God is Near

Sunsets are God’s footprints;
sunrises are His smiles.

You can be a window
where God shines through to others.

Realize what God can do through you
and minimize what man can do to you.

God's love helps us to be hopeful
in the midst of confusion and uncertainty.

When we put God first,
every second is enriched,
every minute enriched,
every hour ennobled.

God is in you,
in every person and problem today,
and in every answer tomorrow.

Each day God makes appointments for every person
—do we recognize and keep them?

Regardless of clouds above us
and problems around us,
underneath are God’s everlasting arms.

-William Arthur Ward
as found in the St. Michael the Archangel, McKinney bulletin

Grammar Conundrum: Amn't I?

So, my brilliant 5 year old is the first child to be grammatically correct.

"I'm a good boy, amn't I?" as in "Am I not?"

"Aren't I?" is actually wrong... "I'm a good boy, are I not?"

So... do I correct his cuteness to speak as all others do?

Or do I let it play out?

Think I'll let it slide......

Music for the International Day of Peace

I finally finished the playlist we'll be jamming to on Sept 21.

Only a handful of people who are not familiar read this blog, so no long winded explanations.

Suffice it to say, if I wrote a persuasive paper on peace, hope & love, I would approach it from this perspective.

The Sound of Silence -- Simon & Garfunkel -- Simon and Garfunkel's Greatest Hits
This Is a Test--Shock of Pleasure--
This Is a Lie--The Cure--Wild Mood Swings
What You Do With What You’ve Got--Eddi Reader/Thomas Dolby --TED Talks
What's So Funny 'Bout Peace, Love, and Understanding?--Nick Lowe--Untouched Takeaway
The World I Know--Collective Soul
On the Turning Away--Pink Floyd--A Momentary Lapse of Reason
Wind Chimes--Sounds of the Earth--Sounds of the Earth Collection
One LovePeople Get Ready--Bob Marley--Legend (Remastered) [Bonus Tracks]
Applause--Pete Seeger--Children's Concert At Town Hall
Perfect Place--Voice of the Beehive--Honey Lingers
Circle Dream--10,000 Maniacs--Our Time in Eden
Whispers--Fairground Attraction--The First Of A Million Kisses
Shine--Collective Soul
Love the World You Find--The Flaming Lips--Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium Soundtrack
If Everyone Cared--Nickelback--All the Right Reasons
Upside Down--Jack Johnson--Sing-a-Longs and Lullabies for the Film Curious George
What the World Needs--Wynonna Judd--What the World Need Now Is Love
Lean On Me (Single Version) --Bill Withers--Discover Bill Withers - EP
Love Is In the Air--Medusa--Party Hits, Vol. 5 - Das Beste aus Mallorca und den Skihütten
Peacetime--Eddi Reader--Peacetime
MLK--U2--The Unforgettable Fire
In the Arms of Love--Ottmar Liebert--In the Arms of Love- Lullabies 4 Children + Adults

The Deal of the Century

I've long opposed this "appearing" and "disappearing" price the media feeds us.  Concepts like markets and prices are bewildering for most people out there...

But, I have my father to thank (and my 9th grade economics teacher, Dr. Lee) for teaching me about markets.  My father, being the rancher that he was, woke up every morning to the Livestock Report on the radio and often explained many of the details of contracts, futures, pricing, and of course, cheating.

So I've been loudly grumbling at the radio when I hear that oil keeps rising "and we're not sure why."  Well, Time recently  a decent article and makes some obvious connections.

Why is oil rising?  Simple greed.  Duh?

You don't need to understand Monte Carlo futures predictions to know that when greedy people leverage huge chunks of cash against a market - we consumers are going to pay out the nose.  And we are.

Choir Practice

One Love
9/21/08
9:21 & 21.21 GMT
local times 4:21 & 16:21 (GMT -5)
to check your GMT equivalent times, click HERE



***If you don't know me personally***
please consider this before commenting
particularly the lines

The road of life is rocky and you may stumble too,
So while you point your fingers someone else is judging you

Take 5 Minutes for Peace

Dr. Patrick Swift is a friend from my St. Rita days.

Enjoy the peace of this video, based on quotes from his book "One Mountain, Many Paths."

Extremely good work, Patrick!

Abbey of Saint Walburga: Humility: Rejoicing in God's Gifts

Abbey of Saint Walburga: Humility: Rejoicing in God's Gifts

Common Sense Resquiat in Pace

From my Uncle:
An Obituary printed in the London Times........ Interesting and sadly rather true.

'Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was,since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape.
He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as:
Knowing when to come in out of the rain; why the early bird gets the worm; Life isn't always fair; and maybe it was my fault.
Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge).
His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.

Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children. It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer sun lotion or an Aspirin to a student; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.
Common Sense lost the will to live as the churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims. Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault.
Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.
Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents, Truth and Trust; his wife, Discretion; his daughter, Responsibility; his son, Reason.
He is survived by his 4 stepbrothers; I Know My Rights; Want It Now; Someone Else Is To Blame; and I'm A Victim
Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. If you still remember him, pass this on.

Dalek Prototype revealed....

(Warning - Not for the squeamish)

The University of Reading, UK has begun prototyping our future overlords.  Using brain cells cultured from a rat they have built a robot capable of collision avoidance.

I'm sure, that soon, there will be millions of them.

Memorial of St. Edith Stein

First, a little oddity... CD rented "Die Fälscher," which is about a select section of Jews in Sachenhausen prison camp. Turned out we watched it yesterday, August 9th, Memorial of Edith Stein. We didn't plan it that way... indeed, we hadn't even checked the calendar to see who's day it was.

I found a few of her quotes below. Enjoy




"'And the Word became flesh'. That truth became a reality in the manger at Bethlehem. But it was to be fulfilled in yet another form: 'Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood, has eternal life.' The Savior, who knows that we are human beings and will remain human beings who have to struggle daily with weaknesses, comes to our assistance in a truly divine manner. Just as the human body is in need of daily bread, so also does the divine life in us require constant nourishment."

"Whoever really takes this as his daily bread, experiences EACH DAY the mystery of Christmas, the Word made flesh."

"And that is doubtless the surest way to maintain constant union with God, to grow each day more firmly and deeply into the mystical Body of Christ. I am well aware that for many that is an all too radical request. In a practical sense, it will mean for most--when they first start--a complete change in their external and internal life. But that's exactly what it is supposed to be! To make room in our life for the Eucharistic Lord, so that he can change our life into His, is that asking too much? One has time for so many useless things: all sorts of stupid stuff gathered from books, newspapers and magazines; sitting around in bars and gabbling on the street for a quarter-or half-hour; all these are diversions which waste time and energy like crumbs. As a challenge to the whole day, should it not be possible to put aside a morning hour in which one is not distracted but recollected, in which energy is not wasted but gained? "But, of course, this requires more than just one hour. From one such hour to the next, one must so live that it may come again. It is no longer possible to 'let yourself go', even if only for a time. One cannot escape the judgment of those with whom one daily associates. Even if no word is spoken, one senses how the others feel towards him."

"He may try to adapt himself to his companions, and if it is not possible, their common life becomes a torture. "It's the same in our daily encounter with the Lord. One becomes more and more sensitive to that which pleases Him or not."

"If, on the whole, one was previously quite satisfied with himself, it will now take a different turn. One will find much that is bad and will change it as far as he chooses."

"And he will discover many things he cannot consider well and good, but which are nevertheless hard to change. Then gradually, he becomes very small and humble; he grows patient and indulgent toward the splinter in strange eyes because the beam in his own is brought into being; and, finally, he also learns to be patient with himself in the inexorable light of the divine Presence and to surrender himself to the divine mercy which can take care of all that ridicules our energy. The road is long from the smugness of a 'good Catholic' who 'does his duty', reads a 'good newspaper', 'does the right thing', etc. but on the other hand does what he pleases, "to a life in God's hand, in the simplicity of a child and the meekness of the tax collector. BUT WHOEVER HAS ONCE WALKED IT, WILL NOT GO BACK AGAIN."

- "Who can sleep on the night that God became man?" St. T. Benedicta, Edith Stein

Perpetual Kinder Garten Update

The first week was amazing. Mother Goose Time ROCKS! Had to convince a couple of boys that it was not just for preschoolers. The art is FUN for everyone, and I am so pleased to include it.

The themes for August are friends & transportation. Including the older 3 extends the discussion time and makes it truly enjoyable. The sweet thoughts coming from them this week were down right inspiring!

NEWSFLASH...

A BREAKTHROUGH!!! 4th grader LOVES school now!!!
I don't SQUEEE as cutely as LQ, so just imagine a big LQ SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

My Kindergarten Kid could NOT wait to delve into his work.

My 6th grader is still awaiting placement test results, so she made some school work for herself... poetry, math, handwriting. Ya gotta love independent learners!

The twins can not wait for school to begin. Presently, we play outdoors in the mornings. School begins when the heat sets in. This will flip-flop in autumn.

Someone PLEASE pinch me... 5 kids, no, and I mean ZERO struggles! May weeks 2-52 be as magnificent!

Summer Vacation Videos!

Sean & Brittany take a flying leap!



Joey gets in on the fun!



Bobby was pleased as punch to "float down the river!"



Debbie wanted to go swing, but has to wait a couple of years...