Preparing for the Sunday after Easter

I guess families with small children are still peeling colored hard-boiled eggs and eating chocolate bunnies. I am just beginning to get to today's Gospel when Jesus appears again to the Apostles but Thomas is now with them. Jesus always comes to bring peace and greets them with "Peace be with you." He calls Thomas to come and put his finger into the wounds of his hands and to put his hand into the wound in his side. Thomas only needs to see the risen Lord to exclaim, "My Lord and my God." Then Jesus says those words that are so consoling for us: "Blessed are those who have not seen and who believe..."

We are given the gift of faith in Baptism. Let us thank for this gift and trust God.

Still Walking With Jesus

Walking with Jesus again today and now with two pictures!
I find myself driving the car with Jesus and it is easy to hear Jesus asking me questions and explaining to me some of the reasons I have the feelings I do, etc. I wonder if this happens to you, too? I guess praying in the car has been one of the big helps in my life as that is time that is given and can either be used to fuss about the traffic or turned to prayer.
I find the prayer of Thanksgiving very helpful in the car as I live in a beautiful city and the lush, tropical foliage is all around us, the sun is usually shining, and the shade from overhanging trees is a real reason to thank God for those trees. Where would we be without trees? Our world is beautiful and it makes me think of the damage caused by the tornado's path through Alabama and the loss of life for many and loss of homes for families who are suddenly without shelter, without jobs, without schools for the children. We take for granted that we will be safe each day, but never know what might happen. Let us learn to walk, drive, and live with Jesus full of trust and hope. "This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad."
I am praying with the disciples of Emmaus: "Stay with us, Lord, for the day is far spent...".

Walking with Jesus

For some reason I am unable to insert a picture this morning. I am reflecting on the two disciples who left Jerusalem so discouraged and were walking back to Emmaus. Jesus joins them and walks with them and they do not recognize him! How often does Jesus come to me through another person who wants to walk with me and draws me into conversation. The two disciples felt better after telling Jesus why they were sad and disheartened; Jesus listened and then took time to explain the Scriptures to them to show them that what had happened had to be and, as they later acknowledged, in listening to Jesus their hearts were burning...they invite Jesus to stay with them as the day is far spent. I, too, want to invite Jesus to stay with me. They recognized Jesus at table when he blessed and broke the bread. I am so fortunate to be able to receive Jesus in the Eucharist. I need to ask him for more faith so that I will be able to recognize how he is always walking with me.

My favorite apparition

This was posted yesterday without a commentary on the picture. Maybe that was a good thing as then you each did your own reflection. I just love the scene where Jesus calls to his disciples from the shore, gives them a huge catch of fish, and then has breakfast prepared for them by the time they drag their overflowing nets to shore. Jesus knows that they are tired and hungry and so has not only prepared breakfast, but Jesus serves them!

We lost air-conditioning on Holy Saturday so we are five nights without and the house is quite hot. It is to be 92 today. We have several people trying to decide what we need as we have lost our air often since we do not have a unit that can cool the entire house. I suspect that it will be next week before we can solve this. I am going to the University early today as it is too hot to stay home. We are eating out just to get cool in the evening so it has been a special Easter week for us.

Easter Joy

We would wake up at home early on Easter morning and first had to wait for my parents and often my grandmother and aunts to come before we were allowed to begin our searching for what the Easter Bunny may have left us. We each had a basket and went out into the backyard to begin the hunt for Easter eggs. These were dyed by my parents the night before and hidden in the flower beds and shrubs in our yard. My Dad would tell me to stop filling my basket as soon as I had found a dozen but then I could help my sister who had begun the hunt on the other side of the yard. When our baskets each had a dozen eggs, we went inside and were allowed to look for Easter baskets filled with chocolate eggs and bunnies and jellybeans. These would be found behind furniture in our living room and I suspect now that these baskets full of candy and wrapped in cellophane were really brought by my Grandmother and aunts, but maybe they were from my parents - for years I thought they were from the Easter bunny because I had seen the Easter bunny one night when I was four years old. He was on the back porch and took the carrots I had left for him. This made me a firm believer and I was full of Easter joy before I knew why we really were celebrating this Feast every year. I suppose by the time I made my First Communion I did know the real meaning of Easter and that we were meant to rejoice because Jesus was risen from the dead.

