up this morning

This is what it looked like at about 7 a.m. today.

My work hours have been changed.  I am working 6 a.m. through 2:30 p.m. every day Monday through Friday.  How am I doing? Well I always got up at 5:00 a.m. but usually went back to bed.  I used to work at 8:30 until 5 p.m.  It is dark and quiet when getting to work now. And because I live closer to work than anyone in the office, it is not as bad as I thought it would be.  As long as I have a cup of coffee after arriving at work.  It is great leaving before everyone else at the office!  I can get to the gym/pool and make any other appointments late in the day without taking my vacation time. I don't eat after 4 p.m. and my body feels so much better. Wonderful! Just wonderful!   

Early Morning Rain

It is about 5 a.m. You can tell fall is doing its usual turning over with a gentle rain and chill in the early air.  I enjoy rain.  Especially like today.  I admit to wanting to go back to bed and sleep.  Yet, being out in the early morning before the traffic, the crowds, and the noise of the day gives me time to just enjoy the quiet.  The rain nourishes the earth.  It nourishes me.

Pope Francis' Sunday Mass homily concluding the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia

"Jesus says, “Do not hold back anything that is good, instead help it to grow!” To raise doubts about the working of the Spirit, to give the impression that it cannot take place in those who are not “part of our group”, who are not “like us”, is a dangerous temptation. Not only does it block conversion to the faith; it is a perversion of faith! Faith opens a “window” to the presence and working of the Spirit. It shows us that, like happiness, holiness is always tied to little gestures."

Pope Francis at Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility near Philadelphia

"All of us have something we need to be cleansed of, or purified from. May the knowledge of that fact inspire us to live in solidarity, to support one another and seek the best for others.

Let us look to Jesus, who washes our feet. He is "the way, and the truth, and the life". He comes to save us from the lie that says no one can change. He helps us to journey along the paths of life and fulfillment. May the power of his love and his resurrection always be a path leading you to new life."

Pope Francis at Sts. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Philadelphia

""What about you?" It is significant that those words of the elderly Pope were also addressed to a lay woman. We know that the future of the Church in a rapidly changing society will call, and even now calls, for a much more active engagement on the part of the laity. The Church in the United States has always devoted immense effort to the work of catechesis and education. Our challenge today is to build on those solid foundations and to foster a sense of collaboration and shared responsibility in planning for the future of our parishes and institutions. This does not mean relinquishing the spiritual authority with which we have been entrusted; rather, it means discerning and employing wisely the manifold gifts which the Spirit pours out upon the Church. In a particular way, it means valuing the immense contribution which women, lay and religious, have made and continue to make, to the life of our communities."

Pope Francis and Archbishop Charles J. Chaput


Pope Francis at Madison Square Garden

"The Gospels tell us how many people came up to Jesus to ask: “Master, what must we do?” The first thing that Jesus does in response is to propose, to encourage, to motivate. He keeps telling his disciples to go, to go out. He urges them to go out and meet others where they really are, not where we think they should be. Go out, again and again, go out without fear, without hesitation. Go out and proclaim this joy which is for all the people. "

I want to cook you soup that warms your soul

Pope Francis from 911 Memorial

"Here, amid pain and grief, we also have a palpable sense of the heroic goodness which people are capable of, those hidden reserves of strength from which we can draw. In the depths of pain and suffering, you also witnessed the heights of generosity and service. Hands reached out, lives were given. In a metropolis which might seem impersonal, faceless, lonely, you demonstrated the powerful solidarity born of mutual support, love and self-sacrifice. No one thought about race, nationality, neighborhoods, religion or politics. It was all about solidarity, meeting immediate needs, brotherhood. It was about being brothers and sisters. New York City firemen walked into the crumbling towers, with no concern for their own well-being. Many succumbed; their sacrifice enabled great numbers to be saved."

Pope Francis at the United Nations

I thought of the people living in West Virginia when I heard this from Pope Francis at the United Nations in New York City.

“The misuse and destruction of the environment are also accompanied by a relentless process of exclusion. In effect, a selfish and boundless thirst for power and material prosperity leads both to the misuse of available natural resources and to the exclusion of the weak and disadvantaged, either because they are differently abled (handicapped), or because they lack adequate information and technical expertise, or are incapable of decisive political action. Economic and social exclusion is a complete denial of human fraternity and a grave offense against human rights and the environment. The poorest are those who suffer most from such offenses, for three serious reasons: they are cast off by society, forced to live off what is discarded and suffer unjustly from the abuse of the environment. They are part of today’s widespread and quietly growing “culture of waste”.

Pope Francis at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City

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"Remembrance of the amazement which our encounter with Jesus Christ awakens in our hearts. To seek the grace of remembrance so as to grow in the spirit of gratitude.  Perhaps we need to ask ourselves: are we good at counting our blessings?"

There are Wolves in the World

It seems as though there has been a lot of changes for me in the last few months. My ongoing conversation with God has been restless and fidgety lately. I try to see the events in my life through a spiritual lens.  And I try hard to understand others from inside out instead of outside in.  But I muddle.  People can be rude and laugh at things that are really divisive. They are actually mean and they just love leaving others out.  They love social cliques.  It’s the story of the “in crown” versus the “out crowd”.  I guess it is human to feel hurt and annoyed.  As you have already guessed, I am in the “out-crowd” at least with this group.  Is it time to shake the dust from my feet and just move on?   I can't completely let go due to the fact I work with these people.  But perhaps I can mentally remove myself from the situation.  I can only change how I react and how I take care of feelings. When it comes to wolves in the world, I just don’t want to squander away my time.  But then again, maybe they are the ones who need my time.

