one thing I ask

1917 postcard depiction of view from Mount Bonnell

[Courtesy of Special Collections, University of Houston Libraries] 

My junior year as a University of Texas student, I often felt overloaded by an avalanche of emotions—worries!—about the future. Looming at the center of it all was discerning whether I was being called to religious life, and wondering what I would do with the degree in Journalism I was undertaking.

On days when I yearned for clarity and peace away from campus and the University Catholic Center where I was intensely involved, I would get away to two special spots in west Austin: the “Pink Sisters” monastery at the top of a hill on Exposition Blvd, and the road to Mount Bonnell overlooking Lake Austin.

As an island girl, the sight of water has always been an especially calming influence for me. If and when time allowed it, I would also park, take the walk up the steps and sit on a rock at the highest point in Austin—Mount Bonnell Park. But often just parking for a while on a hill spot where I could see the water below me was enough.

Although the community is no longer there, I will never forget the deep and instant peacefulness that bathed my spirit every time I walked into the Pink Sisters Adoration chapel—or the fact that I could always count on those doors to be opened! Those cloistered women will never know the gift they were to me, or how often the graces of their prayers for the world walked with me.

On those drives, there was often one song playing in the background, the St. Louis Jesuits' version of Psalm 27:

"This Alone," St. Louis Jesuits

The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom should I fear?
The LORD is my life’s refuge;
of whom should I be afraid?

One thing I ask of the LORD
this I seek:
To dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
That I may gaze on the loveliness of the LORD
and contemplate his temple.

I believe that I shall see the bounty of the LORD
in the land of the living.
Wait for the LORD with courage;
be stouthearted, and wait for the LORD.

el Papa Francisco, John Denver, and Angelina county, Tejas

It’s a good day for random thoughts, of which I seem to have many. 

Image from Just Call me Frank

Here are three of them:

#1, I loved the recent Catholic News Service article highlighting some favorites of el Papa Francisco, as listed in "Pope Francis: Conversations with Jorge Bergoglio" by Sergio Rubin and Francesca Ambrogetti, originally published in 2010 as "El Jesuita" ("The Jesuit")—and not yet available in English.

Tango. Soccer. Poetry by Friedrich Holderlin. Anything by Fyodor Dostoevsky and Argentine Jorge Luis Borges. Thérèse of Lisieux. And the 1987 movie "Babette's Feast."

Got to love this guy!

You can read the rest of the article here.

#2, did you know that only one county in the Lone Star state is named after a woman?  Angelina County, seated in Lufkin, is the only one of the state’s 254 counties named after a woman—a girl, really. Each of the other 253 Texas counties is named for a man or a geographical landmark.

Angelina was a Hainai Indian girl who welcomed the first Spanish explorers and priests to East Texas in 1690. They called her Angelina—“Little Angel”—and she adopted the name. Angelina National Forest and the Angelina River also bear her name. 

I married a Texan and three of my four children were born in Austin. Yes, I do love Texas trivia!

And #3, If you enjoy John Denver and remember his music as much as I do, you will love a new tribute record just out: The Music Is You, showcasing some of Denver's most beloved songs and performed by a cross-genre, cross-generational and impressive mix of musicians — including Lucinda Williams, Josh Ritter, Dave Matthews, Emmylou Harris.

You may recall that Denver died 15 years ago when the single-engine plane he was piloting crashed off the coast of California. 

It took me a bit to adjust to this collection of voices performing Denver songs, but it didn’t stop me from singing along. I can still remember the lyrics to most all of them! I also realized that taking away Denver’s familiar voice even helped me “hear” the songs with a new set of ears.

Surely, there’s a metaphor for the spiritual life in there, too?!

The Music is You: trailer #4

signs and symbols

On April 1, 1981, Michael and I announced to all our friends that we were engaged.

A very very young Michael and Maria, 

standing in front of the University of Texas Catholic Center, where we met 

We thought we were SO funny—not to mention clever—choosing April Fools' day to make the official announcement. As if our friends couldn’t already recognize the signs revealing where our relationship was headed!

I’ve been thinking a lot about signs, symbols, and the powerful ways that they genuinely reflect our inner lives, my inner life—and what’s important to me, while simultaneously becoming a metaphor for the big picture of (read everlasting) life.

It was a beautiful, intense and eventful Holy Week and Triduum, packed to the brim with symbolism.

And I hope you will forgive me, but even though we’re beginning the Easter season, it’s going to take me a while to process and digest the powerful liturgies of these past few days, particularly the Easter Vigil and all its signs and symbols.

following the yellow arrow, Camino de Santiago

Speaking of symbols--and before I forget, as promised, here’s what I wrote for the New York Times section “Room for Debate” on the topic, “What is the purpose of Lent,” which was published on Good Friday.  

By the way, the actual question proposed to me was, “is there a point to giving things up for Lent?” My response:

Ten years after my friend Pat and I walked 350 miles of the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage, we laugh about the vigorous women we were then. Pat is battling life-threatening brain cancer, and I’m learning to function with a diminishing chronic autoimmune condition.

It would be too simple to say our physical circumstances are a metaphor for the struggles and challenges of the Camino. In so many ways, the Camino is a metaphor for our whole lives: I can’t anticipate what struggles today will bring, but anything is doable one step at a time. Every uphill has a downhill. Hardship becomes manageable with a friend. Every single thing that I carry weighs me down, so I must choose wisely. 

