“Boo-tiful” or Beautiful?

My home is situated on roads lined with the most colorful trees in Whitehouse, Ohio. Looking out my window or walking or driving down the road provides a panorama of spectacular colors. My throat catches an intake of surprise, although I always know the surprise will be coming. My throat can’t help itself. I’m always…

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Autumn, Four Seasons in One

Autumn is that one-fourth of the year that often gives us all four seasons. September may feel like summer’s heat and humidity, October has the crispness we often think of when we think about autumn, November has spring-like rain, and December ushers in winter snow. Living in Ohio, I experience the changing seasons without having…

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Rejoice in the Way Things Are

Wayne Muller wrote: “Be content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you.” Do you find yourself thinking “I wish I had”? How do you finish that thought? What word fills in the blank? More time? More money? More leisure?…

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Hope is in the Oyster

How often has the grain of sand in the oyster created a beautiful pearl? How much hope do pearl divers have that “this will be the one”? Little things comprise our day, and we may wonder “Will this little action be the one?” The one that will open a comatose person’s eyes? The one that…

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The Sorrowful Mother’s Encouragement

While young athletes compete in a race, the mothers cheer them on.  “Keep going! Keep going!” When Jesus was carrying his cross, his mother was along the route, carrying her own cross of maternal sorrow. Like any mother, she would have wished the pain for herself rather than upon her son. When Jesus and his…

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The Photo with a Future

The photo framed in silver adds sparkle to the sparkling personality of my sister Sue who died a dozen weeks ago. Her bright eyes look directly at me, showing eagerness to chat or share a joke or give a compliment, so natural to her who invariably put the other person first. If a photo says…

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Reading to Revive during a Revival

We are in the third year of a three-year Eucharistic Revival. Perhaps we haven’t attended any of the events, so what can we do to revive ourselves? As a musician who typically sits on the piano bench during Mass with my attention on sharps and flats, I need to enliven my devotion at Mass. Reading…

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A Lovely Custom

In our early formation years we young sisters questioned many things—“Why are we….?” The typical answer said with a grin was “It’s customary.”  One beautiful custom is writing notes of appreciation and congratulations to sisters at the time of their jubilees of religious profession. Why?  “It’s customary.” Another beautiful custom is putting all the jubilee…

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My Spiritual Companion has Wings

Whenever I pray by a lake I am on the lookout for my spiritual companion. He has wings, but he’s not an angel or the Holy Spirit. He’s a heron.  For many years the presence of a heron would signal a good prayer experience or a meaningful week’s retreat. Some years I see the heron…

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Experiencing the Gospel

In his book Praying the Scriptures Demetrius Dumm gives primacy of God’s deeds over words said by God or about God.  He encourages the reader to focus on the great acts, particularly the Exodus in the Old Testament and the resurrection in the New Testament. In this way the books of the Old Testament find…

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