Weekend Update

The theme for my second week of Advent was inner reflection.

Last week's activities:
Monday: Led a "Blind Taste Testing" experiement for our teen-girl group.  We tasted 3 different brands of peanut butter, toaster pastries (Poptarts), and sports drinks.  The winners were Peter Pan peanut butter, BigY Poptarts, and Gatorade!

Tuesday: Went for a 6 mile run with a Cross Country coach I know from church.  She mentioned that she used to run with a friend of hers, but hasn't run much since.  When I told her about my interest in training for a half-marathon, she offered go running with me sometime and suggest some training loops around town.  On Tuesday, her husband drove us out about 6 miles, dropped us off, and we ran home to a hot dinner made by her husband (how cute is that?).   Not only was dinner great, but they also have two little girls and a dog I had the blessing of getting to play with.  At one point, I was reading to the girls and petting the dog simultaneously ... on some level, I felt like a sister/babysitter/parent.  What an unexpected joy.
We are running again this Tuesday, so stay tuned!

Wednesday: Boy did it snow - over 7 inches, in fact!  I made a sizable snow man for the first time in my life AND shoveled the backporch/driveway  - 2 quintessential New England experiences, check.
While crying through the last 2 chapters, I finished Marley and Me.  Reading about that loyal, humorous, yet obstinately mischievious dog made me wish for one of my own.  Maybe someday...

Thursday: Went to St. Peter's Choir practice and then Adoration at Assumption Chapel.  Choir practice was awesome - my heart melted at the sound of voices in harmony.  To me, there is something heavenly about it...as if God's essence is harmony, 3 voices in One.

Friday: Worked in the Kindergarten class for the ENTIRE school-day, instructing centers and feverishly wrapping presents.  That day, the kids purchased gifts for family members at the school-sponsored "Holiday Shop" which offered small gifts ranging from 50 cents to $3.  All of these kids come from poor families, so the Shop gave families a way to buy presents at a lower cost. 
Later that night, I went to La Salette with one of my friends from the Assumptionist community.  This Shrine has an amazing Christmas display with thousands of lights every year and often sponsors choir concerts - we were there to see the Daughters of St. Paul concert, which was pretty cool.  After visiting the Shrine, we went to an Ice Cream Shop/Diner that I spotted on the way there.  I had the Belgian Waffle Sundae - AMAZING.

Saturday: The day was dedicated to prayer.  Sister Catherine came over and we made 4 loaves of wheat bread!  During the "dough-rising" periods, we prayed the rosary, reflected on Advent, and walked to a nearby Cafe.  It was very theraputic!  That evening, the Sisters invited us over for dinner and Lectio (divine reading).  We studied Sunday's readings and discussed its significance.  I love the verse from Phillipians, "...make your requests known to God.  Then the peace of God that surpases all understanding will guard your hearts and minds" 

What an amazing week!

Photo courtesy of http://www.travelblog.org/Photos/1459615.html

Advent Reflection

I was asked to write a little reflection for the AMA Newsletter... thought I would share!

"As we enter the Advent season, we are called to focus on God and his incarnation in human form on Earth. This remarkably humble and sacrificial act is the reason why God's children are welcomed into the Kingdom of Heaven. Mary surrendered to God’s will and in doing so paved the way to our salvation. During Advent, we are called to remember His humbling birth and precious spirit on Earth.


But shouldn't we, as Christians, focus on God every day in our lives? Shouldn't we recognize God's presence all around us whether it is Advent or not? The answer is most definitely yes; however, as fallible humans we are often unable to see beyond the distractions of this world to the heart of life, God's love. We are made in His image and nature itself is His creation – God is a part of everything and everyone. As our lives and calendars become full of meetings, responsibilities and concerns, we tend to neglect our God and miss the opportunity to rejoice in the greater purpose of our life here on Earth. Speaking as a detail-oriented person, I find myself falling into this trap as my weekly agenda becomes more about completing tasks rather than deepening my relationship with our Father. Even during a recent leisurely hike in the woods, I noticed that I rarely raised my eyes to the sky until my trail guide made the suggestion to do so. My interests were focused on what was in front of me – rocks, moss, leaves, trees, the direction of my path. As humans, we are all susceptible to this tunnel vision and often lose sight of the beautiful forest of God’s spirit surrounding us.

