Quilt Block Poetry

Sitting in Grandmother's flower garden
looking at flying geese
to the clucking of duck and ducklings.
Remorseful over loss of the
previous night's fox and geese scuffle.
Wishing to meet Sunbonnet Sue
under the Tree of Life
working on her whole cloth,
and I on Stepping Stones
with Calico cats at our feet.
In the yard as pinwheels turn
the young children act crazy
after being squared away all morning long.
At this Arkansas crossroads,
there's gossip of Kansas troubles,
wedding rings, bachelor's puzzle over the single Irish.
Town florist orders Rose of Sharon,
cactus flower, and lillies.
Jacob's up on the ladder,
helping with the brain raisin'.
Jack's in the Pulpit
preaching about Joseph's coat.
Life moves slowly on
like a turning Kaliedscope here.

*these are actual quilt block names: Kaliedscope, Joseph's coat, Jack-in-the-pulpit, Barn raising (form of Log Cabin), Jacob's ladder, cactus flower, lilies (various), Rose of Sharon, Single Irish, Bachelor's Puzzle, Kansas Troubles, Arkansas crossroads, Square in a Square, crazy patchwork, Pinwheels, Calico Cats, Stepping Stones, Sunbonnet Sue, Tree of Life, whole cloth (no patchwork), Duck and Duckling, Fox and Geese, Flying Geese, and Grandmother's Flower Garden.

There are so many quilt blocks, I could do this again. Fun & creative. Sounds kind of good for Thanksgiving as well.

• Flying Geese: passage of time, better things ahead
• patchwork: take things apart only to put them back together again; mosaic of experiences
• whole cloth: unity, elaborate, simple
• Fox and Geese: adversarial relationships always exist; be alert
• Duck and Duckling: mommies, relationships, cute to watch
• Tree of Life: purpose, life is given, redemption
• Jack-in-the-pulpit: vocations? lessons to be learned in life whether you want them or not
• Kaleidscope: life keeps moving, always with beautiful outcomes
• Barn Raising: Support of community, financial security, roof above one's head
• Jacob's Ladder: keep on moving no matter how difficult the road is, God is always there for you to reach out towards
• Cactus Flower, Rose of Sharon, Lillies: beauty, blessedness, purity, naturality
• Bachelor's Puzzle: humor
• Kansas Troubles: be thankful you don't have the always more severe problems and conflicts that others endure; there's always someone with more struggles, more hardship
• Square in a Square: order does exist
• Crazy patchwork: go on and have a little fun, there's an order to the madness (colors can't clash too much)
• Stepping Stones: there is a definite pathway and reason even if you cannot see it in the darkness
• Sunbonnet Sue: the sun will rise tomorrow, sunshine on your shoulders actually does make you happy, go on and wear the outfit that makes you feel great
• Arkansas crossroads: Robert Frost's "The Road Less Traveled"
• Grandmother's Flower Garden: matured beauty, stability
• Pinwheels: winds of change do blow; joy of children

Happy Thanksgiving
&
May God Bless

Nuns with veils and blogs are right up my alley

I like this article. It is four pages long, but I love the fact that convents are growing again. If only we could see such vitality and numbers of men enter the seminaries again. Article. Grabbed it from Starting Afresh from Christ.

Politics and Religion

A friend of mine recently wrote a letter to the university paper contrasting the common support for an MBA student wanting to be Mr. Gay International with the "reality" of Christendom. Both her letter and the lash back as been brutal. Christians across campus are under a literary attack for holding "abhorrent" views about deviant sexual practices and orientation. It is quite something else to see this all unfold, and quietly settle down. Of all the attacking letters, none was to support my friend. I should have, but I did not. Perhaps that is my failure, or it paved the way for a stronger article in the paper printed yesterday taking all to task. For my friend's letter only stated the immorality of homosexuality, but not a mention of our own sinfulness or of our lovingkindness.

This evening the Catholic Center is holding a "Java with Jesus" (similar to Theology on Tap) and I suspect that it is in response to the spat of letters that my friend started, for the scheduled topic at hand is "Religion and Politics." Other than the Catholics, attending will also be the Lutherans and Episcopalians. This ought to be interesting.