I was struck by this quote today from our Constitutions:
Our happiness, our peace, our whole way of being, will be a sign of Him whom we have met and who comes every day of our lives to fulfill God’s Covenant with God’s people.

May we radiate the joy and happiness of Jesus today!
[#69, 1982 Constitutions

Jesus Consoles Mary Magdalene

I love the Gospel story where Mary is looking for Jesus and weeping outside of the tomb. He comes to her and only needs to say her name and she recognizes him.
I began my new Journal this morning thinking about The New Spiritual Exercises, a book by Louis Savary that I have just bought and am thinking of using for prayer for the next months. Today I reflected on what I really desire and seek in prayer. I think it is always to be united to Jesus, to have Jesus as the Center of my Life! I want to be so immersed in the love of Jesus that I am able to give his love to all. I also want to give joy. I guess this is always my desire. Maybe today you will be reflecting on your own desires. What do you seek?

Happy Easter!

Today is the day the Lord has made; rejoice and be glad, Alleluia, Alleluia! It is a day to enter into the joy of the Lord. As many of you know, one of my favorite quotes of St. Madeleine Sophie is "Be simple, be humble, and bring joy to others." As I was praying this morning, this quote came back to me as being what Jesus did and what He wants me to do. It was almost as if Jesus told me that I am to bring His joy to others. I thought about that at the Mass and think it will be in very concrete ways, but it means that I myself must be filled with the joy of the Risen Jesus! He had done all that the Father asked of Him; He had conquered death for all of us. He was filled with the joy that no one can take from Him but that He wants to freely share with us. May today be a day when Jesus is going to be happy because we are all trying to give His Joy to each other!

Empty Tomb

Today is a day of waiting. I wonder how Mary spent the first Holy Saturday. I find the anticipation of Easter with a whole day between Good Friday and Easter Sunday a time of special grace. We are moving from tears to joy but it is a day of waiting, waiting with hope and faith and love.
It is a waiting that we do in silence. There is something special about waiting on Holy Saturday; it is not at all like the anticipation of Christmas eve. I think it is waiting for an encounter with the Risen Lord, one who has laid down his life to show me how much he loves me; his Heart is open for me now and I wait to meet the resurrected Jesus and enter into his joy!

Good Friday

I am using a very powerful Stations of the Cross for Japan for our community prayer.
The pictures of the suffering people there are chosen in light of each station of the cross. It makes us realize that the suffering in this world continues but God is in our midst and that makes such a difference. However, there are always questions about the "why" of suffering. I have just finished Adele Gonzalez' book, Life is Hard, but God is Good and found it very helpful. It is also very interesting as she shares her own experience of finding God in the midst of different kinds of suffering. I think I read it with my heart and now will go through it again to underline certain passages. Since she has used some of her Journal writings in the book, it has given me the desire to be faithful again to keeping my daily prayer journal. I have just finished the one I began with my retreat last summer so have a beautiful new Journal (gift of my sister when she was here) prepared and will begin it on Easter Sunday. It is easy to begin but not so easy to remember to take the time to jot down something everyday. I try to do it after my morning prayer and find it helpful to look back over the month and see what I have been telling the Lord. Sometimes one sees that petty things have crept into my life and need to be dismissed; at other times I am overwhelmed with joy and gratitude when I look back over the gifts received from God each day and how He has been leading me with love and compassion. I always try to get my directees to keep a journal; mine also helps me to be accountable and to reflect on what is happening in my life and how I am finding God in the humdrum routine of daily life.
Why this is my reflection on Good Friday I have no idea, but perhaps it is too much to try to reflect on what this day really means.

Today in Holy Thursday

It is a quiet day and I am cooking the Holy Thursday dinner but there will only be our community for prayer and dinner and then we will go together to the evening Liturgy. I think of Jesus longing to give Himself to us because He loves us. I am praying over John's Gospel which has Jesus revealing so much to us in discourse to his chosen ones at the Last Supper. He talks to them about where he is going, about how he will prepare a place for them, about the Holy Spirit who will come and be their advocate, about his Father, who loves him...Jesus knows how weak we are and he prepares for his going by leaving us the gift of himself in the Eucharist. He is with us in a special way and we can only bow down in adoration and thank Him for his great gift of love in giving us himself.