Well my friends, the season of Advent is a time to allow our souls to catch-up with our busy bodies and ponder on the beauty of the forest. During the weeks leading up to Christmas, we are called to set aside time to recognize God's presence in our lives. As AMAs it is our challenge to humble ourselves and see beyond our own interests, worries, agendas, and focus on how God is working in our lives. God is blessing us every day, we just have to sit still long enough to discover it! "

The Lord is near. Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Phillipians 4:5-7

Photo courtesy of http://forestscene.com/Trails/

Week I of Advent

Sr. Catherine, my roommate Lee and I visited a nearby Trappist Monastery today.  Trappist monks pray Liturgy of the Hours (structured community prayer) seven times a day, often beginning in the wee hours of the morning (around 3am) and ending in the evening around 7:30pm. The community also earns their living through the production of commercial goods, such as cheese, bread, jam, and coffee.  These men devote their entire being to God, living for Him and offering everything for His glory.  Pretty amazing...

In other news, the first week of Advent has come to a close.  This week was fairly remarkable:
-Spent time with the Brommer Family in PA 
- Ran 15 miles
- Celebrated the last days of ESL and Mentoring for the year
- Instituted daily reflection and began personal hiatus
- Considered running a Half-Marathon in PA

Who knows what the next few weeks will bring... 

Life Update

This year, I spent Thanksgiving break in Quakertown, PA with my friend Lucas and his family. We had a great time - feasting, crossword puzzling, playing Yatzee, running (I ran 8 miles for the first time in my life!) and walking around quaint towns enjoying the brisk November weather.  I also received an early Christmas present from Lucas, a Christian Prayer book containing the traditional "Liturgy of the Hours".  Catholic religious orders use this structure to pray together morning, afternoon, evening, and night.  It's unifying to think that religious orders all over the world (including the Order I work for right here in Worcester) are using the same material to pray.  It's pretty cool be to Catholic...

In other news, I taught my last ESL class of the semester today.  I have awesome students by the way.  They all have a great sense of humor and are proficient in charades.  Well today, I had a very loose lesson plan schedule, but looking back on the day I think that's how God intended. 
This morning, I went outside to tend the garden and felt as if I had walked out into a Texas Winter - it was 62 degrees and sunny with a slight breeze!  This is no day to be stuck in a classroom, I thought.  So, I decided I would take my class on a field trip to the nearest park.  Coincidentally, I had a gift certificate for the pizza parlor (shout out to Uncle Sam's Pizza!)  across the street from the park.  After about 40 minutes of teaching, we walked to the park, picked up pizzas and had a picnic!  What a great day.

Today was also the last day of St. Peter's Mentoring program for the semester.  I'm definitely going to miss the kiddos and hanging out with the college students.  We celebrated Christmas with Winter Bingo and candy for all.  There was almost a stampede when the kids found out they were getting candy... and I was the only thing in their way!  After I snatched the bag of candy and held it high above their heads, they agreed to form a line and I managed to come away unscathed. 

My next big task is to plan a craft/activity for our "Girls with Dreams" group.  It's times like these I wish I was more artsy! 

**photo is from theophilus monk

Bloodshed...over this?

Recently watched "Blood Diamond", which vividly portrays the harsh reality of the global diamond trade in the late 1990's (and continuing to the present).   I heard the term "conflict-diamonds" maybe once or twice, but did not realize the gravity of the problem until my roommates and I watched and discussed the movie.  Unforunately, there is still no reparation for the millions of lives lost and families scarred due to the Blood Diamond trade.  The Kimberly Process Certification Scheme, which was written to curb the purchase of these "conflict-diamonds", is merely a suggestion and offers no culpability to countries who violate its requirements.