Four Examples in American History

Pope Francis lifts up four examples in American history to the U.S. Congress:
Dorothy Day:  WORK,  Martin Luther King, Jr.:  JUSTICE, Abraham Lincoln:  FREEDOM; and Thomas Merton:  FAITH.

Chaging the tone of the Catholic Church

Journalist, Paul Vallely discusses the reforms Francis is making.

Can you make 3 meals for $4 a day?

Good and Cheap

Audrey's First Flower Garden

My grand niece wanted to grow sunflowers.  These were her first at age four.

I really enoy America's Test Kitchen on the Radio!

We make the mistakes in the kitchen, so that you don't have to.

Zoning Out Can Make You More Productive

"Unless we turn off the information faucet from our devices, most of the information we take in is just going down the drain."

Helen's Poem

From the left, My Aunt Helen, my mom, June, and Aunt Alberta, standing the in the middle of C&O Railroad train tracks.  Approximate date was year 1942 or 1943

Coal Tatoo

Even the Pope can't break coal's grip on W.Va.

THINK

I have this posted on the wall next to my computer at work.  Just a reminder to be constructive and optimistic.

Before you speak:

THINK
T...is it true?
H...is it helpful?
I...is it inspiring?
N...is it necessary?
K...is it kind?

If Roses Grow in Heaven Lord

Today is the day my mother died 14 years ago.  I miss her still.

 

Left Brain, Right Brain

Day 33

Earth Day

Spring Flowers in Bloom at the State Capitol Complex

Blossoms at the State Capitol Campus

Alleluia!

Faith

Brain

Holy Week

 “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.
Luke 23:46

The Choices We Make

The choices we make.  How about all the decisions we make every day, whether good or bad.  Are they good or bad?  Or just decisions.  It is not until it is 20, 30, or every 40 years later we realize those choices were maybe not the right decisions.  At lease that is how we feel sometimes.  But then again, maybe they were the right decisions at the time?  We don’t think about it until we are yearning for another life.  But then again, maybe the other possibilities in our life even though may have seemed better for us may have in some way been worse for us.  Those decisions may have steered us to make damaging mistakes or lead us to be in different circumstances that would have been more detrimental for us.

I think of the different jobs I have had.  If I had stayed would it have been better?  When I left was it better?  All I was thinking was this new job is a better opportunity.  I think about all the places I have live.  Each place had it give and takes.  And all the people and the relationships, was one better or worse?  Or did they have their give and takes?  And as for myself; there are changes I made or did not make within myself.

Is the greener pasture better or worse?  Maybe I was meant to live in a different terrain; territory; country?  Be and work with another group of different people.  Have an entirely different life plan?  I cannot know.  None of us can know.  All we have is the present moment.  Looking back is useless unless there was a lesson or love.  All we can do is to make the most of the present moment no matter what the circumstance.  We can make changes only with ourselves and take each day as a gift.  

Hawks Nest Covered in Ice

The enervation of moving stuff

Everything I own is in my little apartment on the East End of Charleston where I live.

My rent has gone up, again. And my landlord has not made any upgrades or improved my apartment. It needs painted, it needs new carpet, it needs newer appliances (refrigerator, stove), it needs more heat, and the bathtub needs reglazing. Obviously, I have been looking for another place to live. But it looks like all the landlords in the valley have upped their rents at the same time.

It’s getting harder to find more affordable apartments these days. My landlord has gone as far as telling me he will be increasing the rent again sometime in the near future.  But in the meantime, I am going through my apartment and decluttering, organizing all the stuff I own. Stuff accumulates while you’re living. Unfortunately, there are things given to me as gifts that I haven’t really used or wanted. I have research notes for writing projects, texts leftover from college, and cards and letters, and candles, and seasonal plates, and my paintings that I haven’t mounted on the walls. It’s sort of sad, really. I play guitar. I have sheet music and recordings, and picks, and…There are my photographs, and negatives in contact sleeves, and stuff to develop photos with…and…tools. I found three hammers in my apartment in different places. What happened? Did I go out and buy a new hammer because I could not find one?  Or borrow one that I forgot to return?

Yes. It is time to move. If for no other reason, just to weed my shelves and drawers and closets. It is time to free myself of possessions I am not using.

I am donating most of my stuff or giving it to someone who would enjoy it much more.

I have a parrot. She is 15 years old. She’s a little Sun Conure. I even have stuff of hers. I rotate her toys within her cage. Consequently, I have stuff in drawers that are filled with her toys and perches. She needs a little decluttering now too.

Next time, I am not moving stuff that I do not need, use, or love. That is just pointless. And believe me, there is a lot of stuff that I have been hanging onto.

Change

There are two types of pain in the world:
pain that hurts you, and the pain that changes you.

How bad does it have to hurt before you change?

Winter at the Capitol Campus

What if we began to treat our Bibles the way we treat our cell phones?

What if we...

carried it with us
everywhere?

turned back to get it if
we forgot it?

checked it for messages
throughout the day?

used it in case of an
emergency?

spent an hour or more using
it each day?

 

It's easy to let days fly by

without taking notice to the

world around you.

Life is beautiful.

Soak it in, think about it.

and be grateful.