What I've Been Doing

As I mentioned 2 posts ago, I bought a new car and yesterday, sold my old one. Both of these things have been taking up all my time…

I have finally finished all the tutorials on my new car. I am now ready to program it and organize all my stuff…everyday necessities, travel items and apocalyptic scenario paraphernalia from fire-starters to tourniquets to water purification tablets.

Preparing my old car to be sold has been a lot of work too. The person I’m selling it to is going to fix it up and re-sell it. It is such a mess, I wanted to do as much as I could to lesson the difficult job this guy has ahead of him. The 2 main projects were getting all the bumper stickers off and cleaning out the horror behind and below the back seat. I had noticed a while ago that papers had fallen behind the seat (presumably when SOMEONE put it down to haul stuff). The project was so annoying and difficult, I procrastinated until…this week. It was far worse than I thought. Not only was stuff crammed behind the whole back seat, it was under the seat as well, almost impossible to access. I had to feel with my hand and almost got my arm stuck. My hand came out gummy and black…candy wrappers, a lollipop stick, “Goldfish” crackers, other food-related products, a ticket to “Babes in Toyland” (I completely forgot about that, which was probably a good thing), a “Lush” giftcard (yay!), a decimated Linda Ronstadt CD, religious-themed car air fresheners, several cheap miraculous medals and a host of other less exciting things. I felt bad about removing the miraculous medals, so I put a few back under the seat (is that weird?).

Though I am thrilled with my new car, it has been surprisingly emotional saying “Goodbye” to my old one. Things from my son’s childhood, fur from my old dog…so many memories…driving my son around, trying to give him enriching experiences, teaching him to drive, going to Wisconsin looking at colleges along the way (none of which he went to)…all our family trips. As I tied a bow around the gift for the buyer, the final touch, like a ritual, I cried. I watched the car sail down my road for the last time and tried to sort out my emotions. The feeling I ended with was one of happiness that it will go on to a new life with a new owner. I have a sense of providence about it…that it is all playing out the way it was meant to.

PS I settled on a 12-pack of hard seltzer as a gift;)

Let us remember all the victims of 9/11 this day, and their families.

Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary

From the Tridentine Mass:

Hail, holy Parent, that didst bring forth the King who ruleth Heaven and earth for ever and ever!

Bestow upon Thy servants, we beseech Thee, O Lord, the gift of Thy heavenly grace: that as the childbearing of the Blessed Virgin was the beginning of our salvation, so the solemn feast of her Nativity may bring us an increase of peace.

O Virgin, Mother of God, He whom the whole world cannot contain, enclosed himself in thy womb being made man.

Alleluia, alleluia! Happy are thou, O holy Virgin Mary, and of all high praise most worthy: for out of thee hath risen the sun of justice, Christ our God. Alleluia!

Truly blessed art thou, O Virgin Mary: the Creator of all things thou didst bear; Him who made thee thou didst bring forth and a Virgin evermore thou dost remain.

Blessed is the womb of the Virgin Mary, which bore the Son of the Eternal Father.

From The New Marian Missal, Sylvester P. Juergens, SM, Doctor of Sacred Theology, writes:

“At the time of Mary’s birth, the whole world was plunged in darkness. The heathen nations were steeped in vice and pride. The Jews too, had corrupted their ways and departed from God. Everywhere there was sin and gloom, scarce any bright spot on the face of the earth. But when Mary was born, a light arose amid the darkness: the dawn of the glorious day that was to usher in the Redeemer. So too, the darkness of the sinner’s soul is dispersed by Mary’s holy influence. Where the love of her is born in the soul, all becomes full of light, and Jesus comes to make His habitation there. Mary, in the first hour of her life, brought more glory to God than all the Saints of the Old Testament. In her were made perfect the obedience of Abraham, the chastity of Joseph, the patience of Job, the meekness of Moses, the prudence of Josue. It is because she is the model and pattern of these and all other virtues, that she can communicate them to us.”

To fully practice the Catholic Faith, is to remain continually in a state of joy, primarily due to our Communion with Christ, but also due to the celebration of such wonderful feasts, as the one we celebrate today. No matter what happens around us, we cannot help but be joyful. And this is just a foretaste of the eternal joy of Heaven. The prayers above from the Mass are some of the most beautiful and moving, as they describe the wonder of Mary’s role as Mother of God. Let us honor her birth today, all over the world, to console her sorrowful Heart in this month of September. Let us show Our Lord there is love for His Mother on earth, that His mercy may descend upon us at this time of great need.

