The school carnival was fun. Dancing cubbie won a free cake with the neatest Mardigra face decorated on top. We, I say, we because I submitted it in her name but I did the cooking. She won the best tasting chili apron for a student/teacher entry. Pretty cool!
     A friend recommended I read Eat, Pray, Love. I just so happened to return some books to the library Saturday and there it was so I picked it up. Has anyone else read it? I would love to hear what you think or thought of it.
     So, I am working on this new chapter of my life where I practice being grateful for all things in my life. I generally can come up with many things to be grateful for on a daily basis. But, now I hear the call to be grateful for the challenges in my life as grateful as I am for the good stuff. So, I've been practicing. I must be honest here and say I have issues with this because I don't want to become the pain in the rumpass who  says oh this is great when in all reality it stinks. Sometimes, life stinks(as my cousin in Afghan. can attest to next to the poop pond) sometimes it is completely unfair and for that I cannot smile and say oh isn't life grand. But, I think I can be honest and be thankful that those unfair situations will teach me things like how to love that which drives me crazy, how to wait when I feel like forging ahead, how to hold the line when I'd rather run, how to be truly attentive rather than distracted etc.  Oh and good news for all of us as my cousin reports that even though she may not like being next to the poop pond she is getting used to it. A rally cry for more tolerance............
     Now, stick with me here cause I never said I'd have all the pieces. I come just as I am and there is a lot of space between items but somehow God slowly makes sense of  these thoughts in my mind. Today, I write them. In a month, maybe a year all the sudden he puts more light on them and clarifies what he is saying and yes he says to me and to you. I truly try whenever I hear from him to apply all to my life first. Then, I have a foundation to stand on not just my man-made soap box.
     In the body of believer's there are rib issues and spine issues. A spine we can't do without. A rib can be broken or taken out and one can still survive. One can't walk without a spine, but one can have a rib removed and still make it a long way. Here is a rib issue between Protestants and Catholics-I by the way love both my Protestant and Catholic relatives and the Lord is working in the lives of each. A Protestant believes the mail should arrive on time. They would ask can you make it to dinner next Thursday? And if you are a good Protestant you'd say why of course Yes. Because a Protestant believes they are captain of their own ship.
     Whereas a Catholic is more likely to believe the mail's arrival is based on fate and cannot be guaranteed by man. And as for your invitation to dinner....How can any of us(Catholics) know whether we will be free next Thursday given that everything is in God's hands and none of us can know our fate. If you ask Ireland they think this is worth fighting over. If you ask Jesus though he'd say, "A cry for more tolerance." but it would sound more like "You are to esteem others more highly than you regard yourself." "Love thy neighbor"
Again, it doesn't matter to fret over or use as an excuse,  the small stuff is sin when the I am who is Jesus says to "Love your neighbor" Oh and that is a hard pill to swallow because for me it requires going to his feet daily and saying help me Lord help me cause without you I can love nothing and noone! If I am completely truthful sometimes, I don't like your children...the one's you call me to serve! But nonetheless I hear the call and not my will but thine O Lord.