Month: August 2023

51) Poem – Here I am

Here I am, Lord

     Lord, here I am

           Up in the woods

      Cabin by the lake

Peaceful and quiet

      I came here to listen

          To hear Your Voice

      To seek Your will

And just to Be

      here with You

           With Your Word

      With Your Presence

Quiet on the lake

     Quiet in the woods

           Quiet in my heart

     Time to slow down

Internet went out

     Part of Your Providence

           Less distraction there

     Makes me smile 🙂

You have my attention

     Calling me to Wait

           “By waiting and by calm

     you shall be saved

In quiet and in trust

     shall be your strength”

          Isaiah 30:15

     Your Word for me

Mom’s word to me often

      “Be calm, Ann

            be calm…. “

      I hear her voice

Family so close here

      Most of them departed

            Their voices are still here

      Their presence tangible

Chairs around the table

      Four of them are empty

             Only two of us left

      And then there’ll be one

Cherish the time left

      Rejoice in times past

            All is gift

      Receive it gratefully

Is this Your Word for me?

      Just to Be

           In Gratitude?

      Each and every moment?

And that’s really enough

      What more do I need?

            Not a printed plan

      No scheduled agenda

To be here with You

     and too with those I love

           To savor the memories

     To harvest the gold

So thank You Lord praise You

      Don’t need any fireworks

           You’ve given me peace

      in the quiet of the woods

“No storm can shake my inmost calm

     When to that refuge clinging

          If Christ is Lord of heaven and earth

     How can I keep from singing…”

50) the Coronation: Mary, Queen of Heaven

Fifth Glorious Mystery – Coronation of Mary as Queen of Heaven

     On December 8, 2010, Bishop David Ricken of the Diocese of Green Bay celebrated Mass at the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help in Champion WI, and declared the appearance of Mary to Sr. Adele Brise in this very spot in 1859 to be worthy of belief.  My friend Mary Ann, a third order Carmelite, had been offered a seat , along with a guest, to attend the Mass, and she invited lucky (blessed) me 🙂  Neither of us knew that Bp Ricken was going to make the announcement that day – we just thought it would be a blessing to celebrate the Feast of the Immaculate Conception at the Shrine with the Bishop, which indeed it would be apart from anything else.  To actually be there when the pronouncement was made was truly a blessing – I’m so grateful to Mary Ann for inviting me!

  

  When Adele had asked the beautiful Lady who she was, Mary identified herself as the Queen of Heaven who prays for the conversion of sinners.  

       I had been to the Shrine a few times prior to the elevation of its status, but now Mary Ann and I both decided what a blessing it would be to volunteer there and be able to go more often, helping visitors on their pilgrimages.  I was able to do that for several years before moving out of state, and it was always a grace-filled experience.  The Shrine is another oasis of peace, and Mary’s presence is often tangible.  In October, the anniversary of the apparition, the Shrine will be celebrated as Our Lady of Champion, taking the name of its location, even as Our lady of Lourdes and other well revered apparition sites have become known.

     

I’ve been blessed to make pilgrimages to Medjugorje, and to Our Lady of Guadalupe in LaCrosse, WI and in Mexico City.  More and more I recognize this life as a perpetual pilgrimage to Heaven, with each day offering the opportunity to journey both inward and outward seeking a deeper relationship with the Lord.  Mary’s help along the way is that of a beautiful companion and gentle  mother.  As I’ve been able to make these pilgrimages, it’s become apparent that heaven is not far away, but rather more often encountered in unexpected familiar surroundings.  Each day opens the possibility of meeting the Lord and receiving His blessing and grace – life has become an adventure filled with good surprises!

 Lord God, thank You for all the times throughout history when You have appeared to simple people, often through Your Blessed Mother, bringing messages of hope and mercy.  May we be open to receive these graces in our everyday duties and interactions  with others ~

(re-visit from Rosary Reflections – Glorious Mysteries)

49) The One Thing Necessary

     “Who do you say that I am?  What difference does it make in your life?”  These were the questions posed to us by Fr Dave Pivonka, President of Stuebenville University, at the recent Convocation of the Marian Servants of Divine Providence in Clearwater, FL.  The Word that came to me was JESUS, and the difference it makes in my life is everything!

