Awareness of God

Welcome to our Saturday meme hosted by Colleen at Thoughts on Grace. Visit her to read other Catholic blogger’s moments of resting in the Lord or finding Him in the ordinary.

This week was busy.  Due to problems with a neighbor, we had to get a privacy fence installed along one side of our property.  Fortunately, it only took 3 days.  One to set the posts, one to let the concrete harden, and one to nail the boards. It looks lovely.  Between now and next spring I’ll have time to consider what to plant near it.  For sure it looks like this will be a great opportunity to start kiwi vines in a sunny section.  No problem presents itself without a corresponding opportunity. Meanwhile, I am praying for the neighbor when I otherwise wouldn’t have.  Sometimes God sticks stuff  right under our noses so we can’t miss those He wants us to pray for.

Sunlight through the red, orange, and yellow leaves casts a warm glow over morning and evening.  Just looking out the window at this intangible beauty is calming and peaceful.  Physical light is important and healthy for the body as the light of Christ is important and healthy for the soul. I’ve found that part of my wellness program is getting enough sunlight. On sunny days fibromyalgia pain is much lower than on overcast and rainy days.  Meditation and prayer brings the light of Christ into my soul which starts to wither away without it.  It’s like what Colleen wrote about last week: put God first.  I’ll add, or you’ll get lost in the dark and be in a world of hurt.

We are getting a kick out of the neighbor boy who is around 9-10 years old.  He is an outgoing, enterprising young man.  When we cleared the honeysuckle from the back fence, it exposed a lot of rocks – the Ozarks gifts of the ground.  He asked if he could have some and we said yes.  The next day he was knocking on our front door offering to sell us some beautiful rocks – the ones we gave him permission to take!  I thought it was hilarious.  He is a polite boy and very intelligent with an outgoing nature.  It’s always a Sabbath moment to see today’s children growing into decent people – a good antidote to the selfish and self-centered youth that dominate the news.  The Lord is raising wheat among the weeds.  We must all pray for the wheat to stay strong and not be choked out by the weeds.

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V. Praised be Jesus Christ!

R. Now and forever. Amen.

(Click on the link above to read why I am ending my posts with this.)

Awareness of God

Welcome to Sabbath Moments, a meme hosted by Colleen at Thoughts on Grace.  Please visit her to read other Catholic bloggers moments of awareness of God.

Extra time with God

It must be the prednisone.  I’m waking up at 5:30 in the morning, giving me quite a bit of extra time with the Lord.  Prednisone = bad.  Extra time with the Lord = good Sabbath Moments.  This must be the idea behind turning lemons into lemonade.

Puttering

Beautiful weather Friday morning allowed me to putter in the garden and yard and get plenty of sunshine.  I always feel God’s presence when I’m digging, weeding, pruning and harvesting.  God bless my friend Steve, the physical therapist who works out in the therapy pool when I do.  He told me about a small tractor we decrepit people can sit on and roll wherever we need to go to get those pesky weeds out, and do other close to the ground chores.  Hubby and I bought it on sale over a year ago and it’s made doing outside work so much easier and fun.

Spiritual Progress

One of my meditations for this week from Divine Intimacy gave me much to think about throughout the following days.

It’s tempting to try to gauge our spiritual progress by ourselves.  The minute we start focusing on ourselves and worrying about being holy, our eye is off the ball, the ball being God.  The opposite of sin is virtue.  We are either practicing sin or we are practicing virtue.  Real spiritual progress comes with the practice of virtue.

Father Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalene, OCD has good news for us:

Infant Baptism - Catholic

In fact, although God has infused the virtues into us at Baptism without any merit on our part, He does not make them grow without our collaboration; it remains for us, always with the help of grace, to put into practice the virtuous principles He has given us.  Only in this way shall we acquire good habits of virtue and facility in practicing them.

Therefore, if we desire to cooperate with the action of God who wishes to make us like to Himself, we should apply ourselves with great zeal to the practice of the virtues.

…”the obligation to advance in the love of God – and therefore, in all the other virtues as well – lasts even unto death” (St. Francis de Sales).  No one, however advanced in the spiritual life, can consider himself dispensed from the practice of the virtues.

In certain Catholic circles there seems to be an over emphasis equating holiness or spiritual progress with spiritual consolations and contemplation alone.  The incursion of transcendental meditation (a New Age practice) and its off-shoots pushed by well-meaning but misled people has deceived more than a few.  On the other hand, there are Catholics that really believe that if you cannot engage in charismatic prayer the Holy Spirit is not working in you and you are not holy.  I’ve met both types.

