On the NBC Nightly News on Friday, December 14, 2007 … the Making a Difference segment … brought tears of joy to my eyes. I hope it effected most folks like that also.
A man, wrongly accused of a crime many years ago, was proven innocent by DNA testing; and he was awarded a large sum of money … over $300,000. And THEN … what did he do?
He started a foundation to help other inmates, whether proven innocent and released … or released when their time was served. And … how is he helping them?
He visits the prison (s) [not sure if more than one, or which, probably near where he lives] … AND … he finds out who is getting out soon; what they want to do with their lives; and then finds them the training and/or job that closest matches their dream.
NOW, folks … that is what Jesus was talking about … when he said ‘love your neighbor’. And we can all do that. BUT this man … went way beyond what most folks would do.
It was such a pleasure to watch some of the folks that he had helped. One man, a chef (not a fast food cook, but a chef) went on saying, over and over, ‘I would not have made a good life if it were not for him'. That man was working in a nice restaurant, with high white hat and all. ;-)
The man the story was about … had no time for revenge, not even for the prosecutor, saying … ‘he was doing his job with the evidence that was made available at that time. It was 20 years … in the coming to truth and justice, but he seemed to believe … ‘it was GOD’s plan’.
How awesome if more of us lived each day believing that no matter what problems befall us … GOD does have a plan. When we work through our troubles and suffering, we are stronger … and can help others … as they need some human … talking them through their hills and valleys.
As our son, MJ would say ‘pray … but pray with an ‘attitude of gratitude’ and ‘trust in the Lord’ that he will get around to the positive answer … when and if we are ready to accept it.
Je t’aime and … DIEU TE BENISSE!!!
Saturday, December 15, 2007
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
A HOLY OF HOLY DAYS; OF OBLIGATION
(I began writing this on Dec. 7, 2007) Did I say I have been busy?
TOMMOROW IS THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION … ANNIVERSARY … OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY BEING CONCIEVED IN THE WOMB OF ST. ANNE.
That is how Mother Angelica started her program, this week on Tuesday, which was actually December 4, 2007. It was a rerun of a program done on December 7, 1998 (I think). Which ever it was, I was soooooooooo pleased to watch that program and hope a lot of folks saw it both times.
As she mentioned, lots of folks think this is the announcement to Mary … by the archangel, Gabriel … that she had been chosen to be the human mother of the Son of GOD. Boy, as Mother said ‘that would have been even more of a miracle; gestation lasting less than 20 days’. ;-)
I THINK … one reason for that … is the Annunciation story is read as the Gospel of this day.
I have often wondered ‘why’. It should (and probably is) be read on March 25, 9 months before Christmas day. But then, who am I to tell the Magistarum what to do … and how to do it.
In talking about this subject … of course, Mother talked about Anne and Joachim … and their joy in being given a child. The gospels also talk about … Elizabeth and Zachary; starting from the beginning of the story of the conception of John, the Baptist … in their old age. To quote from a website … ewtn.com/Mary and Elizabeth/library … One day, while Zachary was serving in the temple, the Angel Gabriel appeared at the right of the altar, and announced that a son would be born to Elizabeth. It was in the sixth month of her pregnancy that the Virgin Mary came to visit her—a touching and beautiful scene pictured by many great artists. The Angel Gabriel, having lately announced to Mary the destiny that awaited her, also told her that her kinswoman Elizabeth was with child. The Virgin Mary, eager to share in Elizabeth's happiness and to confide that she too would bear a child, traveled down the dusty road from Nazareth. On Mary's arrival, she was amazed when Elizabeth, having foreseen knowledge, greeted her as "mother of my Lord." Elizabeth's salutation was in these words: "Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And how have I deserved that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, the moment that the sound of thy greeting came to my ears, the babe in my womb leapt for joy. And blessed is she who has believed, because the things promised her by the Lord shall be accomplished."