Spy Wednesday

Tomorrow is Holy Thursday and I prefer to concentrate on that and the way Jesus must have felt as he prepared for the Supper with his friends; still, it is also Spy Wednesday and I am conscious of the betrayal and my own betrayal... let us pray for one another. I have not yet found my Profession ring so fear it is really lost!

Jesus gave us Himself in the Eucharist. Do I really understand what a wonderful gift His Presence is? Sometimes we take the Eucharistic Presence for granted and yet it is something so awesome that we can only adore and thank for this great gift. It is true that we find His Presence in many other ways, but there is a special grace to be able to sit in silence before the Eucharist; there is also the miracle that we are able to receive the Eucharist with its special grace of making us more like Christ. It is all a great mystery and let us spend time tomorrow thanking for this gift and just adoring Jesus who so loved us that He gave us himself in the Eucharist!

Books and More Books

My room is overflowing with books and my list on the right side of my blog for really good spiritual reading is growing longer. I may need to start another list sometime soon. In the meantime, I have ordered a Kindle; I have not ordered any books for it yet, but will do so after it arrives and from the free Kindle library. They have, or so I have been told, the Bible and some spiritual classics and books written before 1923; I am excited as I will be able to travel with a library.

Now, I want to talk about the three books in front of me; two of them are gifts and I am enjoying them. The other, is Pope Benedict XVI's Jesus of Nazareth: Holy Week: From the Entrance into Jerusalem to the Resurrection, Ignatius Press, 2011. I am finding it an excellent book and am now reading about the Last Supper. You cannot help but admire the scholarship behind the writing and I am learning much from reflecting on the different opinions and find the Holy Father is clear and very open to other opinions; he then makes his own application that is not just the fruit of a study of scripture and the writings of biblical scholars, but also the fruit of his own years of prayer and meditation. On the back cover of the book there is this quote from Benedict XVI: "Only in the second volume do we encounter the decisive sayings and events of Jesus'life...I...hope that I have been granted an insight into the figure of our Lord that can be helpful to all readers who seek to encounter Jesus and to believe in him." What I like about this book is that it not only leads me to reflection and deeper knowledge of Jesus, but invites me to stop and pray.
The other books will need to wait until later but here are their names: Life is Hard but God is Good: An Inquiry Into Suffering by Adele Gonzalez, Orbis Books, 2011 that I am thinking of suggesting for the next book for our Reflection Group, and Robert Wicks' latest book, Bounce: Living the Resilient Life. I like Wicks and he is good at showing us how to manage stress, but I have only read about a third of these books and so will not review them yet.

Holy Week

The Lord arranged it for me to have more time for reading since I am still with a cold but no fever today. I am reading Benedict XVI's second volume on Jesus and liking it; I also am using Adele Gonzalez's latest book on "Life is hard; God is good" and the whole mystery of suffering and evil in our world and will have more to say about that book when I have finished it as it will be one that will be added to my list of Spiritual Books. Today I will try to share a thought from Richard Rohr's "Wondrous Encounters: Scripture for Lent" Rohr speaks of the Gospel of John for Monday of Holy Week and how Mary anoints the feet of Jesus with expensive nard, which is the anointing oil for death. He interprets this as Mary accepting the inevitability and necessity of death for Jesus which Peter and others cannot do. When Judas pretends to prefer the poor to a simple act of love, Jesus' response "appears to be directly from Deuteronomy: There will always be poor in the land. I command you therefore, always be open-handed with anyone in the country who is in need or is poor"(15:11).
Rohr's starter prayer is: God of love and justice, let me know and live that they are not separate. Loving people will do justice, and just people will do their work with love and respect."

Approaching Holy Week

Here is a quote from Mother Digby that seems appropriate for the eve of Palm Sunday:

"What is the outstanding quality, the lasting mark of a heart taught by His example and grace to love in spirit and truth? The capacity to love, that is to say, the power to suffer and to give. Let us lay at the feet of Our Lord all seeking of personal views and interests, all self-love and self-centeredness; then hearts will meet in love, for all barriers will have fallen. God is then loved above and before all else, and all others for God’s sake."
[Mabel Digby, rscj, 1900, from An Interior Spirit:
Anthology of Writings of the Superiors General of the Society of the Sacred Heart]

I seemed to have picked up a cold and fever so I am forced to take time now to just be - the big problem is that I do not feel like doing anything and I had a long list of things that I thought I needed to do. Now I am just resting and I am sure this is a grace to have time before Holy Week to stop and just be.

