Inspired by Scholastica

When I was in 6th or 7th grade we were asked to make a sacrament booklet. We were supposed to explain and illustrate the seven sacraments. I worked hard on it but it looked stange because I filled every line to the edge of the paper and hypenated the words in awkward places. I don't know why I felt I had to cram the words together so tightly.  Looking back I think I was trying to save paper. I do tend to be frugal with using up scraps and not wasting paper or other things. My mother was overly thrifty so I'm sure I learned it from her.  I think it hampered my creativity and ability to try new ways of doing things. My style was cramped as my life was cramped in many ways. I was expected to do things one way, my mother's way. I was not encouraged to explore and dream and fantasize. As an adult I'm still hampered by my background. I have tried new things, but I still hate to waste anything. When I embroider, I use the thread to the shortest possible length. I use p...

Pope Francis has some suggestions for fasting this Lent. He suggests that we fast from hurting words and say kind words; fast from sadness and be filled with gratitude; fast from anger and be filled with patience; fast from pessimism and be filled with hope; fast from worries and have trust in God; fast from complaints and contemplate simplicity; fast from pressures and fill your hearts with joy; fast from selfishness and be compssionate to others; fast from grudges and be reconciled; fast from words and be silent so you can listen. These are challenging recommendations. It's much easier to fast from candy or some favorite food. But these require a change of heart and attitude. When we look at our political situation in the United States, we can easily become pessimistic,but we need to try to find reasons to hope. When we see our health diminishing, we start worryiing, instead of trusting God's loving care. When we see so much suffering and injustice in the world, we ...

On Feb. 14, Ash Wednesday, we begin our Lenten journey. Some of us dread the six weeks of fasting and penance. We think we have to do all sorts of hard things so God will be pleased with us. I am reminded of Mary Oliver's poem, "Wild Geese." She says: "You don't have to be good/ You don't have to walk on your knees/ for a hundred miles through the desert repenting/ You only have to let the soft animal of your body/ love what it loves." I smile at the thought of walking on my knees for a hundred miles through the desert. I know I'd never make it. We need to realize that God loves us no matter what we do. We are asked to be loving in return. When we are in love, nothing is too much for us to do for our Beloved. We would be ready to run in circles, dance a jig, sing a song, pray with gusto. We do not need to earn God's love by being good. God cannot NOT love us!  He sends the sun and the rain and the snow to nourish the earth. He welcomes ...