As the missal states above, the “world was plunged in darkness” when Mary was born. We are in great darkness once again. But Holy Church reminds us today, through Our Lady, that there is always hope and reason for joy. May we hold onto this knowledge through the coming days and show all those around us that we truly are different, we truly represent something apart from the world. May we draw all we come in contact with to the Everlasting Light of the Most Holy Trinity!

Image courtesy https://www.turnbacktogod.com

Update

Sorry I have not posted much…this past week has been rough because I had some dental treatment and also had to buy a car. My mouth is still hurting and I still can’t figure out how the locks work on my new 2020 car. I have been driving a 2004 and have no idea how all this stuff works. It is so weird to turn the car on with a button instead of a key and when I’m backing up, I don’t know whether to look in the rear view mirror or the camera. My fancy audio system keeps going on and off. I’m watching YouTube videos now to figure out how this car works. I never needed a tutorial on how to operate a car before! This could become a whole post on the woes of technology…I have spent my entire life meditating on this, since I was a teenager in the 80’s. There is a point where technology becomes so cumbersome, time-consuming, fragile, privacy-reducing…that the detriment exceeds the benefit. I think we are at that point (with the advent of 5G, we also have a host of new problems). Perhaps this is a “singularity” of a sort. Ask 10 people what “singularity” means and you get 10 completely different answers. What is the solution? Go back. That’s my 2 cents and I’m stickin to it. I realize this is radical. If you are not willing to be radical, the coming days will rake you over the coals. Either way, you are in the pressure cooker. Choices must be made. Difficult ones.

Anyway, I TOTALLY LOVE MY NEW CAR!!!!!!!!!!!! Really, I do. (My old one is literally taped together with duct tape-sadly, that is not a joke! But a guy is actually giving me $500 for it and is going to fix it up. I think I will leave a 6-pack in the back seat for him. He will need it.) TY for your patience:)

September: Month of Our Lady of Sorrows

This month, we honor the sorrows of our Heavenly Mother. A wonderful devotion is the Chaplet of Our Lady of Sorrows, in which one meditates on the 7 Sorrows with a specially designed chaplet. You can buy one for a good price at Direct From Lourdes (get some Lourdes water while you’re at it!). The feast is September 15th.

Our dear Mother must look upon her children right now with great sorrow. Humanity is being separated and torn apart at the most fundamental levels. The Church has lost much attendance and the House of God has been turned into something looking more like a makeshift military hospital. Let us resolve to console her this month as she grieves over the world. Who knows what will transpire in the next several months? But there is reason for concern. Prayer and prepping are going to be critical, starting immediately. As it says on our Home page, “Pray & Prep!” This has never been more important in our lifetimes than it is RIGHT NOW.

Here is a selection of some of the interesting feasts this month:

3-St. Gregory the Great, Doctor, ”The Greatest of the Great”

4-First Friday

5-First Saturday / St. Teresa of Calcutta

8-BIRTH OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

12-MOST HOLY NAME OF MARY

13-St. John Chrysostom, Doctor, “The Golden-Mouthed,” “Doctor of the Eucharist” / Anniversary of Fifth Apparition at Fatima (Don’t forget our Holy Hour!)

14-Exaltation of the Holy Cross

15-OUR LADY OF SORROWS (new) / SEVEN SORROWS OF OUR LADY (trad)

16-Ember Wednesday (prayer and penance-trad meat at one meal)

17-St. Robert Bellarmine, Doctor, “Prince of Apologists,” “Gentle Doctor of The Controversies” / St. Hildegard of Bingen, Doctor, “The Teutonic Prophetess,” “Sibyl of the Rhine”

18-Ember Friday (prayer and penance)

19-Ember Saturday (prayer and penance-trad meat at one meal) / OUR LADY OF LA SALETTE (hist)

21-St. Matthew, Apostle & Evangelist

23-St. Pio of Pietralcina

24-OUR LADY OF RANSOM

29-Sts. Michael, Gabriel & Raphael, Archangels (new) / “Michaelmas Day” (trad)

30-St. Jerome, Doctor, “Father of Biblical Science”

This blog gives old and new feasts. The titles of the Doctors of the Church are taken from The 35 Doctors of the Church,TAN Books.

More Garden Photos-Flowers!

Yesterday was the trad feast of Saint Rose of Lima, patroness of gardeners. Saint Rose of Lima, pray for us!

This year, we have a simple container garden of a few things. For a number of reasons, our capabilities right now are limited. However, I do recommend that everyone have their own raised bed food garden and that every parish think about creating one. This may become increasingly necessary as society continues to be taken down by those in power, with an agenda that is not in our favor.