I think we have no greater expert on spiritual progress in prayer and living than the Doctor of the Church, St. Teresa of Avila.   She alerts us to pitfalls and shows us how to avoid them.

Father Gabriel continues:

St. Teresa of Jesus in describing the high states of the life of union with God, often digresses to urge the practice of virtue.  “You must not build,” she wrote to her daughters, “upon the foundation of prayer and contemplation alone, for unless you strive after the virtues and practice them, you will never grow to be more than dwarfs” (Interior Castle VII, 4); and elsewhere she expressly says that, by means of the virtues, “even though not greatly given to contemplation, people who have them can advance a long way in the Lord’s service, while, unless they have them, they cannot possibly be great contemplatives” (Way, 4).

It is not essential that God should lead us by the path of high contemplation in order to make us saints; [note: We do not make ourselves saints.  It is not in our power to do this.  Only God can make us holy.] besides, this does not depend upon our will. What does depend upon us, and is essential, is that we maintain the practice of virtue.  Whether God wills for us a family life or one dedicated to the duties of a professional life, whether He calls us to the apostolate or to the contemplative life, in each case we shall become saints only in the measure in which we practice virtue.

…However, we shall never reach perfect, much less heroic, virtue unaided by the gifts of the Holy Spirit, the end of which is precisely to perfect the virtues.  Although the task of practicing the virtues is ours, it is only God who can actuate the gifts, and ordinarily He does this in proportion to our zeal in practicing virtue. The assiduous practice of the virtues opens our soul wide to God’s action, rendering it apt to receive and follow the motions of the Holy Spirit.

Thinking on this, I see how important it is

• to ask God’s help in identifying a key virtue to develop,
  
• to recognize the opportunities God gives us to practice this virtue, and
• to examine our conscience daily for our omissions when we let the chance go by, as well as our commission of sins opposed to the virtue.
  

If we’ve blown it, we simply tell God we’re sorry – and really mean it – and ask Him to wize us up.  A little penance or mortification in both repentance and thanksgiving for His generosity to us in the many graces He gives us daily keeps us in the right frame of mind to persevere.

This simple approach keeps our eyes on the prize: eternal union with God starting now.  If we don’t have some degree of this union before we die, we aren’t going to find it after death.

Spiritual progress can’t be accomplished by prayer alone St. Teresa says.  We shouldn’t get hung up on whether we can actually engage in contemplative prayer even though the writings of St. Teresa, St. John of the Cross and other contemplatives make it very attractive. Who doesn’t want to experience what they did?  The same goes for getting hung up on whether or not we can pray in tongues. Both instances makes the prize a particular satisfaction with ourselves in prayer – an end in itself.  It sets up a false measure of something only God can truly assess and leads to pride and vainglory, the opposite of several virtues including humility.

We have to be careful about making assumptions about our own holiness based on any other person and what he or she experiences in prayer or even what we experience in prayer.  We can be sure God is always calling us to union with Him every minute of every day. His call is always individual.  Co-operating with God’s action in our souls is the main thing, and what Sabbath Moments are all about.

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V. Praised be Jesus Christ!

R. Now and forever. Amen.

(Click on the link above to read why I am ending my posts with this.)

This post is linked to Sunday Snippets at This That and the Other Thing.  I invite you to join us for inspiration, discussion, and fun with other Catholic bloggers.

This week I wrote about Father Patrick Peyton in The Family That Prays Together Stays Together.

What Devotion to the Sacred Heart means to me.

Sabbath Moments tells of a temporary state of rebellion.

Happy Fourth of July, readers, and God bless you.

Want to subscribe to posts by email? Visit the third box in the sidebar.

V. Praised be Jesus Christ!

R. Now and forever. Amen.

(Click on the link above to read why I am ending my posts with this.)

Here’s another health related post based on my personal experience.

A friend who works out at the therapy pool when I do told me about Ionic-Fizz Magnesium Plus.  Coincidentally, my Natural Health Doctor had mentioned that people with fibromyalgia are known to be seriously deficient in magnesium. Because I had severe muscle pain for over two months from slicing a roast, he suggested I get a magnesium supplement.

Off I went to the health food store and found this product.  It says on the label it’s good for bone and cardiovascular support and is great for leg cramps.  Hmmm… I thought.  If it stops leg cramps, what would it do for my incessant muscle cramps in my back – the kind of cramps every fibro sufferer has to deal with.