Mother talked about Zachary telling the archangel all the reasons that he was wrong. At the end of his objections, Gabriel struck him mute, according to the wishes of GOD, the Father. He would not speak again until his son was born and named John, as instructed by Gabriel.
I often wondered if Mary spent the whole three months with Elizabeth and was there when John was actually born. She lived a great distance away, which made it reasonable that she would do that.
Of course, since she was newly pregnant when she went to Elizabeth, she would be no where near her own delivery date, when he was born.
Many folks talk about the ‘worship’ of Catholics … where the Blessed Mother is concerned. A friend of mine wrote recently in her blog … ‘Did you know that one of the earliest known prayers to Our Lady comes from the THIRD CENTURY? Now, let's put this into perspective, historically - the third century spans the year 200 a.d. to 299 a.d. approximately. Our Lord was crucified and rose again in the year 33 a.d. (approximately), correct? That means that this prayer was being used by the ONLY CHURCH anywhere from 167 years to 266 years after that monumental event.
Now, after getting this type of historical perspective straight in our minds it is easy to see why the argument that Catholics 'worship' Mary or that it was some sort of manifestation of the phenomenon in the Middle Ages of a corrupt Church hierarchy can be easily refuted. We do not 'worship' her...we love her. Our attitude is, if she was good enough for Jesus she is good enough for us. Here is the prayer: "We flee to your protection, O virgin Mother of God. Despise not our prayers in our need, but you, who alone are pure and blessed, deliver us from all danger."
Leslie goes on to say that the Blessed Mother is one of the main reasons that she came back to the Catholic Church. And not only … did she come back, she came back full force; RICA teacher, daily adoration of the Eucharist when possible, Mass lotzzzzz, during the week; and teaching a lot of folks what the Church means to her, including her niece, Jillian … and her nephews, Ryan and Stephen.
Soooooooooo, give this some thought, folks. And remember, September 8 is Blessed Mother Mary’s birthday. Je t’aime and DIEU TE BENISSE!!!!
TOMMOROW IS THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION … ANNIVERSARY … OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY BEING CONCIEVED IN THE WOMB OF ST. ANNE.
That is how Mother Angelica started her program, this week on Tuesday, which was actually December 4, 2007. It was a rerun of a program done on December 7, 1998 (I think). Which ever it was, I was soooooooooo pleased to watch that program and hope a lot of folks saw it both times.
As she mentioned, lots of folks think this is the announcement to Mary … by the archangel, Gabriel … that she had been chosen to be the human mother of the Son of GOD. Boy, as Mother said ‘that would have been even more of a miracle; gestation lasting less than 20 days’. ;-)
I THINK … one reason for that … is the Annunciation story is read as the Gospel of this day.
I have often wondered ‘why’. It should (and probably is) be read on March 25, 9 months before Christmas day. But then, who am I to tell the Magistarum what to do … and how to do it.
In talking about this subject … of course, Mother talked about Anne and Joachim … and their joy in being given a child. The gospels also talk about … Elizabeth and Zachary; starting from the beginning of the story of the conception of John, the Baptist … in their old age. To quote from a website … ewtn.com/Mary and Elizabeth/library … One day, while Zachary was serving in the temple, the Angel Gabriel appeared at the right of the altar, and announced that a son would be born to Elizabeth. It was in the sixth month of her pregnancy that the Virgin Mary came to visit her—a touching and beautiful scene pictured by many great artists. The Angel Gabriel, having lately announced to Mary the destiny that awaited her, also told her that her kinswoman Elizabeth was with child. The Virgin Mary, eager to share in Elizabeth's happiness and to confide that she too would bear a child, traveled down the dusty road from Nazareth. On Mary's arrival, she was amazed when Elizabeth, having foreseen knowledge, greeted her as "mother of my Lord." Elizabeth's salutation was in these words: "Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And how have I deserved that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, the moment that the sound of thy greeting came to my ears, the babe in my womb leapt for joy. And blessed is she who has believed, because the things promised her by the Lord shall be accomplished."