Jesus is always knocking on the door of our hearts...

That Jesus is always standing, waiting, knocking, at the door of our hearts is true! He only wants us to open fully to Him; to let Him love us! Why do we want to keep Him waiting at the door when He wants to fill our hearts with his love? And Jesus is also always inviting us to enter into His Heart. His Heart was opened for all of us on the cross when the soldier pierced it. The pierced Heart of Christ is the way He invites us to enter into the depth of His Love. The solitude of His Heart is a crushing reality and He waits for us to enter and descend to the depths. Let us try to spend this Holy Week that begins with the entrance into Jerusalem this Sunday by opening our hearts to Jesus and begging to be allowed to descend into the depths of His Heart to people his solitude.
We need to begin to prepare for Holy Week today!

A Passion for Jesus

The words that most struck me and I have been mulling over ever since I was given the Woman of Conscience Award was that "I have a passion for Jesus." Wow! I started thinking about that and it is true and makes me happy. In fact, I think that is one of the great graces in my life - to have a passion for Jesus! Why did I need to hear this from someone else to realize it? And what am I doing about it? I want to keep this passion en-kindled so that I give it to others.
This is going to be my short reflection for today as it is a day filled with all sorts of appointments, and we have our reflection group tonight which means some grocery shopping and preparing our dinner for those who come. Tomorrow I will tell you about a book I received from a good friend yesterday called, "Life is hard, God is good." I have read the first chapters and will suggest it for our reflection group as it is so real and we all struggle with the question of suffering in our world today and God's love and compassion allowing it.

Monica and David

This was directed by a Carrollton alumna and is one of the most moving videos I have seen and one of the highlights of the week for me. I think the link above will work. Here is a link to the movie, I think, or at least pictures: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?profile=1&id=10150109159170075#!/photo.
Monica & David Trailer
MONICA & DAVID explores the marriage of two adults with Down syndrome and the family who strives to support their needs. Monica and David are blissfully in love and want what other adults have—an independent life. Full of humor, romance and everyday family drama, the film uses intimate fly-on-the wall footage to reveal the complexity of their story. While Monica and David are capable beyond expectations, their parents, aware of mainstream rejection of adults with intellectual disabilities, have trouble letting go.
It was shown on Friday morning before the seminars at the AASH Conference. It is something that anyone who has any connection with a family with a Down syndrome child should see.
Now for a reflection on my prayer this morning. Most of the time was spent in just sitting in gratitude for all the graces of the past week, but I did pick up an old book entitled "These Forty Days: Lenten Exercises" by Rev. John P. Henry. I suspect that I have had it since it was first published by Ave Maria Press in 1988. What I like is the format. Each day begins with the question: "What does God say to Me Today?" followed by comments on the Liturgical readings of the day. Then there is "Today's Retreat Focus" which is usually a brief comment on the readings and then "Today's Prayer Focus" - all of which one can do for oneself without a book, but I think I will try asking myself each day as I use the special Lenten readings, What is God trying to say to me today? And then just listen!

An eventful week that left me so grateful...

Last week was full of wonderful events and my head and heart are so full of good and grateful thoughts and impressions that I do not know where to begin this blog. I was thrilled to hear that many read my reflections each day and have told others about my blog. I am grateful for the many who came up to me during the National Meeting of all our Sacred Heart alums to congratulate me for being the recipient of the Woman of Conscience Award. I am still awed by that. We had a visit from the two Central Team members on Monday, a friend arrived on Tuesday which was a real joy as she stayed in our community; my sister and brother-in-law arrived on Wednesday and we also had a national webcast that night for all RSCJ and I had been asked to give some insights so had to be there for that a bit before it began; then the AASH with all its wonderful talks, seminars, etc. - I gave my seminar twice and it seemed to be a great delight for all as they did not know much or anything about our Mother Lucile Mathevon who was an early pioneer companion of St. Philippine Duchesne and a missionary to the Potowatomi tribe in the Indian territory of what is now Kansas. I learned a great deal myself.
I have just taken my sister and brother-in-law to the airport and will write more later when I wade through several pages of e-mails. We spent last night at the beautiful spot on the Gulf in Key Largo, the Coconut Palm Inn and watched the sun go down and said the rosary together sitting outside in a cool breeze. We had time to swim before dinner and I swam again this morning and am determined to go back to water exercise and to swim every day that I can as I have missed this. I am feeling tired but joyful and grateful!

