what's going through my brain... 3 semi-related topics

3 things that you may or may not find interesting...

Thing 1—I’ve arranged to be on retreat this coming week, so please keep me in your prayers?—and I promise that I will remember you! 

I will be keeping silence, and will not be writing blog posts until next weekend. 

“Music is pleasing not only because of the sound but because of the silence that is in it: without the alternation of sound and silence there would be no rhythm. If we strive to be happy by filling all the silences of life with sound, productive by turning all of life’s leisure into work, and real by turning all our being into doing, we will only succeed in producing a hell on earth. If we have no silence, God is not heard in our music. If we have no rest, God does not bless our work. If we twist our lives out of shape in order to fill every corner of them with action and experience, God will silently withdraw from our hearts and leave us empty.”                                          ~Thomas Merton, No Man Is an Island

Thing 2—did you know that every year thousands of containers spill out from cargo ships traveling across the ocean? You could argue that it happens so often that residents of Kodiak, Alaska, have grown used to the weird sightings of items that make their way to their shores.

But a couple of years ago one was odd enough to make the newspaper... dozens of sports-themed fly swatters washed up on the beaches—representing both professional and collegiate teams. At first the Alaskans theorized the swatters were debris from the previous year’s tsunami, but it was later confirmed that they were, indeed, from another run of the mill cargo ship that had lost several commercial containers.

As much as I love to walk the beach, I’ve never given much thought to the bizarre things that wash up on shore.  But in case you're interested, here’s a list of other strange beach sightings.

And finally, thing 3—by request of our Archbishop—and in response to the black mass taking place in Oklahoma City next weekend, our entire Archdiocese has been praying daily (publicly and privately) the prayer of St. Michael.

All the Catholics in Oklahoma will continue to do this together until the feast of the archangels, September 29.  Would you consider joining us? If you've never heard it, here are the words to this powerful prayer:

St. Michael the Archangel,
defend us in battle.
Be our defense against the wickedness and snares of the Devil.
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray,
and do thou,
O Prince of the heavenly hosts,
by the power of God,
thrust into hell Satan,
and all the evil spirits,
who prowl about the world
seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.