Here’s what happened since I began taking this supplement in February.  The arm pain lessened in a few days and was gone in a few weeks.  The muscle cramps disappeared. I still have burning muscle pain but I can now get through Sunday Mass without squirming and twisting to resolve cramps in my back and around my ribs.

Not knowing all of what magnesium could do, I began noticing another very welcome effect.  I’m a sugar addict.  One of those people who can’t open a box of candy without eating the whole thing.  It runs in the family for generations and has resulted in diabetes in some of my relatives.  Taking this product brought my sugar cravings to an abrupt halt.

Addictions are a result of faulty brain chemistry.  I know this intellectually, but handling it correctly is quite another thing.  Magnesium brings about a proper chemical balance in the brain and helps control blood sugar levels.  This is really important for people suffering from fibromyalgia because most of us are insulin resistant and have blood sugar problems.  My sugar cravings have disappeared and I am finally starting to lose weight.

Pure Essence Labs makes this product.  Here’s what they say about magnesium:

Magnesium is the world’s most overlooked nutrient. Without it, calcium cannot be efficiently deposited to bone tissues. When calcium does not reach the bones, it can form arterial plaque, bone spurs, kidney stones, etc. It can also cause calcification of brain cells, thus undermining mental function.

Over 80% of Americans fail to get even the minimum daily requirement for magnesium. Less than one in 20 get the amount that progressive nutritionists suggest. Magnesium deficiency can lead to osteoporosis, insomnia, cardiovascular problems, migraines, muscle cramps (especially cramps in the legs at night), constipation, poor mental function, lack of energy, high blood sugar levels and countless other problems.

This is what they say about why getting minerals in this fizzy form works better:

The smallest, simplest, purest forms of minerals are “ions.” Calcium and magnesium can be absorbed into the blood in this pure, ionic form through a process of passive diffusion. They can also be bound to amino acids in the stomach, and then absorbed through an active transport system in the first few inches of the small intestine.

Minerals that are bound to amino acids are called “chelates.” Because these minerals are reasonably well absorbed, many nutrition companies try to make chelates in industrial processes. However, commercial chelation processes are not nearly as efficient as the chelation that occurs in the stomach. So, many of the minerals that are sold as chelates are nothing more than mineral salts that are extremely difficult to digest.

Naturally, the harder these salts are to digest, the harder they are to absorb. Since digestion loses power as we age, the older we grow, the less valuable such minerals become. And, even if we could digest them well, the body chemical used to digest them is the hydrochloric acid made in the stomach. Since this is the same digestive juice used to digest protein, the more of it we use to break down minerals, the less efficient our protein digestion will be.

This means that the best mineral supplements are those that are in their free, ionic form. Because they require no digestion, they can be immediately absorbed through passive diffusion, or joined to amino acids in the stomach, and then absorbed via the active transport mechanism. Pure mineral ions are the only minerals that can absorbed in both these ways.

Here’s a partial list of conditions that could indicate a magnesium deficiency and be helped by taking this product:

ADD/ADHD

Alzheimer’s

Angina

Anxiety Disorders

Arrhythmia

Arthritis – Rheumatoid, Osteoarthritis

Asthma

Autism

Auto Immune Disorders – ALL Types

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Congestive Heart Disease

Depression

Diabetes – Type I & II

Eating disorders – Bulimia, Anorexia

Fibromyalgia

Gut disorders – Ulcers, Crohn’s Disease, Colitis, Food Allergy

Heart Disease – Arteriosclerosis, High Cholesterol, High Triglycerides

High Blood Pressure

Hypoglycemia

Insomnia

Kidney Stones

Lou Gehrig’s Disease

Migraines – ALL Types

Multiple Sclerosis

Muscle Cramps

Muscle Weakness, Fatigue

Obesity – Especially Associated with High Carbohydrate Diets

Osteoporosis (just adding magnesium reversed
bone loss)

Parkinson’s Disease

PMS – Including Menstrual Pain and
Irregularities

Raynaud’s

Stroke

Syndrome X – Insulin Resistance

Thyroid Disorders (low magnesium reduces T-4)

Many people with fibromyalgia or other chronic pain issues suffer from quite a few of the above problems.  Magnesium in sufficient amounts taken by this method may be a partial answer for many to start feeling better.