Hope, a virtue for today!

Whoops! This was to be scheduled for later, but maybe someone needs to read it today as it just appeared!! Maybe I am the one who needs hope...
Here is a poem that I think you will like as we need hope so much today and it is good to realize that we do have this virtue; we just need to practice it!

HOPE

It hovers in dark corners
before the lights are turned on,
it shakes sleep from its eyes
and drops from mushroom gills,
it explodes in the starry heads
of dandelions turned sages,
it sticks to the wings of green angels
that sail from the tops of maples.

It sprouts in each occluded eye
of the many-eyed potato,
it lives in each earthworm segment
surviving cruelty,
it is the motion that runs the tail of a dog,
it is the mouth that inflates the lungs
of the child that has just been born.

It is the singular gift
we cannot destroy in ourselves,
the argument that refutes death,
the genius that invents the future,
all we know of God.

It is the serum that makes us swear
not to betray one another;
It is in this poem, trying to speak.


Lisel Mueller

Today is the day of the Woman of Conscience Award

I wonder what Mary is going to say about my receiving this award. I am still feeling rather awed about it and also striving to remember that one needs to live up to it. I am grateful and feeling mixed emotions. It will be nice to see my friends at the ceremony. I will try to write something for Sunday.

Tulips are beautiful outside

Tulips are lovely in all their Spring colors, but I much prefer not to cut them. They need to be growing outside surrounded by nature.
Today I am giving my seminars on Lucile Mathevon and I am doing it in the first person. Actually, I feel that I have come to know a great deal about her and her life as an early pioneer and companion of St. Philippine Duchesne is fascinating. I do not know when the book will get written but I have a good pictorial life to show others this morning. The morning begins early with the movie, "Monica and David", so I am writing ahead so this is scheduled to be posted for you.

Dogwood, another sign that Spring is here!

Spring means new life and Jesus came to bring us life and to have it abundantly! I used to watch as a novice in Albany for the first buds to open on the Dogwood trees; then I knew that Spring was really coming and that winter was over and gone. I think Lent brings us new life when we try to enter into the mind and heart of Jesus. We will be changed at the end of Lent even if we do not see the growth that takes place ever so slowly. We do not see the grass growing, but know it has grown when we need to cut it. You do not see a child growing but realize that clothes and shoes no longer fit. I think we need to trust our spiritual growth to Jesus and to Mary and just keep nourishing our souls with contemplation of Jesus and good works.

The scent of lavender makes me think of Spring

Lilacs are some of the earliest flowers to bloom and I love the freshness they bring with their scent of Spring.
It is going to be a busy, fun week. I have a friend here from Los Angeles and will take her to see the University and other places of interest; we will eat lunch out and then pick up my sister and brother-in-law and take them to the hotel where we can also pick up our AASH Conference Folder. I will take all to an early dinner as I need to be present for a webcast at Carrollton at 8:00 P.M.- then I am planning on sightseeing on Thursday morning, an early lunch, and back at the hotel to be ready for the Conference which opens at 2:00. I will try to keep you informed each day how things are going, but do not promise that I will be as faithful to the daily blog as usual this week. I hope we are all keeping some of our good (if we are breaking them they must be good for us)resolutions for Lent. This season is one that calls for silent reflection on the life of Jesus and then our own life.

Create a clean heart in me, God...

Last night we had a wonderful meeting with two of our Central Team from Rome. I loved the prayer which was taken from Joyce Rupp's Out of the Ordinary, a book I do not have but would like to have. Anyway, here is just the ending which I think you may like to use today:
"Create a clean heart in me, God. Dust off the unmindful activity that constantly collects there. De-clutter my heart from harsh judgments and negativity. Wash away my resistance to working through difficult relationships. Rinse off my un-loving so the beauty of my generous and kind heart can shine forth. Remove whatever keeps me from following in your compassionate footsteps. Amen."
After the prayer we saw slides from all over the world where we are working in India, Africa, Asia, South America, and Europe. It made me feel so proud to see the work the Society is doing in so many places with the poor and the needy and scenes after the earthquakes in Haiti, Chile, and Japan. I felt part of those ministries just because I belong to the Society of the Sacred Heart. I also was happy to see so many young religious in Africa and Asia and other parts of the world. That was good to see. One way we are passing on the spirituality of the Society to young people today is through leadership training. I guess I felt full of hope when I heard all that is being done in the different regions.
Keep praying as I still have not found my profession ring!