     I was reminded of the short reflection by Joseph Whelan, SJ, often attributed to Fr Pedro Arrupe, SJ, called “Falling in Love…”

Nothing is more practical than
finding God, than
falling in Love
in a quite absolute, final way.
What you are in love with,
what seizes your imagination, will affect everything.
It will decide
what will get you out of bed in the morning,
what you do with your evenings,
how you spend your weekends,
what you read, whom you know,
what breaks your heart,
and what amazes you with joy and gratitude.
Fall in Love, stay in love,
and it will decide everything.

     My days are no longer limitless, as I thought they were in youth, and my desire to not waste time has grown.  Hopefully everything I do will reside within God’s will for me, to respond to His love and be an agent of that love and mercy to others.  By my baptism I’ve been anointed and appointed to be that agent of mercy, in a hurting and fearful world.  And I’ve fallen in love with Jesus!  Every word of Fr Whelan’s reflection resonates with me, calling me to write of God’s Goodness and pray that indeed His Kingdom may come, first in my own heart, and then to spread to those I encounter each day.  Praise God for His Goodness and Mercy!

     Thank you Lord, for pursuing me, and for claiming me as Your own!  As one of your beloved children, kept safe under the protection of Mary’s Mantle and the cloak of St Joseph.  May I respond to Your Love in ways that make a difference in others’ lives, even as You have made all the difference in mine…

48) The Assumption

When I meditate on the mystery of the Assumption, I’m reminded of an experience as a hospice volunteer that’s been a blessing in my life.  I was spending time with a lovely elderly lady who was dying of cancer, providing respite care so her husband could have time to run some errands.  She looked very beautiful, despite her sickness, with a radiance about her that testified to her deep faith.  She usually was sleeping or resting while I stayed with her, and it was the story a nurses aide related to me that I remember.

       The aide would help to give her a bath and help with personal cares, so she was often awake to interact with this aide.  As she was nearing death and that time when a person is living both in this world and beginning to enter the next, the aide was asking her about her life and what she had experienced in all those years.  The lady spoke about a dream she had had to run a day care center and take care of little ones, but that  dream had never materialized. The aide suggested that in heaven she could have a beautiful day care for all the children there, and the lady smiled at her and said yes, and she would take care of the aide’s three little ones who were in heaven.

     The aide was taken aback, and asked how could she know that she had lost three babies to miscarriages – she had never told her about that.  But the lady knew – she was so close to the other side that she knew, and the smile on her face at the happy thought of caring for them affirmed that inner knowing.

      Mary our Mother was assumed body and soul into heaven; this is our faith, and the witness of a kind and gentle soul who was about to go to meet her has reassured me of the truth of this belief…

     Lord God, thank You for the gift of faith that beckons me to the eternal life promised in the Scriptures.  May the knowledge of Mary’s entrance to heaven console and encourage us as we mourn the loss of those we have loved here on earth ~

(re-visit from Rosary Reflection, 4th Glorious Mystery, the Assumption)

47) Come to the Water

Come to the Water

     At a time of deep distress and confusion about a family situation, my good friend was finding some solace by sitting on the dock, gazing at the lake.  The gentle breeze and ripples on the water were washing away some of the stress and anxiety she had been experiencing.  As she sat there, a sweet song was given to her ~ not of her own effort, but as it were just forming with simple lyrics and melody in her mind.

     “What can I do when I’m feeling lonely, what can I do when my heart is sad, what can I do when all joy has left me? I’ll go to the water, go to the water, I’ll go to the water to soothe my soul, I’ll go to the water to soothe my soul…

      What do I do when I’m feeling happy, what do I do when my heart is glad, what do I do when I’m filled with joy?  I go to the water, go to the water, I go to the water to sing my song, I go to the water to sing my song…”

      Her words sung with a sweet and gentle tune in her lovely soprano voice were a blessing for me.  She recognized them as a gift, provided for her by Something beyond herself. They brought me to reflect on the power of the Living Waters that flow from the Heart of Jesus.  These waters are within us always, flowing from the fount of our baptisms into the life of the Trinity.  They refresh and renew us, washing away the anxieties and pain often encountered in our earthly pilgrimage, and replacing these with the peace only God can sustain for us.