In our culture, pain, suffering, worries, difficulties and grieving are all things to conquer — and to anesthetize as quickly as possible. Each of us is an addict looking for a quick fix. Drugs. Food. Exercise. Sex. Shopping. Disposable relationships. Whatever it takes to not feel bad, sad, hurt. 

Thus the question for me is not whether there’s a point to giving things up during Lent, but whether I should ever stop fasting from all that numbs, dulls and deadens me to life, all of life, as it is today — the good and the bad. Fasting makes me willing to try. 

For Christians, Good Friday stands alone in holiness and singularity. The day defines who and what we believe — and what makes us different. Christianity scandalously proposes a God who becomes human out of love for humanity. The scandal deepens when this God-made-man willingly accepts suffering and death out of complete trust. 

The Passion of Christ is not ultimately about how Christ suffered; it’s not a documentary on the History Channel. The Passion is about Jesus’ response. 

In the midst of intense pain, in spite of undeserved persecution and profound discrimination, Jesus keeps his eyes on God, commending his heart and entire being to the one he trusted completely and without reservation. Each Lent, I fast to remember.

Go here to read all of the entries.

I’m trying very hard to follow my friends’ sage advice to not read the comments published online! That being said, I want to thank you in advance for considering taking the time to write a comment at the NYTimes site demonstrating to the editor that you read my writing! 

3 random thoughts: on baptism, being a 100, and tree-climbing oysters

3 RANDOM THOUGHTS:

#1 - From [Sunday 13th's] Feast of the Baptism of the Lord: 

"We proclaim this gospel to acknowledge and remember that we are claimed by God as His own no less than God claimed Jesus Christ. For having been baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, we have been, as it were, grafted into Christ and in communion with Him we are God’s own. Because of that, every time we acknowledge the presence of God and pray, we begin In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. When we do that in public, we are signaling to everyone who sees us that we are Baptized. We are God’s own children. We make that sign to draw brothers and sisters who are baptized into prayer with us as God’s claimed and chosen ones." ~Fr. Thomas Boyer, St. Mark the Evangelist, Norman, OK

"Today we celebrate the most important day in each of our lives, our baptism day... today we are reminded that God looks at each of us and says: 'you are my Beloved daughter/son, in whom I am well pleased'." [my own paraphrase] ~Fr. Brian McMaster at St. Thomas More, Austin, TX

#2  -  Although I still consider myself a newby Blogger, this is my 100th DAY BY DAY blog post. I've learned a lot about the Bloggesphere these past few months, but above all, I've learned just how much I enjoy blogging! Here are FIVE of my favorite posts:

+ Hope Begins in the Dark
+ Following the Shepherd
+ When Pain is Prayer
+ Not Yet
+ God and details

How about you? Do you have a favorite DAY BY DAY post so far?

#3  -  Did you know that in the Caribbean there are oysters that can climb trees?

Well, not exactly. Many Caribbean islands are lined with mangrove, shrub-like trees to which the local oysters cling during high tide. But when the ocean recedes the oysters are left high and dry, clinging for their lives. True story.

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Okay, one more random comment, for lagniappe:

You can still win a copy of Cravings by leaving a comment on this post http://goo.gl/nSbqQ You have until Sunday the 20th!

Defining family: when friends cross into familiar territory

The Austin Group, at our daughter Anamaria's wedding in June 2012

We've been visiting over the past two days with our community of friends from Austin, a unique faith group that I would describe as the people with whom I "grew up"/keep growing up!--for the past 30 years now. Gulp. 

So I have been thinking a lot this weekend about how to define those people in my life who are not family, yet with whom I share an intimacy and spiritual bond way beyond the average definition of friendship. In a very real, genuine way, they are my spiritual siblings.

One of the most famous sibling teams is that of St. Scholastica and St. Benedict.

And perhaps the most renowned story about them is one told by St. Gregory the Great where Scholastica begged heaven for more time with her twin brother Benedict. At the end of one of their once-a-year visits, Scholastica pleaded with her brother Benedict to stay the night at her cottage on the base of Monte Cassino. But Benedict refused because he did not want to break his own community rule by spending a night outside the monastery.

So Scholastica asked God’s help—and a severe thunderstorm broke out! The story goes that Benedict looked sternly at his twin Scholastica and said, 

“Sister! What have you done?”

 And Scholastica honestly answered, 

“Well, I asked you and you wouldn’t listen, so I asked my God and He did!” 

Needless to say, Benedict and his monks could not return to the abbey that night.

Abbey on top of Monte Cassino

This was to be the siblings’ last visit together, as three days later, Scholastica died. When he heard, Benedict sent a group of monks to bring Scholastica to the tomb he had prepared for himself. Benedict and Scholastica are buried together under the main altar at the Abbey of Monte Cassino, with an inscription on the tomb that reads: 

“They who could not be separated in life, are now joined in death.”

Scholastica and Benedict clearly shared a special relationship as brother and sister. Yet it was their total commitment to God that bonded and blessed their relationship at a deeper level.  

They were not only siblings by blood, but above all, siblings in faith--spiritual siblings!