Time is a gift!

Time is a gift and we need to use it wisely, thank for it, and cherish it. I let myself begin to feel rushed instead of relishing each minute as a God-given gift to enjoy! This picture calms me. I am finding the Lenten Liturgy of each day very helpful for prayer and Richard Rohr's Lenten meditations are giving me some new insights into Jesus's thoughts and feelings. This is a short reflection today as I need to be elsewhere and I am still hoping to find my profession ring!

Spring is really here!

Miami is at its best in the winter and now the temperature is climbing so one needs to enjoy these Spring days before the summer is upon us. I wanted to have a quiet, contemplative Sunday; hopefully it can be contemplative, but it is going to be busy. I am still looking for my profession ring; I pray and then think of another spot to look. The problem is that I noticed it only on Saturday morning. Is it in the turkey meatloaf I made on Thursday? I guess I need to eat the leftover meatloaf today to check that out! I am running out of places to look, but keep praying as I am sure God knows what happened to my ring. It has my name with that of Jesus and Mary (in Spanish) and the date of my profession 2/8/1960 - I am not giving up.

Yesterday at Mass I felt that Lent is a splendid opportunity to examine our lives to see how ready we are to accept whatever Jesus sends us. I suspect the way we react to the small things of each day is a good indication of how we are living our lives - do I choose always what pleases Jesus? Or am I trying to please myself?
We need to do some honest reflecting about our choices!
I need to go grocery shopping today as we have 12 for dinner tomorrow and I need to prepare it today! This is not a choice but to do it with joy is what I can choose!

Jesus heals the blind man in this Sunday Gospel. We are all in need of healing as we are blind to so much. I love the example of showing a lovely sculpture or even a flower arrangement to a group seated in a circle and asking them to paint what they see. Each sees from his or her own perspective. I guess this truth helps us to be tolerant and even humble as we realize that I can only see one angle and need others to help me to see the whole truth.
I am praying to St. Anthony and to St. Helen as I realized this morning that my profession ring was not on my finger. I noticed it before I went into the pool for water exercise so I am sure it must be somewhere in the house and must retrace my steps and look through all that I was packing away, the bag for Good Will, etc. But first I am praying and saying "Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place my trust in Thee." I count on the Heart of Jesus to help me to find it but it seems to be linked with the cure of a blind man as I need to be able to see it when looking for it.
Here is a poem that needs reflection and was just sent to me today by a friend:





A Cloth of Fine Gold

[ by Dorothy Walters]

You may think
that first lit flame
was the ultimate blaze,
the holy fire
entered at last.

What do you know of furnaces?
This is a sun that returns
again and again, refining, igniting,
pouring your spirit
through a cloth of delicate gold
until all dross is taken
and you are sweet as
clarified butter
in god's mouth.

April Fool's Day

This bridge is the seven-mile one to Key West. I thought of it today as I am arranging to take my sister and brother-in-law to the Keys at the end of the National Conference for the Sacred Heart alumni that is being held here in Miami for the first time. They are coming as I am to receive the Woman of Conscience Award at the Liturgy on Saturday. I am also giving seminars on "The Adventures of Lucille Mathevon: An Early Companion of Philippine Duchesne." We will not have time to drive as far as Key West, but at least I can take them to a wonderful Inn in Key Largo. It is right on the gulf and is a beautiful spot. I was only there once a few years ago but have fond memories of my one night there with a cousin. It is a rustic type of place but there are hammocks under the palm trees and the place is peaceful and right on the water. I think they will love it. I hope we are going to have good weather for the next week as April began with showers. No one has tried to play and April Fool's joke on me today and I am glad because I am full of lists, mostly in my head, of the things I need to do and have not had time to do. The men are supposed to be putting back my door and the closet doors to my room - after three weeks of chaos, my room is painted and almost ready to move into except for a hole in the wall (plaster dust has seeped into everything so I wish the hole could get fixed before I clean again!). I need to move back into my room and prepare for guests who are arriving on Tuesday.
May you all have a good week end.