I can learn to act thankful

“The answer lies in understanding that it is these things - and these things alone, here and now, at this moment – that truly constitute the will of God. The challenge lies in learning to accept this truth and act upon it, every moment of every day. The trouble is that like all great truths it seems too simple. It is there before our noses all the time, while we look elsewhere for subtle answers. It bears the hallmark of all divine truths, simplicity, and yet it is precisely because it seems so simple that we are prone to overlook it or ignore it in our daily lives.”

~Walter

 J. Ciszek, S.J., He Leadeth Me 

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"What is REAL?" asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room. "Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?"

"Real isn't how you are made," said the Skin Horse. "It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real."

"Does it hurt?" asked the Rabbit.

"Sometimes," said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. "When you are Real you don't mind being hurt."

"Does it happen all at once, like being wound up," he asked, "or bit by bit?"

"It doesn't happen all at once," said the Skin Horse. "You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand." 

~ Margery Williams, The Velveteen Rabbit

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Pondering and writing about gratefulness is not a new topic for me.

In fact, I’ve written a number of posts on various aspects of it—including a discussion on the Spanish and English variations of the word, and the meaning in each language.  Also see two more, here and here.

I’ve already also mentioned how deeply moved I was by Father Richard Vera’s reflection and prayer published in Magnificat for Holy Thursday:

“Let us face the reality of our lives with the certainty that all reality and all of our lives belong to you. Let the Real Presence of the Eucharist be the beginning of our welcoming your real presence in all of reality.” 

And I know, at least at one level, that in order to welcome the Father’s presence—and to notice it—in the reality of my life I must be and live gratefulness. It is all intrinsically connected to my being thank-FULL for the goodness and the blessings already in my life, as it is.

What I am struck by today is the reality that living this gratefulness is as much a decision as choosing to love. 

Let me back up.

In the midst of all the goodness and blessings in my life, I am often blown away by the dissatisfaction that I feel. If I am at least somewhat honest with myself, I notice an emotion deep inside me that can only be described as discontentment. 

This, by the way, is immediately and always followed by self-condemnation…

How can I possibly NOT feel absolute goodness and joy when I am, for example,  surrounded by my beautiful, loving, growing family?

What kind of believer am I if I don’t wake up every morning proclaiming a song of joy for the beauty and goodness that surrounds me?

What is, exactly, the secret to living a more joyful, fulfilling life? What can I do to allow myself genuinely en-JOY the reality that is my life?

Two things occur to me today.

Life is messy. And chaotic. And heartbreaking, and often lonely. These, too, are part of being real and welcoming God’s real presence in my life. So I have to begin by honestly bringing all of me to the foot of the cross, not only, but especially, those parts of me that are empty, sad, unlikeable, and downright ugly.

Secondly, with the help and love of God, I can learn to act thankful, which will lead me to truly being thank-FULL. And somewhere in there is the road to living with JOY.

I know, I know. It sounds so simple.

This is the simple beginning. More later.

this our hymn of grateful praise

font at the Jordan River

I have so much in my heart, so many things to be thankful for... including – in a special way – the opportunity through this blog to share with you my life and my thoughts, my awakenings to God in the every day of life, in big and small ways.

Thank you for sharing the journey with me here!

I said it before. I have so much to tell you! I promise to make time to do so... soon. 

For now, remember: there is always, always, always, something to be thankful for.

Lord, we thank you

for the goodness of our people

and for the spirit of justice

that fills this nation.

We thank you for the beauty and fullness of the

land and the challenge of the cities.

We thank you for our work and our rest,

for one another, and for our homes.

We thank you, Lord:

accept our thanksgiving on this day.

We pray and give thanks through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

~from Catholic Household Blessings and Prayers.

All photos © María Ruiz Scaperlanda

Small Mercies Miércoles: I'm grateful for... the work of my hands

I have been on hermit mode, trying to bring together the research, reading, interviews, of the past year and a half into a full, coherent draft of my book project. 

As you may recall, I’ve been working on the biography of Oklahoma martyr Father Stanley Rother who was murdered in Guatemala in 1981.  Here are some links with information--see here and here, including an article I wrote a few years ago, published in Our Sunday Visitor.

To some it may look like a tornado hit my office—but in spite of the piles, it’s organized chaos, at least for now. 

This is holy work.

It’s truly an honor to be in “conversation” with someone who was so clearly a lover of Jesus. Father Stan’s dedication and faithfulness to the people of Santiago Atitlán was a sacrifice of love, and to the people there, there is no need for an official process… Father Stanley Rother (Padre Apla's in their native Tzutujil language) is already their saint, interceding on their behalf!

So today, I am specifically grateful for…  the work of my hands.

I am spoiled. I get to work at home, in my slippers, writing the story of someone who inspires, challenges and provokes me to live radically for Jesus. 

And I must add, I am deeply grateful to my husband, who has for years not only offered me “patronage” (akin to the Renaissance tradition) so that I can carry out this ministry -- but even more importantly… brings me flowers, cooks dinner and sweeps the floor… so that I can stay focused when I’m in hermit mode!

Please pray for me? And do join me in praying for the canonization process of Servant of God Stanley Francis Rother.

Heavenly Father,

source of all holiness,

in every generation you raise up

men and women heroic in love and service. 