I know that it is difficult to keep religion out of politics especially as politicians seek to make what is religious into the profane ... does that make sense? They want to take religion and descerate it; same with life (abortion and eugenics), research (stem cells from adults versus embryos), and so forth. While we have free will, Christians are also forewarned that upon our hands will be the blood of those whom we did not spread the Word and keep them from sin (Ezekiel 3:16-19). However our motivation to save those who do not yet know and love Christ is not the future of our own souls, but knowing the joy and peace of Christ we should naturally want others to know what we know, and love what we love. Quite frankly the question should not be how to keep religion out of politics, but how to keep politics out of religion. See, when Christ says "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life" He is that, and we need to believe and act in that manner. Christ needs to penetrate into every fiber of our being and be present in all that we say, think, and do. Therefore, it is impossible to keep our faith out of politics. But politics needs to stay out of religion, it cannot try to convince us that we are not politically correct in our convictions and such.
Repeating the same messages time and again, I feel like a broken record.

True Musings

I'm trying not to make this post achingly similar to Xanga, as that is basically my venting and brain vomit web page; all my life is on that page. But recently my life has been consumed with two foci: God and school.

God
It feels like I am in a relationship -- mainly because I am. But there are those mornings that all starts out well, and then parents get in your way. Hopefully some of you can reach back into your young adulthood memory banks and find some inkling. I have been unofficially wearing the brown scapular this week, because I found it hidden in my dresser about a year ago. I've been wearing it and my clothes hide it well because I heave modest necklines and clothing overall. My mom picks at it, when it looked like a bra strap, this morning over the kitchen counter. Who in thier right mind think it is okay to pick at people's clothing? So I love my relationship with God, especially when I can look at the Crucifix on my wall and harshly (and yet still lovingly) whisper to Him "I can't stand them: I can't go to Mass, I get harrassed for the Rosay, the Bible, and the Scapular! I can't love you when I'm bound!" It was momentary frustration, but I am alright with it. I'd rather have frustrations with God, showing that my relationship is growing than to have it stagnate.

Don't I have enough with my relationship with God? Therefore I almost don't want to think about Sr. Marianne who suggested that I date and develop a male - boyfriend relationship to make sure that I am not using the "sisterhood" to escape one thing or another. I love my relationship with God, but I want it to be so much better.

Recently I had doubts about discernment and if I was on the right path, but I have been thinking since monday night that if I was not meant to follow God in some capacity of self-sacrifice, then all the discernment meetings would not work out perfectly each time (since I have a Research Assistant-ship meeting at the same time). Does that make sense: if I am meant to go attend these discernment meetings everything would perfectly fall into place; if they weren't God would hedge me in somehow?

School
Well I am busy with my research assistant-ship, and I am trying to study for the GREs. Someone must have forgotten to send me the memo sayingthat my parents have the authority to tell thier 22 year old daughter she can no longer attend Mass on Sundays, and instead be sequestered to her room for GRE prep. The GREs are important, but not so that they usurp my time with God. Therefore, I've been praying rosaries, writing about religion and God (i.e., this post and others), wearing the scapular, reading the Bible more, etc. The issue has always been between my parents and I is a difference in priorities. They favor education and a comfortable lifestyle. I want God, a less cluttered lifestyle, and to do what I love - which is psychology. So I've been looking at my mess of options and confusion.

Yesterday in class we were discussing how to figure out how to combine our study areas with our passions, so I realized that I could do a lot with psychology and Catholicism/religion: apologetics, pastoral counseling, Christian/Catholic counseling, teaching, etc. I just don't know if I can tell a shut door from an open one at this moment.

When the Lord is a priority in your life, He pervades in every aspect of it from school, study, driving, language, etc.

Scrambled Thoughts for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

self-reflection
introspection
self-analysis

however you plan to define it, to label it, to name it; it never does yourself much good. It's a bad idea, usually.

Conflict - how is it that I understand conflict better than calm, cool rationalizations? Perhaps because the emotions are raw, expressed and immediately understood. With rationality I have to peel the layers of one's emotional onion in order to truly see the truth; no one is ever truly objective.

AMERICA, GO VOTE