These are some pics of the flowers we’ve been growing. Flowers are important for every garden, largely because they attract and support the bee population, so necessary for pollination. Of course, they are also beautiful and uplift the soul. Flowers show us something about the Designer behind them and His love for us. We could meditate on that the rest of our lives. I would call flowers an essential aspect of the Authentic Life. The Church also uses them at holy Mass and in many other celebrations and ceremonies. Our Lady is often associated with and honored with flowers. It is said on the third day after her passing, the tomb was found empty and covered with flowers. Many flowers are edible and have medicinal uses. All of these pictured here are easy to grow.

Sunflowers! Exquisite, fun, bee attracting and you can eat the seeds. What more do you want? There are many varieties of differing sizes. I think of sunflowers as the lion of the plant kingdom. Our Heavenly Father clothes them in majesty. Nature always reflects spiritual realities, since the lower order must follow the higher. We must look for these hidden meanings.

Went crazy enhancing this Snapdragon photo. I don’t know if I love or hate it. You can see the red ones there.

Snapdragons! A beautiful flower and it comes in various colors. It displays the intricate handiwork of the Father. I adore this multi-colored one:

Morning Glories! Little trumpets shouting the everlasting glory of their Creator. Again, comes in a number of amazing colors and is wonderful for anything you want some vining on-mailboxes, fences, trestles. trellises. Here is a spectacular magenta variety. You can see how they curl within themselves to create a striped look.

If you like any of my photos, you are free to use them however you wish. If you share, please refer to this blog. Same goes for all text on this site.

Northport, New York

We have decided to take a family vacation this week. Here are a few pics from our excursion yesterday to the harbor at Northport, New York. This is on the north shore of Long Island, what we call the “Long Island Sound.” The ocean is off the south shore. The Sound what built up in the 1800’s and is quaint and genteel to this day….

You are looking at a sailboat marina and all 3 pics are facing the same direction. Yes that’s me and yes I have enhanced the photos-don’t want my readers looking at dull images and I really like to work with the graphic design I have learned over the past several years.

Just a short drive, a few hours, and so many blessings! We had some wonderful family time walking with the dog and having a picnic in the park…we enjoyed the beauty of God’s creation, got some exercise and learned more about local ecological resources. Knowing your environment is a basic tenet of preparedness and is the way animals survive. Also, a connection to water is important for everyone. No one really understands water. It is mysterious and tremendously powerful. We are mostly made up of it. It is very interesting to research the more “cutting edge” theories about the nature of water. It is greatly calming and healing. And having lived near water my whole life, I am addicted to it.

Garden Pics / Today's Marian Feasts

I said I would post pics of my small container garden. Here are some cute baby cucumbers, more pics to come (don’t expect anything too exciting):

Today is a double Marian feast! One week after the Assumption, we celebrate the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the new and the Immaculate Heart of Mary in the old calendar. August is also the month of the Immaculate Heart, so let us honor Our Lady’s loving Heart today in some special way.

Multicultural Byzantine Mass for the "Dormition of Our Lady"

Prayer Before Holy Communion

O Lord, I believe and profess that You are truly Christ, the Son of the Living God, Who came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the first.

Accept me today as a partaker of Your mystical Supper, O Son of God, for I will not reveal Your mystery to Your enemies, nor will I give You a kiss as did Judas, but like the thief, I profess You.

Remember me, O Lord, when You come into Your Kingdom.

Remember me, O Master, when You come into Your Kingdom.

Remember me, O Holy One, when You come into Your Kingdom.

May the partaking of Your holy mysteries, O Lord, be not for my judgment or condemnation but for the healing of soul and body.

O Lord, I also believe and profess that this, which I am about to receive, is truly Your Most Precious Body and Your Life-Giving Blood, which, I pray, make me worthy to receive for the remission of all my sins and for life everlasting. Amen.

O God, be merciful to me, a sinner.

O God, cleanse me of my sins and have mercy of me.

Lord, forgive me for I have sinned without number.

My husband and I attended our first Byzantine Mass Saturday night, the celebration of the “Dormition of Our Lady,” which parallels our feast of the Assumption. The celebrant, Fr. Daniel Nash, said we look at the same mystery from a different angle. This was a truly unique, multicultural Mass, as it was Eastern Rite, part in English, part in Spanish, and attended by different segments of the Catholic community of Long Island. It took place at St. Patrick Church in Glen Cove, New York.

I must admit, I was confused through the Mass and cannot explain very much about it. My ability to see was limited since I was all the way in the back. Still, I found it greatly enriching. I am now interested in the Byzantine Mass and would like to go again, to a more standard one, and really get my brain around it.

We can see similarities with the Latin Rite prayers, with some interesting differences. I don’t think anyone can say the above “Prayer Before Holy Communion,” and receive Our Blessed Lord unworthily. This prayer effectively accomplishes 3 things:

1) A profession of faith. This takes away any doubt about the Real Presence.

