A Quiet Moment

Our son, Jay, turns six years old this coming Tuesday. He wants to be crowned "King of Mardi Gras," and, thanks to his kindergarten coop teacher, Mrs. Doyle, he is the one person in the family ready and willing to sacrifice for Lent. He made a cross, and, on one side, his teacher wrote his vow to stop hitting his sisters (who often hit him first, I might add). On the other side of this cross, he said that he wants to tuck himself into bed at night. Jay has a talent for drawing that is so beautiful. Jay is a gift!

I need to get busy typing up the bios for our "Hobbit" playbill. Maggie is working very well on her own. She is a math whiz. She and I want to find time to do more together, especially with literature and writing. Maggie is a gift!

Joy-Beth and I are reading the original Black Beauty, with Jay listening in. Joy-Beth has such a good balance between working with me and doing work independently. Joy-Beth is a gift!

I re-discovered a favorite artist, Mary Engelbreit, and put a free snowman backdrop on my computer. Her artwork is inspiring and delightful.

I want to learn how to post photos on this blog and use flicker, or something like that, to have a slideshow. As I prayed this morning, I realized that I am heavy with worry about many things, as is my temperament. God gave me the primary melancholic temperament, with a secondary dose of phlegmatic. This works out for the good in my marriage as my husband is a choleric. I think he might be primary and secondary choleric <: !!! just kidding, Jerry...Seriously, the Lord guided me at times in my life when I had little thought of Him. He cared so much for my salvation that He really performed some marvelous deeds to keep me from straying too far. He used my willing and good-hearted husband to bring me back in the fold. As Easter approaches, I ought to be more grateful to Christ Jesus as the Good Shepherd. He truly wishes that none should perish. He wants us to cooperate and help Him bring salvation to all. My "worries" are a mixed bag. Feelings of anxiety and worry often accompany persons who "have their fingers in many pies". Faith leads us to prayer, and prayer will help order these feelings and direct this "storm of worries" to God's will for our lives. His will for us needs to be discerned daily, and this cannot be done if the Christian is too busy for prayer. This is a very long-winded admission that I have not been giving myself to the Lord in prayer enough. Well, as always, Mother Church hands out the most potent medicine via her sacred liturgy; Lent is upon us -- praise be to God! I pray now to help myself and my family to live out Lent in imitation of our Savior who wants so much for us to pick up our crosses and follow Him. We carry our burdens lightly because of His saving act on the Cross. He does not ask us to heap pressure on pressure -- we often discern poorly what it is He wants us to carry. I will offer my Mass today for a good and fruitful Lent for the Sullivan family. I am not praying enough for my family. Lord, forgive me my many distractions. Mary, mother of sinners, bring us so very close to your Son. Thank you, sweet Virgin, for bearing all of Jesus's sorrows with Him. I ask the intercession of our most Blessed Mother to carry all our worries to Jesus. Please, Holy Mother of God, take them to Him and beseech Him to show us what He wills for our lives, both in big things and small. I ask this in Jesus's name. Amen.