      How do we acquire this Living Water?  God’s Word gives us the answer: “if anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink.  He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘ from his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’  But this He spoke of the Spirit, Whom those who believed in Him were to receive…” (John 7:38-39)

      The water of the lake is a temporary relief; the Living Waters of the Spirit are forever!  When Jesus speaks to the woman at the well in John 4, He says, “everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I will give them will become a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”  Not only will we be refreshed, but we will overflow to others for their refreshment also!

      Lord God, thank You for the precious gift of Living Water which you pour into our souls.  May our thirst always be directed to this Water, given by the Holy Spirit, that it may be a source of refreshment for our companions on the journey…

46) Transfiguration

 I was introduced to the story of St. Seraphim of Sarov by Jim Murphy at a charismatic day of reflection, and his story has blessed me over and over again as I meditate on the mystery of the Transfiguration.   

     St. Seraphim is a Russian Saint often compared to the Western St. Francis of Assisi.  His story is well chronicled in the book FLAME IN THE SNOW, and includes a story about his own transfiguration, along with his nephew Nicholas.

     As I remember it, Seraphim was a holy hermit, having lived a saintly life and often consulted for spiritual wisdom.  His nephew came to him asking questions about the Holy Spirit, and Seraphim explained to him painstakingly about the Third Person of the Trinity.  Nicholas still didn’t understand, so Seraphim put his hands on the young man’s shoulders and told him to look into his eyes.  It was winter, and cold; snow lay on the ground around them.  And as Nicholas gazed at Seraphim, the Saint was literally transfigured before his eyes.  They carried on a conversation in this state, Seraphim noting and explaining the fragrance, the warmth, the incredible Joy that was being experienced by the two of them.  Nicholas recorded all this carefully – you can find the whole story on-line, or in the book.

      When the experience ended, Seraphim proclaimed that the Lord had given them this incredible grace not just for themselves, but to share with the world.  It’s a beautiful and amazing recounting of an actual experience of transfiguration!  And it fills the reader  with a deeper love for and appreciation of the Holy Spirit – what an incredible Gift of God!

      St. Seraphim tells us that the whole purpose of the Christian life is to acquire the Holy Spirit, that we may live in the power of the Spirit and be the agent of grace and blessing that the Lord calls us to be.  Another favorite quote of his that I found is “acquire interior peace and many will find salvation near you.”   When we begin to live in Christ, Who is our Peace, we do begin to acquire that interior peace which the world is so longing for.  It’s the peace that remains in the midst of any circumstance, as we grow in our trust in God’s Goodness and Provision.  St. Seraphim, pray for us…

 Lord God, thank You for the lives of the Saints that help us to understand Your mysteries and call us to holiness.  May we get to know them as our allies and friends, and call on them often for the help we need to be the people you call us to be ~

(re-visited from Rosary Reflection, 4th Luminous Mystery)

45) Poem – Reflection

Home from a conference

     Now up at the cabin

          Peaceful and quiet

     Time to reflect

Gentle breeze blowing

     Hint of rain in the air

           Walk in the woods

     Lots of deer tracks

Soft earth cushion

     Pine needles and moss

          Muffles the footfalls

     Amplifies stillness

Stop by the lake

     Sun pennies dancing

          Frogs plop in the water

     Ripples of minnows

Spongey bog carpet

     Floral tapestry

          Green, gold and amber

     Rich palette of color

Like at the conference

     Wild variety of peoples

          Blending together

     Enriching each other

Focus on chastity

     True center of friendship

           Offering freedom

     To be who we are

To be God’s children

     Gathered together

          Celebrating life

     With compassion and mercy

Healing and wholeness

     Gifts of God’s Goodness

          Offered to everyone

     Wrapped up in grace

Thank You Lord Praise You

     Gift of Creation

           Poured out for all

     Who have hearts to receive