Wellness is a way of life and while we likely won’t ever feel like we did at age 20, taking a natural healing approach can help us improve our quality of life and our mental outlook. God meant for our bodies to be in balance and our bodies constantly strive for it.

My doctor and I are always looking at new and developing approaches to correct the systemic issues I face.  Progress over the past year has been slow, steady, and significant. I hope that readers will find clues for their own solutions in my posts.

The most important thing I’ve learned is to keep looking for ways to address health issues using natural methods that keep stress on the body down.  From personal experience I can also say that a healthy body is an asset to a healthy spiritual life.

Awareness of God

Welcome to Sabbath Moments, a meme hosted by Colleen at Thoughts on Grace.  Visit her to see what other bloggers are contributing and join us in sharing if you can.

(1) This week I was delighted to discover daikon radishes at our health food store.  I am not a radish lover, but in many of the Japanese movies I own, I see daikons used in scenes involving cooking, eating, or taking vegetables to market, so I’ve wanted to taste some.

Daikons are huge – way bigger than your biggest carrots.  The store had organically grown daikons from California bundled in threes – the smaller radishes.  I saw a giant daikon in a movie that had to be 2 ft. long at least!

Daikon radishes

These Asian radishes are white in color and mild.  As with asparagus beans, you get a lot of veggie for your money along with great taste. You can also cook and eat the greens at the top. My husband loves radishes and his only complaint was they didn’t have as much “bite” as the ones we typically find at the grocery store.

Everybody needs a new adventure every now and then, and this was mine.  Will I buy them again?  Probably.  They make good snacks if you’re on a weight loss program and delicious additions to various salads and dishes, too. If you’d like to know more about daikons, many ways to use them and their excellent nutritional value, visit What’s Cooking America?

(2) Yesterday we had mild weather and sunshine.  It was a perfect time to go out and start weeding the vegetable garden.  The large amounts of snow we had made the ground perfect for pulling up the grass and weeds, roots and all.  Sunshine and exercise are very important for us humans, especially those of us with systemic diseases. You can bet I was thanking God in my heart for the chance to get fresh air and do something relaxing.  Good thing, too, because today it’s overcast and freezing.

Want to subscribe to posts by email? Visit the third box in the sidebar.

V.  Praised be Jesus Christ!

R.  Now and forever.  Amen.

(Click on the link above to read why I am ending my posts with this.)

Awareness of God

Welcome to the weekly meme hosted by Colleen at Thoughts on Grace where we gather to share moments with God and the times we experienced Him working in our lives.

This was a big pro-life week that brought over two million marchers to Washington.  The Basilica of the Immaculate Conception was packed for Mass. I was heartened by the many people who want the world to know that killing babies in the womb and killing the disabled and elderly is not viewed positively.  Somebody has to present a visible counterpoint to the death mongers out there.

In the spirit of this week I reviewed one of my favorite Kurosawa classics: The Quiet Duel – A Pro-life Film. Released in 1949, it does something today’s films do not; it shows the hero choosing to do right and making no compromises with evil. By and large today, film does not model righteous behavior and good does not triumph over evil, leaving people with the idea that “everybody does evil, the good are fools, and why should I not gratify my every desire?  Tough luck if you get hurt.”

It’s also been a week of prayer and discernment regarding what God wants of me.  There is only so much time and energy available.  What others are physically and mentally capable of is not what I can do.  Overdoing because of “shoulds” sitting on my shoulders is unwise. Prayer and spiritual reading, this blog and my readers are my priority beyond my daily chores and health activities.  To do too much more will not work.  I guess I’ll be fighting my Type A personality till I die!

Want to subscribe to posts by email? Visit the third box in the sidebar.

V.  Praised be Jesus Christ!

R.  Now and forever.  Amen.

(Click on the link above to read why I am ending my posts with this.)

Rays of God's Blessings - A Moment of Delight, Photography by Yun, http://www.yunphoto.net/en/

An interesting thing happened on the way to improved quality of life for me in 2010.  Not only did God bless me with an excellent Natural Health doctor who has guided me toward a clearer mind (goodbye fibrofog), He helped me develop my writing voice and skills through blogging.

The best surprises are always from the Lord! It’s only in retrospect that I see what regular blogging has done for me.

• I’ve found wonderful blogs by Catholic/Christian bloggers that have given me opportunities for interaction on faith and Catholic living.

• My spiritual life has improved.  I see what God is doing for others as they risk sharing His miracles in their daily living.