2) Acknowledgment of one’s unworthiness and contrition for sins. This should hopefully prevent any sacrilege and prepare us to receive with proper humility.

3) An appeal to God’s mercy and acceptance prior to the consummation of Holy Communion. This extends from the spirit of humility. We are asking for His agreement before entering into this most sacred union.

You can see in the first picture a similarity with the Tridentine Rite, in the facing away from the people. Also, much of the Mass is sung. There are several customs which are different, which you can see in the two other photos. The overall feel of the Mass was that something extraordinary and other-worldly was happening. There was a sense that our Creator, the Divine Majesty, was being interacted with…that this was not just a worship service, not just a social event, not something that could take place anywhere out in the world…but something reserved for the Elect, the spiritual royalty of the Body of Christ. There was little room for misinterpretation.

Whichever Mass we attend, Holy Church reminds us that there are two worlds and we must choose only one. As the two worlds continue to divide further apart, the choice becomes more and more obvious, and also more difficult.

Another Lladro, Byzantine Mass, Thought for the Day

[Edited since posting.]

The previous post shows Lladro’s “Blessed Lady” porcelain statue, originally produced from 1988-1991 as a limited edition of 1,000. The same sculptor, Fulgencio Garcia, 4 years later, created the above piece, “Immaculate Virgin.” This is a limited edition of 2,000, higher priced. 25 years later, it still hasn’t sold out. I am partial to the original. One interesting difference is that Our Lady’s head is uncovered in the first and covered in the second. The uncovered head does not bother me, though it is true when she appears, she always has her head covered. This is one reason I wear the mantilla at Mass.

Lladro, a Spanish company started by 3 brothers, has a great history of producing fine Catholic-themed figurines. As I stated in the previous post, I worked at their flagship location in Manhattan for several months, on the selling floor of a beautiful museum-like store. It was a joy to come to work every day. I had started in the office upstairs as their archivist for North America (I would identify pieces for people, before the internet took care of all that). It was an interesting job, though rather stressful because it was too much work for one person. When the office moved to New Jersey, I temporarily worked at the store. It was uptown Manhattan, in such an exciting location, near the Plaza and Bloomingdale’s. What a great time that was, in my early 20’s, moving to the big city and having complete freedom (except for the curfew at the convent in Chelsea, where I rented a room). It is strange going to the city now-I always think, “Why are so many people younger than me?” Sadly, the Lladro location, complete with a museum of old pieces and an art gallery, is no longer there. However, in 2012, a new Lladro Boutique opened on Madison Ave. Anyway…if you are looking for a high-end Catholic piece for a gift or a religious institution, you may want to consider supporting Lladro. I am proud to have worked for them.

Tonight I have the privilege of attending my first Byzantine Mass, on Long Island. It is a special Mass being celebrated at a traditional-sensitive parish, the Eastern Rite’s version of the Assumption, the “Dormition of Our Lady.” I am very excited and will be telling you about it, complete with pics! Blessings to all on this feast of the Assumption-let us pray to Our Lady for the Church at this hour.

Came across this quote the other day…so true…

“Much of humanity’s activity is insanity masquerading as reality.”

Alan Cohen

Image courtesy https://www.houzz.com

The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

From the Tridentine Mass:

A great sign appeared in Heaven: A woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.

Almighty and eternal God, who hast assumed the body and soul of the Immaculate Virgin Mary, Mother of thy Son, to celestial glory: grant we beseech Thee that always minded toward heavenly things, we may be sharers of the same glory.

Hearken, o daughter, and see, and incline thy ear. And the king shall greatly desire thy beauty.

All the glory of the king’s daughter is within in golden borders.

Alleluia, alleluia! Mary is taken up into heaven: the host of Angels rejoice. Alleluia!

From The New Marian Missal, Veritas Press:

“On the third day after Mary’s death, when the Apostles gathered around her tomb, they found it empty and covered with flowers…The sacred body had been carried up to the celestial paradise. Jesus Himself came to conduct her thither; the whole court of heaven came to welcome with songs of triumph the Mother of the Divine Word.”

I used to gaze every day upon that beautiful porcelain statue above, when I worked at the “Lladro” flagship store in Manhattan, circa 1991. I wanted so much to buy it but could not afford it, even with my employee discount. It is long retired and has more than doubled in price on the secondary market. I still hold in my heart that maybe I can buy it some day and give it a place of honor within a sustainable rural Catholic community of love. Apart from the world. The statue is called “Blessed Lady” and was a limited edition of 1,000.

Image courtesy https://www.aretiredcollection.com