Miscellaneous

We are all concerned with those who are suffering from the earthquake in Haiti. It is such a tragedy and I do hope we not only help with the emergency, but then stay to fix homes, roads, water pipes, etc. It made me relive the earthquakes I lived through in Chile and that sent me back to the autobiography I wrote in 2002 - I guess I should update it now, but it was fun going back over it tonight as I had also included some pictures. My community wanted me to write more about the twenty years I spent in Chile; I need to add that to my projects for next year.
I cannot get the pictures of the earthquake out of my mind tonight, but need to post this for tomorrow as I have a busy morning and may not have time to write.

Back Home and enjoying Miami

I had a great time in Naples and it was so good to see my sister, my brother-in-law, and my friend. The entire building (Joan owns the condo on the 19th floor) was without heat for the three days I was there, but it had been fixed by the time I left. It was fun though and we did drive over to see the new little town of Ave Maria and the new University. It is amazing how well planned it is and how lovely the architecture, but it is in the middle of nowhere. We drove on an almost empty road for miles (it is only an hour and maybe twenty minutes from Naples) and there was no place to ask if we were getting near, but finally we saw a sign and went another three miles to find this beautiful place. The church was impressive.

I am home but only until Friday when we go to Houston for a Quad Area meeting. We enjoy getting together every January and missed doing this last year because of the Assembly last summer.

Some have told me just to keep writing whatever comes to mind in this blog. I hope I can give something to reflect on each time from my own reflections.
Here is a quote from Janet Stuart:
"It seems to me that the simple life is the property of those who are advancing in age, rather than the quality of the young; and this is a consideration not discouraging to the young, but encouraging both to young and old; for we can all become old, but we cannot become young."

Naples for three days of record cold

We do not have snow but everyone in Florida seems to be freezing! We get so used to warm weather that as soon as we have what they call here a "cold spell" we panic. I do feel sorry for the homeless and it is wonderful to know that shelters are opening and staying open for them even during the day. We are setting a record for the length of cold days as usually we only have two days and sweaters come out and then get put away. This time is longer and I am going to Naples today and will stay until Tuesday. I will not be writing my blog while I am away. I look forward to seeing my oldest and one of my best friends as well as my sister and her husband. I do not mind the cold as we will no doubt stay in and talk. I am taking over a bag of books for all and we will, I am sure, eat out. It is the end of vacation and a good way to end it- classes begin on Monday but my students are all online anyway so I am prolonging vacation.
Scotland and England seem to be really suffering from an excess of snow that has even knocked out power. We have rain this morning so I need to get on the road soon. I wrote a long blog yesterday and lost it; maybe it will show up somewhere!

"The Naked Now: Learning to See as the Mystics See"

Richard Rohr's latest book, "The Naked Now: Learning to See as the Mystics See" is a book to read slowly. It is also a difficult book to tell you about. Rohr is stressing nondual thinking which is really contemplative living in the present moment. He stresses how difficult this is for us but it is what we are called to do. Jesus was a nondual thinker - actually, I need to reread this book and mark it up, but I did want to share one thing with you today and that is what Richard says about "A Joyful Mind".
"Joy and mind. Those are not words that you would normally put together, but they inspired the eleventh-century Richard of St. Victor, a Scottish canon teaching in Paris, and became the themes of his two books on the contemplative mind, Benjamin Major and Benjamin Minor. The titles were taken from one obscure passage from Psalm 68:27, where "Benjamin" is described as leading a procession into the temple on mentis excessu, which was translated as "with a joyful mind or with an ecstatic minds. This made me ask:
What might a joyful mind be?
When your mind does not need to be right.
When you no longer need to compare yourself with others...."

He has two pages on the Joyful Mind but I will let you think of other things a joyful mind is for yourself; it is good for us to think this out for ourselves.

"Wrestling with our Inner Angels"

"Wrestling with our Inner Angels" is a new book by Nancy Kehoe who is a Religious of the Sacred Heart and was here for dinner last night. I had gone to hear her speak about her book the night before and it was great to have her here as she is a Harvard psychologist who believes that asking clients about their religious beliefs should be included among all the other questions that psychologists ask their clients. Her work with mental health patients has been a real breakthrough. I read most of the book yesterday and will try to finish it today. I must confess that I spent time with the "Religious History Questionnaire" at the end of the book as I think those questions help anyone. I am going to review this book for Amazon.com so you can read more there. Nancy shares so much of herself in the book and how much she has learned from her mental health groups.
It continues to be cold in Miami; this is setting records as we seldom have more than one or two cool days in a row. I am going to Naples to see a friend and my sister and brother-in-law on Saturday and will take a poncho instead of a swimsuit!
I really love having the cold tap water (ours is usually lukewarm) and we have the heat on so the house is a comfortable yet one feels a bit more energetic. We have reflection group tonight so I will need to think of something hot instead of a huge friendship salad. I feel badly for the many homeless who are suffering during this cold spell and for the farmers who are working all night to keep the crops from frost. This is strawberry season here.