However, under President Clinton, the United States agreed to ban the direct and indirect importation of diamonds from Sierra Leone (a prominent area for blood diamonds).  Also, President Bush banned diamond importation from Liberia (an alt. route for Sierra Leone's conflict diamonds).  While America is making progress, I still wonder if blood diamonds are able to find their way into our market and into our matrimonial rings, ladies.

As one of the largest diamond consumers in the world, I feel that America has a responsibility to ensure their purchases are not fueling human exploitation.  Think about it and do your research before you buy that rock (if you must)!

Apple Farm Hoedown

This past Saturday, I desperately wanted to drive some place far away (relatively).  After a few weekends of ESL lesson planning, laundry, and chores, I was ready for an adventure!  I checked out the Massachusetts Tourism website specifically for events on Saturday and I stumbled upon a Thanksgiving Harvest Festival at the Red Apple Farm in Phillipston, MA (about 1 hr away).  Since I missed apple-picking this year, I was really excited to get a last-minute taste of harvest season.  I mentioned it to my roommates and they jumped on board too!

The Festival was awesome - even better than I imagined!  We drove through a winding country road lined with trees and pulled into a bustling farm complete with a wind turbine.  Local vendors with homemade goods like Alpaca knitted winter clothing, local cheese, maple syrup, evergreen wreaths, and pottery displayed their artistic prowess.  The Harwick Wine Co. served free wine tasting and a local brewery sold their Harvest Brew (seemed to be popular).  There was even a Civil War reenactment camp set-up with "soldiers" armed with historical knowledge.  The Red Apple Farm also had a barn/meeting area that was decorated with lights for the occasion.  Local bands played bluegrass and piano ragtime while people sipped on fresh apple cider and ate apple dumplings in front of the toasty fireplace. This was a truly idyllic scene. 

My roommates and I decided to stay for lunch since there were several food vendors from which to choose.  When I'm on an adventure, my motto is "Go big or go home", so I bought the BBQ Burger: flame-toasted bun, cheeseburger topped with pulled pork and BBQ sauce.  Sure, this was more meat than I had eatten since I arrived in Worcester, but what the heck!  The burger was well worth the cholesterol, my friends.  Thankfully, Liz suggested we go on a guided hike to the nearby 1,000 Acre Swamp so I could make sure my heart was still willing to work.  All told, we had a great adventure!

On my next excursion, I would like to drive to Stockbridge,MA: home of the Normal Rockwell Museum, quaint country roads, Edith Wharton's home (designed by herself), and the National Shrine of Divine Mercy.

It's a Jungle out there.

Every Wednesday morning, I volunteer with the Preschool Class at the local children's science museum in Worcester (EcoTarium).  This free program (awesome, right?) is available from 10:30-11:30am every Wed. and is divided into two sessions: story time and craft/snack time.  I work in the craft session with the kids and their parents.  My favorite part of my volunteer work during the Preschool Class is observing kids -they are hilarious! 
For example, one of the kids today was climbing on his mom like she was a Jungle Gym*!  He dove in her lap, squeezed through her arms, rolled off her side and clinged to her back.  He would be a nimble spy, that's for sure! Meanwhile, the mom was attempting to have a conversation with another adult.  I admired her persistence.  Another boy, who was much younger (maybe 1 year old), would roll over on the floor every 2 minutes so that by 15 minutes, he was nearly off the rug that was in the center of the room!  Haha...he was quite content to keep rolling, but his mother reeled him into her arms.

*I wondered where the term "Jungle Gym" came from... turns out it was a brand name during the 1920s!  I had no idea "monkey bars" and climbing structures are such a new concept (relatively).  I guess the idea of recess came with the restructuring of public education in America.  Thank you Sebastion Hinton!