• I’ve made valued friends I’d love to meet in person and have a good chin wag with.  Maybe someday that will happen.  If not, that’s OK.  We can continue to encourage each other via comments and show our caring that way.

• The big surprise: writing has become a wellness skill for me. It means a lot that what I’d hoped to do when I started this blog – help others in some way – is happening and I feel good about that.

Where will writing take me?  I’m not sure, but I hope to be able to bring in a little income to supplement our Social Security. Here’s where you wonderful readers can help me.

Lend Me a Hand – A Corporal Work of Mercy

I’ve joined Suite101 and am learning ways to promote my work to others who can benefit.  This past week I posted a first person article on simple goal setting skills anyone can use, but it’s especially geared to people who may be tempted to discouragement because they suffer from disabilities such as fibromyalgia, arthritis, and other afflictions where quality of life is easily compromised.

It was after I had written and posted the article that I realized the kind of goal setting I wrote about is a wellness skill. I want to inspire others and give them hope. We can’t truly function well without skills, inspiration and hope.

The Blogger's Tool

What you can do:

• If you have time, read the article. It won’t take long.

• If you know people who can benefit from it, send them a link and encourage them to read it.

• If you can write a blog post about it and link to it from your blog, that would be immensely helpful.

• Tell me what you think about it, and, if you wish, suggest other topics I can pursue that would help others.

We are made of body, mind, and soul/spirit.  I’ve learned that when one is in trouble, the other two also need help.  Wellness applies to all three.  I want to write more for Suite101 that will be both practical and uplifting.

God bless you, dear readers, and thanks for reading my blog.

Want to subscribe to posts by email? Visit the third box in the sidebar.

V.  Praised be Jesus Christ!

R.  Now and forever.  Amen.

(Click on the link above to read why I am ending my posts with this.)

May this coming year be one of great blessings for all my readers!

We went to Dallas as usual for the holidays and spent time wrapping up details of my parents’ estate.  Fortunately we all get along very well and were able to agree with no conflict on who would get what of Mom’s jewelry, etc. This is all thanks to a sister, brother, and niece who did a great job of organizing and listing everything in an Excel worksheet, even left over household items. Our plans are now to write what we know of various items and decide who we want to pass them on to when we are gone – or before, as I plan to do.

Mom gave me a bracelet that she was given by her grandmother, and I have pieces from her mother.  It occurs to me that if we did not live in a country that has known peace within our borders for 150 years, it would not be possible to do any of this. Looking at European cities after World War II gives only a small idea of what was lost of family histories and possessions, let alone friends and relatives.

On the other hand, since we are destined for a place where worldly possessions and family histories are of no account, I am continuing my attitude of detachment and believe that the most precious thing we can leave to further generations is a good example of living a good Christian life. My parents did that by having a good marriage that lasted 65 years.  That takes dedication to duty, sacrifice, and changing what needs to be changed in ourselves.  Now is only the means to the end.

How did you do on your 2010 New Year’s Resolutions?

More than anything I wanted to improve my mental functioning, and thanks to my natural health doctor, I did.  It has taken a lot of work and has been more than worthwhile.

I also set a goal for myself to have 100 articles posted to the internet, which seemed almost impossible to me at the time.  With 320 posts on this blog, four on http://www.editingandproofing.com/blog, and about 25 articles in other places on the web, I more than met it. One of the biggest helps to achieving this was not only my health improvements, but also fellow bloggers who host memes I enjoy participating in.  Thank you, faithful hosts!

So how did you do in 2010?  If you didn’t accomplish your resolutions, don’t fret.  There’s always 2011.  Keep things simple and realistic.  You might surprise yourself.

V.  Praised be Jesus Christ!

R.  Now and forever.  Amen.

(Click on the link above to read why I am ending my posts with this.)

Humor is a universal language. It’s a contagious emotion and a natural diversion. It brings other people in and breaks down barriers. Best of all it is free and has no known side reactions.

So says holisticonline.com and studies have shown that humor is an important ingredient of wellness.  Norman Cousins called humor “inner jogging”.  You may be old enough to remember him recounting how he healed himself of a debilitating condition through laughter in Anatomy Of An Illness (Norton, 1979).

What does laughter do?  According to holisticonline.com:

Laughing is found to lower blood pressure, reduce stress hormones, increase muscle flexion, and boost immune function by raising levels of infection-fighting T-cells, disease-fighting proteins called Gamma-interferon and B-cells, which produce disease-destroying antibodies. Laughter also triggers the release of endorphins, the body’s natural painkillers, and produces a general sense of well-being.