Miscellaneous

This picture is my reflection today - my head is full of many things and so I will write later. Blame some of this on the Bowl games as the Orange Bowl is a big one for Miami. I must confess that I do try to follow college football.
I am trying to live in the present moment and finding it difficult but worthwhile. I am reading Richard Rohr's "The Naked Now" and will write more about this book later.

St. John Neumann

St. John Neumann was born in Bohemia in 1811 but came to the United States as he wanted to devote himself to the American Missions. He was ordained in New York in 1836 and entered the Redemptorists in 1840. He was consecrated bishop of Philadelphia in 1852. He worked to establish parish schools and erected many new parishes to take care of the numerous immigrants. He died on January 5, 1860, was beatified in 1963 and canonized in 1977.
I must confess that I did not know much about him, but we had a special room in the library at St. Thomas University dedicated to him where I often met with students, retreat groups, and some I saw for spiritual direction. One of the parishes with outstanding liturgies in Miami is St. John Neumann so this saint has become a friend in heaven.
Yesterday we had the Feast of St. Elizabeth Seton, the first American born saint to be canonized. She was born in 1774, was a wealthy Episcopalian who married William Seton in 1794 and had five children. She went with William to Italy hoping he would be cured of his lung disease, but William died and Elizabeth was attracted to Catholicism. She became a Catholic in 1805; established the first Catholic school in Baltimore in 1808 and in 1809 began a religious community in Emmitsburg, Maryland. She died on January 4, 1821, and was canonized in 1973.
It is good to remember that we do have American saints! One Cardinal told us in Rome that "Italy had saints under the altars but in America they are walking the streets!"

Here is a quote to reflect on: "What matters most on your journey is how deeply you see, how attentively you hear, how richly the encounters are felt in your heart and soul." Let us keep following the star! The good news is that Jesus is with us on the journey!

Following the Star

Sometimes I find that one must just keep on when the star appears and then hides itself. One trusts the Lord and keeps on and I suspect that is when faith is such a help. I am not feeling very inspired while writing this as we have had so many seemingly "bad" things happen over the holidays. One little boy fell into a swimming pool and is still alive but not conscious. He is only two and it seems that his older brother had opened the door while his mother was saying goodbye to some guests and the younger child got out before anyone knew it. Then a six year old Italian boy had dinner outside on New Year's Eve at a restaurant here in Miami and then complained about an ache - they parents looked under his shirt and he had been wounded by a falling bullet; my sister-in-law is in the hospital with a numbness in her legs; it began almost a month ago and she has had every test imaginable and now the doctors think it is an infection in her spine and are treating her every eight hours. Please pray for these and their loved ones and so many others who are being killed every night and day. I think it takes a great deal of faith to keep looking for the star to lead us and I am grateful that I was given the gift of faith.

Feast of the Epiphany

God is with us! What a wonderful mystery we are celebrating during the Christmas season. Today, in the United States, most Catholic churches are celebrating the Feast of the Epiphany which was always on January 6 but was moved to this Sunday here. It is wonderful to think of the faith of the three wisemen who left all to follow a star. They did not know where they were going but trusted the star to lead them. Then the star disappeared! They did not give up hope and made inquiries and then the star appeared again and went before them to lead them to Jesus, Mary and Joseph. I think their faith led them to kneel and adore the Infant and then to offer precious gifts that must have helped Joseph and Mary if they had to escape to Egypt to keep Jesus safe. Mary kept all this in her heart. We, too, need to ponder on this feast of the Epiphany. They, having found Jesus, had to return by a different way.

Like a clump of irises...

Here is a prayer for our New Year composed by Denis Levertov and used for our community prayer the night of New Year's eve. I thought you would like it:

"I have a small grain of hope-
one small crystal that gleams
clear colors out of transparency.

I need more.

I break off a fragment
to send you.

Please take
this grain of a grain of hope
so that mine won't shrink.

Please share your fragment
so that yours will grow.

Only so, by division,
will hope increase,
like a clump of irises, which will cease to flower
unless you distribute
the clustered roots, unlikely source-
clumsy and earth-covered-
of grace. Amen.

Feast of the Epiphany

The three wise men set out in faith on a journey to find a new-born King in order to pay him homage. They set out because they saw a star and they were willing to take the risk and follow the star. We call these three wise, but most of us would have thought them foolish to start a journey not knowing where they were going. How many of us would set out to follow a star? We do not know much about these three men, but they had to be men of great faith. They came bearing gifts so they were also generous and thoughtful. They did not give up when the star disappeared. They were also obedient and followed the instructions given to return home by a different route. Today we celebrate the fact that they came to Jesus and paid homage to the Infant. How am I going to pay homage to Jesus today? What gift will I offer Him?

Happy New Year - 2010

When I made my final Profession in 1960, 2010 seemed a long way off and now I will be celebrating my Golden Jubilee of Profession on February 8!! It will also be 60 years since I left home to enter the Society of the Sacred Heart! These years have been so filled with graces and today is the beginning of another year of grace. The very fact that we are loved by God is a reason to live each day in joy and gratitude.
May this year be filled with peace in our hearts, our homes, and our world!