The picture is of a wicked cool Jungle Gym in Black Rock City, Nevada.

Love

Is it just me, or is living in the present REALLY challenging? I catch myself on a daily basis thinking/planning/worrying about the future, when I need to be focusing on today and all the beautiful opportunities today holds.

Almighty God, teach me to be vulnerable, to trust in You, and surrender to Your will.

If you think about it, what greater joy is there than knowing God is in control? He is Love in all its forms - peace, kindness, joy, fulfillment, generosity. Me...well, let's just say I don't have the fullness of Love all the time. If anyone (other than myself) is directing my life, God is my number 1 pick. While his decisions may not be the easiest to follow, the outcomes are always focused on Love...what better outcome is there than the self-sacrificing Love that Mary and Jesus shared with us as humans?

When I was younger, my greatest fear was sacrificial pain, but now I understand that pain on a deeper level. Sacrifice and Love (God) are one in the same. God sacrificed his Son out of Love. Mary sacrificed her Son out of Love for God. The pain of sacrifice transforms shallow earthly love into a heavenly Love that is unquenchable and boundless. Even though the satisfaction of earthly love may fade, our ultimate goal is to continue to seek the Heavenly Love from which we all originated.

Lord Jesus Christ, take all my freedom, my memory, my understanding and my will. All that I am and cherish You have given me. I surrender it all to to be guided by Your will. Your love and your grace are wealth enough for me. Give me these, Lord Jesus, and I ask for nothing more.
~St. Ignatius of Loyola

Shout out to Saint Anthony!

While I was reading My Life with the Saints, I remember chuckling at a sing-song phrase often recited by the author to Saint Anthony, something like "Saint Anthony, Saint Anthony, please come around. There is something lost that needs to be found." I remembered praying to/through Saint Anthony when I was younger, as I had an even greater proclivity to lose things back then. Recently, I had not relied on his intercession much and I thought that I should re-institute the use of such a prayer.

Over the past 2 weeks, I have "misplaced" everything from my keys, debit card, pens, socks, to a beautiful gift from a friend. After each instance, I said a heartfelt prayer to Saint Anthony and was able to find all of these things shortly after (thank you God for your guidance!). With the debit card, I was especially concerned and doubtful. After looking through my purse 2 or 3 times, searching my car, my pockets, I still couldn't find my card. My imagination went wild thinking of all the bad things that could happen if someone else found it first. I called my bank to cancel the card and felt relieved that at least if I didn't find it, no one else could use it. After an hour or two, I looked into my purse to get a pen and found my debit card in a side pocket... how could I have ever doubted you, Saint Anthony?

Today, I asked for your guidance again and you found my missing article. Thank you Saint Anthony for all the times you have helped me, past, present and future!

Left to Tell - a must read

Recently, I have been reading Left to Tell by Immaculee Ilibagiza and My Life with the Saints by James Martin. Left to Tell is an amazing autobiography of faith persevering through incomprehensible obstacles. This woman survived the Rwandan Holocaust in 1994 by hiding 91 days in a Pastor's bathroom with several other women. During times of immense sorrow, anguish, and hatred at the thought of her razed village and slaughtered family, she maintained an intense devotion to God. She clung to one thing left from her past, her father's rosary. She prayed the rosary for several hours a day and was given grace to keep going. Her faith is an inspiration to those who think miracles cannot happen in this life anymore. There were so many times when she could have been killed, but she prayed for God's protection and was spared. Even more so, she was able to forgive those who murdered her family and friends. She realized that in order to truly love God, she had to forgive these people or her hatred would eat her alive. Her hope and love would be suffocated by the evil done by others and she was not going to let the murderers take the one thing she had left. At the end of the book, you walk away with a renewed desire to pray the rosary and to build a personal relationship with God who is our ultimate strength.