You have blessed your Church

with the life of Stanley Rother,

priest, missionary, and martyr. 

Through his prayer, his preaching,

his presence, and his pastoral love,

you revealed Your love and Your presence

with us as Shepherd. 

If it be your will,

may he be proclaimed

by the universal church

as martyr and saint,

living now in your presence

and interceding for us all. 

We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen

it's Small Mercies miércoles! today I'm grateful for...

It's miércoles, and that means taking note of "Small Mercies" I'm thankful for this week.

Today.

I am grateful for a weekend spent with dear friends from Austin who were willing to drive for over six hours in the car with an 18 month old, each way -- just to spend time "being" with all of us (and meet Sofia, of course!).  To watch "children" I've known since birth, with their own children... priceless!

Faithful friends are a sturdy shelter;

whoever finds one finds a treasure.

Faithful friends are beyond price,

no amount can balance their worth.

Faithful friends are life-saving medicine;

those who fear God will find them.

Those who fear the Lord enjoy stable friendship,

for as they are, so will their neighbors be.

~Sirach 6: 14-17

change #2, #SmallMerciesMiércoles: I'm grateful for feet, even when hopping on one leg

view from my office today!

People with arthritis often claim they can predict the weather, based on their joint pain level, and with good reason. Studies show a variety of weather factors can increase pain, especially changes… in barometric pressure (especially falling) and in temperature (especially lowering). 

A study from Tufts University in 2007 found that every 10-degree drop in temperature corresponded with an incremental increase in arthritis pain. In addition, relatively low barometric pressure, low temperatures and precipitation can increase pain. Researchers aren’t sure why this happens. They suspect certain atmospheric conditions increase swelling in the joint capsule.

~Arthritis Today magazine

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"'Man is a creature composed of body and soul.' We have recited that truth from the day we first learned our catechism. But until the body fails us, or pains us, or forces itself upon our attention by some little twinge or complete collapse, we tend to take for granted this first and most precious of God's gifts to man or to give it short shrift."  

"What came to me in the prison camps was a tremendous respect and love for the poor old body. It was the body that bore the brunt of all suffering, though the soul might well experience anguish. And it was the body that had to sustain you, for all the strength of will and determination it might have. It was the body that felt the sting of the wind, the bite of the cold, the cramp of aching muscles, the raw lash of cracked and bleeding flesh, the gnawing agony of hunger in the belly, the soreness and numbness of overtaxed sinews... and yet somehow it always managed to get you through one more day. It was the body that underwent the suffering, felt the agony, and carried the heavy weight across its shoulders of this daily passion and slow death of inhuman work."  

"It is in the body that we exist and work out our salvation. It is in the body that we see and take delight in the beauties of God's created universe, and in the body that we ourselves bear the marks of Christ's passion."

"God by his Incarnation took on a human body."  

"For each of us salvation means no more and no less than taking up daily the same cross of Christ, accepting each day what it brings as the will of God, offering back to God each morning all the joys, works, and sufferings of that day. But those are abstract words."  

"What it means, in practice, is spelled out as always by the poor old body. It means getting up each morning and going to bed exhausted. It means the routine, not the spectacular. It can mean drudgery, pain, putting aside pleasures, happiness, or the love the human heart craves until another time, so that what is necessary at the moment can be done. It means working for others, touching the lives of others, through the medium of the body."

~Walter Ciszek, S.J., 

excerpts from “the Body” chapter 

in He Leadeth Me.

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I am hopping on one leg today, literally. I’m not sure what’s causing it, exactly, but I’m having pain and swelling issues with my left foot. 

I don't even have a weird, fun story to go with it! There’s nothing broken, so it seems to be related to the inflammation problems related to my condition.

Which, believe it or not, leads me to the next “adjustment” that I’m proposing to myself!

Yesterday I wrote about keeping holy the Sabbath day, and my commitment to un-plug from technology on Sundays. In addition, I have decided to also work at being more regular with my writing time, including the frequency of the blog—and yes, within my physical abilities!

I’ve written before about the importance of  thankfulness and gratefulness, and how this attitude affects my life. And I’ve participated, however briefly (so far!), in CatholicMom.com’s #SmallSuccess Thursday Project.

So it seems like a natural sequel to developing my writing routine if I include weekly posts on what I’m grateful for, with specifics.  More on the details of this idea over the next few weeks, but for today… here’s what I’m calling #SmallMerciesMiércoles, which I will publish (¡con la ayuda de Dios!) every Wednesday.

#1   I’m grateful that I did not break any bones in the foot of my “poor old body”

#2   I’m grateful for the opportunity this situation gives me to stay home, put up my feet (ha!), and write!

#3   I am also grateful for my body’s reminder that God is here, incarnate, in every minute detail of my life and myself!

Ps. For those of you who’ve reached the age where your body helps you predict the weather – here are two helpful online sources to help you verify what you’re already feeling:

Over at ArthritisToday.org, an Arthritis Index based on a proprietary forecast by the meteorologists at www.AccuWeather.com. Click here! 

and over at weather.com, you can type in your zip code and get your “local aches & pains forecast”

or even peek at the “National aches & pains map”

The “aches & pains” forecast looks great for me today!  

What about your neck of the woods?