Mother talked about Zachary telling the archangel all the reasons that he was wrong. At the end of his objections, Gabriel struck him mute, according to the wishes of GOD, the Father. He would not speak again until his son was born and named John, as instructed by Gabriel.
I often wondered if Mary spent the whole three months with Elizabeth and was there when John was actually born. She lived a great distance away, which made it reasonable that she would do that.
Of course, since she was newly pregnant when she went to Elizabeth, she would be no where near her own delivery date, when he was born.
Many folks talk about the ‘worship’ of Catholics … where the Blessed Mother is concerned. A friend of mine wrote recently in her blog … ‘Did you know that one of the earliest known prayers to Our Lady comes from the THIRD CENTURY? Now, let's put this into perspective, historically - the third century spans the year 200 a.d. to 299 a.d. approximately. Our Lord was crucified and rose again in the year 33 a.d. (approximately), correct? That means that this prayer was being used by the ONLY CHURCH anywhere from 167 years to 266 years after that monumental event.
Now, after getting this type of historical perspective straight in our minds it is easy to see why the argument that Catholics 'worship' Mary or that it was some sort of manifestation of the phenomenon in the Middle Ages of a corrupt Church hierarchy can be easily refuted. We do not 'worship' her...we love her. Our attitude is, if she was good enough for Jesus she is good enough for us. Here is the prayer: "We flee to your protection, O virgin Mother of God. Despise not our prayers in our need, but you, who alone are pure and blessed, deliver us from all danger."
Leslie goes on to say that the Blessed Mother is one of the main reasons that she came back to the Catholic Church. And not only … did she come back, she came back full force; RICA teacher, daily adoration of the Eucharist when possible, Mass lotzzzzz, during the week; and teaching a lot of folks what the Church means to her, including her niece, Jillian … and her nephews, Ryan and Stephen.
Soooooooooo, give this some thought, folks. And remember, September 8 is Blessed Mother Mary’s birthday. Je t’aime and DIEU TE BENISSE!!!!
Sunday, December 2, 2007
ME; WATCH A MOVIE; THAT I HAD SEEN; NAW!
I JUST SPENT THE MOST RELAXING AND LOVELY AFTERNOON, IN OUR LIVING ROOM, ALONE … AND YES, WATCHED … ‘HOPE FLOATS’.
In 1998, I went home with Mama when her radiation in Lake Charles was over.
She and Juanita had come for her 80th birthday party. Don and Pat also came if for a few days. After a couple of weeks, Juanita went home; and Mama stayed … supposedly until February. >>>BUT GOD CHANGED HER SCHEDULE.<<<
That was one of the most precious gifts that GOD gave me; not counting our children, grandchildren and now our two awesome great-granddaughters.
On New Year’s Eve, one of our sons-in-law was the MC for a huge bash at the casino in Kinder. They even gave us a hotel room free, so that we would not have to drive home in the middle of the night (more like 2 am, when the party was over).
We had a good time … and all was OK; or so it seemed. As it turns out, Mama (who usually walked faster than any of us) was walking slowly and huffing/puffing … and white as a ghost … going down to breakfast.
To cut this short, for those of you who do not know the story … her breast cancer had returned as 16 tumors in her bronchial tubes, the largest as big as a lemon.
Fast forward to April 1; after radiation for 12 weeks here, I was going home with her so she could do chemo and ‘be sick in my own house’ she kept saying.
My return ticket was for June 15, after Pumpkin’ (Yvonne, Juanita’s granddaughter) graduated. Fast forward again … through all the good times we had, BECAUSE MAMA DID NOT NEED CHEMO … but HL insisted I stay anyway since I was already there. No sweat; there was so much to keep us busy.
Juanita loved movies. Mama and I did not want to go … until we found out that Harry Conick, Jr. was the male lead. >>>HE IS FROM … NU OILNS … YOU KNOW<<<
Yep, the one in Southwest Louisiana. ;-)
So, to the movie we went. Mama sat between us and we like the movie from the beginning … which really was sad … but just sat quietly and watched it unfold.