Joy of Cooking

Ever since I could hold a whisk, I have been cooking and baking with my father in the kitchen. Under his tutelage, I learned the basics of cooking and the joy in sharing delicious food with family and friends. Being the science nerds that we were, we also discussed the chemistry involved with cooking. Have you every wondered what exactly baking powder does? http://www.joyofbaking.com/bakingsoda.html. Pretty cool, huh?

For the past 2 weeks, I have been cooking and baking like I have a family of 7 to feed (or a small scale B&B). I don't know whether I have been cooking out of sheer boredom or win over my roommates and coworkers, but after mushroom and pea risotto, breaded eggplant, 3 pies, 2 quiches, one crisp, one loaf of bread, and several apple pancakes later, I still want to cook more! Cooking is such a fulfilling hobby!
After reading a little bit of Julie & Julia and hearing about the story from others, I am considering a culinary adventure of my own. For those who have not heard of this recent novel-turned-movie, a young woman decides to cook everything in a Julia Child cookbook....everything. The cookbook I choose will most likely have "Budget" in the title though! I am living on a volunteer stipend after all. Although, I would rather cook based on references from family and friends instead. I've always preferred personal experience to cookbooks anyhow!

So to all you cooks out there, if you have any dishes/recipes of which you are especially proud, I would love to share in your joy of cooking!

Refugee Apostolate

This week, I volunteered with a hole-in-wall discount clothing/furniture/kitchen accessories store run by a non-profit organization known as Refugee Apostolate. The couple running this chaotic but functioning store has been helping (and often housing) international refugees since 1979. From the early 1980s to 1999, they worked with Catholic Charities and the International Rescue Committee to host several families, one by one, in their house and helped the refugees find a new home in America. During one of my lunch breaks, I had the opportunity to talk with Cathy, one of the store owners. "At one point," she explained, "we hosted a Vietnamese family of 14 in our house. It was crowded, but fun." Cathy and her husband, Walter, had a 6 bedroom house at the time, but she said that bath time was often challenging with only one shower! And I feel rushed with one shower between 3 people!

Not only did Cathy and Walter host refugee families during these years, but they also raised 5 children simultaneously! Could you imagine growing up with constant exposures to international cultures? How awesome... I imagine we would all be more understanding of other cultures if we were raised around people with different values and beliefs from the very beginning of our lives.

Lord, thank you for the gift of diverse cultures. Help me to always respect and appreciate diversity and hunger to learn more about the people of the world. After all, in learning more about each other, we begin to understand more about ourselves. Amen.

http://www.theirc.org/

Volume 1 - My Epic Road Trip

Wow - I can hardly believe it has been a month since my last post! So much has happened in August that this is going to take a few posts...

Day 1
My mom and I left Texas Aug. 5th around 9am and spent most of the day driving to Memphis, TN. The waterfront park along the Mississippi provided a commanding view of the river and a glimpse into the rich history associated with the area. I resonated with Mark Twain's words, "Along the Mississippi, every hour brings something new....there are crowds of odd islands, woods and villages--everything one could desire to amuse the children." What vitality a river brings! The view of downtown was beautiful as well...oh and that pyramid in the photo is an indoor sports area. Mark Twain would get a kick out of that!

We also visited the famous Beale Street - hundreds of sweet motorcycles lined the street, which were only visible by the plethora of 1950's neon signs. Music filled the air with bands playing everything from blues to jazz to rock. Beer and jello shots were sold like hot dogs from store front windows. It was quite an experience!

Day 2

Drove to Gatlinburg, TN and camped in the Great Smoky Mountains! We reserved a tent site in the Elkmont campground and found a site within a few feet of a babbling stream - it was incredible to say the least. The night was made even more interesting as my garage-sale-tent did not come with a rain fly...and clouds were on the horizon. Luckily, we didn't wake up to pouring rain. The woods were breathtaking though. I recommend everyone go camping in the Great Smokies at least once in their lifetime. You won't regret it!