From time to time I will bring my readers funny stuff – links to sites that will give you chuckles or outright belly laughs.  In the midst of today’s parade of incessant doom and gloom throughout the ether, it’s wise to jump mentally from the flow of grim effluvium to a clear stream of joy.  I’ve found hilarity can be heavenly even when it is earthly, sparking my creativity and sharpening new angles of vision.

When life is too serious, one place I like to visit for laughs is engrish.com. Something about mistranslations and misspellings from Asian languages to English is funny beyond words.  A few of these left me speechless with tears rolling down my face.  The suggested captions add to the funniness so you can enjoy yourself beyond the signs, restaurant menus, toy packages, and instruction sheets for office items.

Wellness means approaching life in a well-rounded way.  Laugh at yourself and laugh with others, especially on gloomy days when things are not going so well.

V.  Praised be Jesus Christ!

R.  Now and forever.  Amen.

(Click on the link above to read why I am ending my posts with this.)

In our world where the powers of darkness seem to reign, God does work modern day miracles. This video from the Christian Broadcasting Network tells a story of God’s love and presence among us, of His power unlimited by our paltry faith, of His call to each of us individually.

If today you are feeling down, see what God did for a man who previously did not take Him seriously.  Not a bad man. A spiritually indifferent man. An ordinary man like so many of us. A man whose eyes were fixed on this world with no comprehension of the divine.  Until…

V.  Praised be Jesus Christ!

R.  Now and forever.  Amen.

(Click on the link above to read why I am ending my posts with this.)

This simple sanctuary shows the Traditional Mass altar set up for the Michaelmas Pilgrimage we attended at St. Michael church in Cherokee Village, Arkansas last Sunday.

The permanent tabernacle is at the far left, while a custom made portable tabernacle rests on the altar for the Mass, as this parish is primarily devoted to the Novus Ordo and uses only the permanent tabernacle for its liturgies.

Since I took this with an older small Sony digital camera, the resolution and exposure are not ideal so I’ll explain the two stained glass windows.  On the left is the Holy Spirit window and on the right is St. Michael overcoming Satan.  One thing I really like about this window is that at the top of St. Michael’s spear the Holy Spirit rests. Sorry you can’t see it better.  Maybe next year I’ll have my new digital camera and can do the scene more justice.

Michaelmas Pilgrimage

Every year the St. Pio da Pietrelcina Latin Mass Community, whose chaplain is Father Laurent Demets, F.S.S.P., hosts a pilgrimage in honor of St. Michael the Archangel on the Sunday as close to the feast as possible.

At the beginning it was on Sunday morning starting at St. Philomena’s shrine in Cherokee Village and five miles later ended at St. Michael church in time for the 11:00 Mass.  After about ten years the event has expanded to include Saturday soccer games, ballroom dances, barbecue, spiritual exercises, and on Sunday the Mass, potluck, and the pilgrimage culminating in solemn vespers and Benediction Sunday evening.

Roger and I are too decrepit to participate in most activities so we drive three hours Sunday morning to get to Mass, which is now at 11:15, stay for the pot luck so we can visit with friends, and then take to the road to get back home before sundown.  This year the weather was sunny and cool so the entire trip was lovely.  Ever the photographer, on the way home I lamented not having the new camera I’ve been wanting so we could get photos of the hay fields with scattered bales, and the cows, goats, and sheep we passed in the sweet light of evening.

A highlight for me: because of the weather and the health improvements I’ve made, this extensive day trip did not leave me feeling like a limp dishrag and in a lot of pain.  But I could not do too many of these kinds of trips too often, so thanks be to God for the joy of this one.

Planned church for the St. Pio da Pietrelcina Latin Mass Community

As a former church musician I must say that the organist and choir are excellent and the sacred liturgy, celebrated with an MC and fourteen altar boys, is very uplifting. If any readers live close enough to participate with your families (lots of kids there), perhaps you could try the Michaelmas Pilgrimage this coming year for a weekend of Catholic life.

Finally, after many years, the St. Pio community has unveiled plans for a church of its own, dedicated solely to the celebration of the 1962 Roman Missal. Click on the link above to read more about the project and pass the word along.  Northern Arkansas is part of the Ozarks and it is a lovely place to live if you can find work there.

V.  Praised be Jesus Christ!

R.  Now and forever.  Amen.

(Click on the link above to read why I am ending my posts with this.)