Somewhere along, when Gena Rowlands, Sandra Bullock’s mother … was showing signs of health problems, that she hid from her daughters and husband, I realized that Mama was holding my hand. I reached over for a kiss on the cheek, squeezing her hand as she squeezed mine, and Juanita was doing the same thing, at the same time. I guess (although I am not sure at this moment) … that Mama had made the first move and we were just reacting at the same time because of her action.
If you are reading this, not believing from the beginning … that I watched a movie that I had seen before … you are correct. Not only that, I am seldom in the living room by myself … and then … not until 5 pm, when it is time for the local news and my last meal of the day. Today surprised me … most of all. But it was soooooo nice … to not be working in this room. I know, I impose my own schedules … but it seems if I skip a few hours, I fall so far behind that it is hard to catch up.
Sooooooooooo, I give glory to our Father, GOD … for giving me this peaceful time … and the memories to go with it. To all of you …
STOP AND SMELL THE ROSES …
AND … SING GLORY TO GOD. DIEU TE BENISSSE! Macile
In 1998, I went home with Mama when her radiation in Lake Charles was over.
She and Juanita had come for her 80th birthday party. Don and Pat also came if for a few days. After a couple of weeks, Juanita went home; and Mama stayed … supposedly until February. >>>BUT GOD CHANGED HER SCHEDULE.<<<
That was one of the most precious gifts that GOD gave me; not counting our children, grandchildren and now our two awesome great-granddaughters.
On New Year’s Eve, one of our sons-in-law was the MC for a huge bash at the casino in Kinder. They even gave us a hotel room free, so that we would not have to drive home in the middle of the night (more like 2 am, when the party was over).
We had a good time … and all was OK; or so it seemed. As it turns out, Mama (who usually walked faster than any of us) was walking slowly and huffing/puffing … and white as a ghost … going down to breakfast.
To cut this short, for those of you who do not know the story … her breast cancer had returned as 16 tumors in her bronchial tubes, the largest as big as a lemon.
Fast forward to April 1; after radiation for 12 weeks here, I was going home with her so she could do chemo and ‘be sick in my own house’ she kept saying.
My return ticket was for June 15, after Pumpkin’ (Yvonne, Juanita’s granddaughter) graduated. Fast forward again … through all the good times we had, BECAUSE MAMA DID NOT NEED CHEMO … but HL insisted I stay anyway since I was already there. No sweat; there was so much to keep us busy.
Juanita loved movies. Mama and I did not want to go … until we found out that Harry Conick, Jr. was the male lead. >>>HE IS FROM … NU OILNS … YOU KNOW<<<
Yep, the one in Southwest Louisiana. ;-)
So, to the movie we went. Mama sat between us and we like the movie from the beginning … which really was sad … but just sat quietly and watched it unfold.
Somewhere along, when Gena Rowlands, Sandra Bullock’s mother … was showing signs of health problems, that she hid from her daughters and husband, I realized that Mama was holding my hand. I reached over for a kiss on the cheek, squeezing her hand as she squeezed mine, and Juanita was doing the same thing, at the same time. I guess (although I am not sure at this moment) … that Mama had made the first move and we were just reacting at the same time because of her action.
If you are reading this, not believing from the beginning … that I watched a movie that I had seen before … you are correct. Not only that, I am seldom in the living room by myself … and then … not until 5 pm, when it is time for the local news and my last meal of the day. Today surprised me … most of all. But it was soooooo nice … to not be working in this room. I know, I impose my own schedules … but it seems if I skip a few hours, I fall so far behind that it is hard to catch up.
Sooooooooooo, I give glory to our Father, GOD … for giving me this peaceful time … and the memories to go with it. To all of you …
STOP AND SMELL THE ROSES …
AND … SING GLORY TO GOD. DIEU TE BENISSSE! Macile
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