Driving to our campsite was another story though- we had to drive through two heavily commercialized towns that made me cringe. Imagine a street lined with with overlapping theme parks complete with mini-golf courses, water parks, carnival rides, and dinner shows like the Black Bear Jamboree . I assumed that the Great Smoky Mountains were awe-inspiring and entertaining enough...sorry ancient mountains rich with life and history, mini-golf and water parks create more revenue. But to me, I would pay for these views over any theme park.

Day 3 -4

Drove to Nellysford, VA which is close to Charlottesville (home of Monitcello and University of Virginia). We accidentally drove into North Carolina, but the drive was absolutely gorgeous! Well worth the 30 minutes of back-tracking. My mom and I stayed in a small town B&B (a way of rewarding my mom for smiling through the camping experience - she is not a camper). The town was filled with fruit orchards and wineries along with an amazing little known French bistro/Wine and Cheese shop called Basic Necessities. They work with a local farm to use the freshest produce for their dishes. The atmosphere of the petit bistro was delightfully serene, full of people sipping wine sharing stories and laughing about the day. A guitar player set up close to us after we sat down, which made me nervous because the music could either ruin or preserve the lovely ambiance established. When he played a James Taylor song, I automatically trusted his taste in music, which proved to be quite good. The food was beyond amazing! The most memorable dish for me was the goat cheese appetizer. There are not enough words in the English language to describe how much I love herbed goat cheese atop crispy French bread.

The Blue Ridge Mountains are right next to Nellysford and offered a beautiful view everyday. But just down the road from our B&B was an even more idyllic scene - a red barn and stable with horses idly standing around djacent a placid pond. When I was little, I remember staring at this picture nearly every day during December vacation when my father and I would work on puzzles. I would work on putting the obvious colorful pieces of the puzzle together, like the barn and stable, while my father preferred the more elusive edge and corner pieces. We were quite the puzzle-duo and solved several puzzles that looked like this gorgeous Nellysford area.

Day 5-6 To be continued...

New Beginnings

Yes, to all you avid bloggers out there - I finally have a blog of my very own!

If there is anything worth blogging about, I figure it will be my experience working for the Associate Missionaries of the Assumption in Worcester, MA for the next 9 months.
My Uncle Gary gave me a piece of advice after graduating from college, "Live every day to the fullest or before you know it your time in MA will have vanished and you will have nothing to show for it." By creating this blog, I hope to record memories and discoveries over the next year, so that I will remember the friendships and lessons learned.
Amidst all the noise in America, it can be easy to forget the small milestones in your life. People can become so consumed by the latest trends, newest gadgets, and personal dramas that they forget those little moments of enlightenment and wonder. I hope that this blog of little moments will serve as a constant reminder of the life lessons learned during my stay in MA.

In the meantime...
I cannot believe I just ran 5.3 miles today! Thanks be to God for giving me strength. To explain how monumental this is for me, I was hoping to run just 4 miles for the first time. My somewhat daily routine is 3 -3.5miles, but I made it a goal to push for 4mi this time. Well, after my 4th mile, I was feeling good so I kept running... I felt like Forest Gump. "I just felt like runnin'." So I did - in fact, I ran all the way back to my house and decided to keep going. When I finally decided to stop, my GPS watch (borrowed from Lucas - thank you!) posted 51minutes and 5.3 miles. I stared at those numbers for the longest time in shock. The weather was perfect though- 76, cloudy, breezy, and drizzling. As the rain poured over me, I asked God to renew me with his grace and unfailing love. That renewal must have given me the confidence and strength to continue - 5 miles would have been impossible without Him. Not to mention that there is something incredible about running in the rain! I definitely encourage it (but just during a drizzle folks, not in a hurricane for Peat's sake).

Wow- who knew I could write so much in my first blog? Stay tuned for more as I take the GRE and begin my Epic Road Trip through AR, TN, VA, PA, and CT! MA or bust!