Last week I wrote no posts due to many factors including sheer exhaustion. Today is the beginning of a new week and, I hope, one where I can get some of the things I put off accomplished.

Last Monday started off with a wasp sting which happened during my asparagus bean daily harvest.  It wasn’t bad and the pain went away quickly when I applied a homeopathic remedy I keep in the medicine chest. The sting reminded me of what every sin does to the soul, and how God’s grace takes away the pain and swelling affecting nearby areas. A single sin is like a wasp sting.  It only takes a minute but it causes trouble in the soul beyond the small entry wound.

Many stings make for a very bumpy and sick soul. The habit of many small sins eventually will kill the soul unless we submit to God’s remedy of repentance and forgiveness. Getting stung made me resolve to be more vigilant in my spiritual life and to avoid situations where I might get stung so that I will have a smooth, clean soul to present to the Father. There’s no avoiding the asparagus beans, though.  Every stinging insect in the area loves them for the nectar from the flowers, but they usually leave me alone. God just wanted to teach me a lesson Monday morning about how sin hurts us, and somebody at that moment needed grace from the discomfort I offered to Him.

Last Tuesday I went to get my teeth cleaned and learned that my bottom front teeth need to be capped, at an exorbitant price I might add.  My husband called the Kansas City Dental College and we made a day trip there on Thursday for a second opinion.  It turns out that if I don’t replace the 32 year old caps on the top and let them re-engineer my bite, capping the bottom two won’t last. So for more than double the cost of two caps, I’ll get six caps and a fix that will last the rest of my life.  We will scramble to find the money somehow and we will have to make several more all-day trips to get it done over the next three months.  The quality and workmanship will be superb, but I wish I didn’t need it done.

On the way home Thursday, warning lights showed up on the dashboard.  Great.  It turns out something is wrong in the brake system and the fix will be around $900. Is it safe to get out of bed yet?  I want to hide under the covers.

Along came the Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost and Jesus had the right words for me in the Gospel of Matthew.  In an exhausting and disappointing week, He gave me the reminder to trust in the Father and not to stress out, even though I am so tired of being so tired and so tired of big bills lately:  Mt. 6: 25-27 and 32-34:

Therefore I say to you, do not be anxious for your life, what you shall eat; nor yet for your body, what you shall put on.  Is not the life a greater thing than the food, and the body than the clothing? Behold the birds of the air: they do not sow, nor reap, or gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them.  Are not you of much more value than they? But which of you by being anxious about it can add to his stature a single cubit?

…for your Father knows that you need all these things.   But seek ye therefore first the kingdom of God and His justice, and all these things shall be added unto you.

These words renewed my spirit and could not have been more timely. My desire for the rest of my life is to detach from the world and trust in God while suffering with joy. Have you noticed that whenever you ask God to help you acquire a virtue He sets up ways to give you plenty of practice?

V. Praised be Jesus Christ.*

R. Now and forever.  Amen.

*click on the link to read why I’m ending all my posts with this.

This is the hottest, most unrelenting summer heat we’ve known since arriving in southern Missouri in 1993, but the asparagus beans love it.  They are living up to their reputation of being disease resistant, but have attracted the weirdest looking beetles I’ve ever seen. Beetles gross me out, but after spraying with Neem for several weeks, hardly any are left.

These guys are about 1 1/2 inch long, black, with legs that are hair-thin.  The right front leg has something like a fin attached.  They line up 4-5 in a row down the length of the bean and darned if I can figure out what they’re doing.  I’ll spare you a photo because I can’t bring myself to look at them long enough to focus a camera.  I can’t find anything on the internet about these bugs so I don’t know if they’re good or bad, but something has been chewing holes in the older leaves. The newer growth seems fine.  If anybody out there thinks you know what these beetles are, let me know because I’d like to find out more about them. At one point there were so many of them they were crawling on the tomatoes, too.

This morning I went out and clipped quite a few beans to go with the ones I harvested the past two days.  The two gallon bowl was full with beans draping over the sides so it was time to chop and steam them for freezing. They taste delicious in stir fry, Italian food, egg fritatas, or as a side dish.  Over the past few days the vines have been flowering prolifically.  The color is gorgeous so I wanted to share it with readers and took this photo this morning.  We are going to have a huge new harvest very soon.  I highly recommend these beans for simple gardeners like me.

Some things I’ve learned about growing and harvesting these beans:

1. They like full sun.  The second batch of beans I planted by the east gate didn’t get as many hours of light as the 5 I put elsewhere, so they were slower to produce.  However, they are doing well and covered with blossoms like the first batch.  They are just a little behind the others in production.
   
2. What is really weird is that the ugly beetles that got on the full sun batch didn’t bother the shadier batch even though they are planted not far from each other.  I can’t figure that one out.
3. Clipping the beans with scissors is the easiest way to harvest them.  If you clip them just at the top of the bean and below the nodule of the flower, you will get more flowers and more beans.
4. Every flower produces two beans.  Sometimes one bean is ready to harvest before its twin.
5. If you harvest when the beans are 15-18 inches long they cook faster than if you wait until they are 24 inches long.  Beans that are 12 inches long or less are so tender and delicious you can eat them raw.
6. The beans seem to hide behind the leaves.  I have to look at the plants from different angles and move the leaves to make sure I haven’t missed any that are ready to harvest.  Several times I missed beans and let them mature and dry out.  I’ve collected the beans inside the pods and will use them to start new bean plants next year.

Outside of the yucky beetles, I have to say that this vegetable is as easy to grow as the tomatoes.  Spraying with Neem has kept pests off everything.  For people who don’t want to exert too much physical effort and still provide healthy organic food for the table, and especially if you have a bunch of kids to feed, these beans really are an excellent crop. You get so much produce from a very small space it’s amazing.

From Wikipedia here is the nutritional breakdown of the beans:

They are a good source of protein, vitamin A, thiamin, riboflavin, iron, phosphorus, and potassium, and a very good source for vitamin C, folate, magnesium, and manganese.

In a serving size of 100 grams (3.5 oz.) of yardlong beans there are 47 calories, 0 grams of total fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 4 mg sodium (0% daily value), 8 grams of total carbohydrates (2% daily value), and 3 grams of protein (5% daily value). There is also 17% DV vitamin A, 2% DV iron, 31% DV vitamin C, and 5% DV calcium. (Percent daily values are based on a 2000 calorie diet. Individual daily values may be higher or lower depending on individual calorie needs.)

If you’ve missed them and are interested, you might like to read my two other postings about asparagus beans:

The Asparagus Bean Surprise

The Asparagus Bean Surprise II

Sunday Snippets is a weekly gathering of Catholic bloggers and readers over at This, That, and The Other Thing where we share our posts we think others might enjoy.  To join us visit RAnn’s blog.  If you are a blogger write a post linking to our hostess, go to her site and enter a link to your post.

This week in honor of Our Lady I posted an interpretation of a rare and beautiful renaissance painting of her.  At Decoding Sacred Art I explain it. Please share this with your friends as this painting should be much better known for its content and artistry.  I love to look at it and pray.

After learning that I am gluten sensitive, I researched and wrote an article on Gluten Sensitivity, Weight Gain, and Fibromyalgia. It’s all part of my journey into wellness that I hope it will help others, too.  The facts are surprising and I’ve included links for those who want to learn more.

This is my book review of a really worthwhile read: Salvation Is From the Jews. It made me appreciate more what God has done for us and helped me understand parts of the Bible better.

In Sabbath Moments I mention times this week where I consciously was with God.  At that post I include some great comments by a wonderful priest, Father Oscar Lukefahr.  You’ll want to read his book, The Privilege of Being Catholic.

Welcome to Sunday Snippets – A Catholic Carnival where Catholic bloggers list posts they want to share.  RAnn and This That and The Other Thing hosts this weekly gathering so visit her blog to find other Catholic blogs you may find interesting.

Roger and I got started with our garden planting late this week and we have more vegetables to get into the ground.  Thank God for Sundays because our aching bodies need a break. In between catching some sun and digging in dirt I wrote a few posts and created some art.

A highlight of the week was a discovery that we can get customized supplements to compensate for defective genes that dispose us to inherited diseases.  If you’ve been wondering what you can do to feel better or prevent health problems, take a look at DNA Nutritional Assessment.

In another post I go into more depth on The Great Benefits of the Nintendo Wii, which I recommend in my Custom Shop.

I relaxed this week by turning my mind to digital art.  To see a couple of my paintings visit Sharing Spring Through Digital Art.

In Sabbath Moments I posted some excerpts from a  homily Pope Benedict gave “off the cuff” on April 15th.   His clarity and focus is razor sharp as he speaks of obedience to God. We are so fortunate to have this great teacher leading the Church.