Tasha Tudor

When I was in grade school, the librarian read us Fairy Tales from Hans Christian Andersen, illustrated by Tasha Tudor. I remember going to the library each week and anxiously waiting for the librarian to finish reading the book, so that I could check it out and look at the lovely illustrations. When I grew a little older, I delighted in her illustrations in The Secret Garden. As an adult, I still like Tasha Tudor's illustrations. I also find pleasure in looking at photos of her amazing garden.

Postcard available from Tasha Tudor and Family

The other day, I came across the quote below from Tasha Tudor, and she endeared herself even more to me.

"I enjoy doing housework, ironing, washing, cooking, dishwashing. Whenever I get one of those questionaires and they ask what is your profession, I always put down housewife. It's an admirable profession, why apologize for it. You aren't stupid because you're a housewife. When you're stirring the jam you can read Shakespeare." 

Modesty Needs to Come from the Heart

JMJ

Recently, I have had a number of people ask me about modesty and wearing skirts and dresses. The most recent question came via a blog comment. Jennifer wrote:

Hi Christine,

I have a question for you and your lovely daughters inspired by your slideshow. We have 5 girls, all still very young, the oldest is 7. It seems like your girls generally wear skirts/dresses and we'd like ours to do the same. Has it ever been a problem for your family? Have your daughters ever wanted to wear shorts/jeans when their friends are doing so?

Thanks and God bless!

Below is my rambling response. I apologize that I don't have time to respond more fully. Hopefully, the resources mentioned will fill in many of the gaps.

We have come to wearing skirts and dresses slowly. From the time I was little, I have liked to wear dresses. I always thought that my mom, my paternal grandmother, my aunts, and great aunt looked so pretty in their dresses. Modest dresses and skirts are so feminine. When our first daughter was a toddler, I purchased dresses for her (as a baby, she wore one piece outfits - they are better for crawling). Family and friends gave us dresses, shorts, and pants outfits for which I am very thankful. My older girls wore all of these outfits. I can probably count on one hand the number of pants and shorts that I have purchased for my girls over the years. This wasn't conscious on my part. It was simply that I preferred, and still prefer, dresses and skirts.

picture from Catholic Tradition

When my oldest daughter was eight or nine, one of her friends asked her why she always wore dresses. My daughter came to me and told me about the conversation, letting me know that she felt uncomfortable and out of place. I told her that she could wear pants if she wanted. She did, but has found that she prefers wearing skirts and dresses.

A few years ago, I had the privilege of speaking with Fr. Dennis Gordon, FSSP on the phone. During our conversation, we spoke about modesty and skirt wearing. Fr. Gordon shared (and I have since read in Fr. Trochu's book on St. Bernadette) that before Our Lady appeared to Bernadette Soubirous, St. Bernadette told her companions, who were lifting their skirts to go through the water, "Lower your skirts." Something about that conversation made me consciously decide that I wanted to only wear skirts and dresses. 

That summer, the day that the girls left for camp, one of my daughters was wearing a pair of shorts. I asked her, "Why are you wearing shorts?" She replied, "Because I do not have enough skirts for camp, and I didn't want to wear one and possibly get it dirty before I arrived." I made a mental note to myself, "I need to buy or make more skirts for her."

Since then, I have learned in a biography about St. Padre Pio that he would only hear the confessions of women who had entered the church wearing a skirt/dress that was at least eight inches below the knee. If a woman changed her clothing after entering the church, he would not listen to her confession. Pants were not an option. God gave Padre Pio the ability to know the length of a woman's skirt without seeing the woman.

picture from Catholic Tradition

I am different from some of my friends in that I have not told my daughters that they can only wear skirts or dresses. I simply don't buy shorts or pants anymore. My girls knew that some of their friends would be wearing shorts at the camp that they just attended, but they didn't mind. They've been to another camp where the girls only wore skirts, and they thoroughly enjoyed it. They are girls, and they are happy to be girls.

I think that it is important in today's world that girls dress like girls. I cannot tell you the number of times that I have seen a woman and thought that she was a man. A week or so ago, I commented to my oldest daughter, as she was driving, "Let that man get to the sidewalk before you turn." After my daughter turned, I looked back and said, "Oops, that was a lady." Our daughters need to look like girls, and our sons need to look like boys. Our world so needs feminine women and truly masculine men.

We all come to holiness in different ways. Just because a girl is wearing a skirt doesn't mean that she is holy. I realize that most mothers know this, but I think that it is important for us to share this with our daughters.

All that being said, modesty needs to come from the heart. As mothers, we need to encourage modesty in our daughters, but most especially we need to pray for them. As Fr. Wolfe, FSSP says, "Pray three Hail Marys, each morning and evening, for purity and holiness." Pray those three Hail Marys for your daughters (and sons) and teach your children to pray them too.

picture from Catholic Tradition

If any mothers are looking for resources, I recommend:

Books
The Privilege of Being a Woman by Alice Von Hildebrand
Dressing with Dignity by Colleen Hammond

Sermons
Women and Children First: Holy Purity
Sins of Lust: The Consequences of these Sins against Purity
Maintaining Purity by Virtue or by Force
Modesty: The Virtue that Guards Purity
Modesty of the Eyes

God Alone Sufficeth

Sometimes God lets us fall to our knees in order to remind us that we can do nothing without Him. It is only by embracing God's will that we can succeed, that we can become great saints.

Tween and Teen Book Recommendations and Why My Boys Won't Be Reading the Ranger's Apprentice Series

A few years ago, I started to see recommendations for The Ranger's Apprentice series by John Flanagan popping up in various places. A couple of years ago, I sent an email to my local Catholic homeschool group asking for opinions about this series. Everyone responded very positively about the series, save for one mother. This friend of mine sent the following response:

I read the series out loud to Peter. He really enjoyed them and I liked them well enough. The downside is the occasional, infrequent swear word... I'm not certain, but I think the usage of swear words increased slightly in later books. Since I was reading it, I could omit those, of course.

One upside that I appreciated was the fact that bad guys were bad and good guys were good - no role confusion. :) In one of the books, the bad guy was really cruel and it had me squirming a bit - he kept people in outdoor cages for punishment. That was the only uncomfortable moment for me since he seemed a bit demented, which is worse than just bad... if you see what I mean.

Hope that helps!

There are so many good/great books that have been published for boys that after reading about the swearing that takes place in this series, I decided that it was not a series that I wanted to introduce to any of my children.

In one of his sermons, my pastor once stated, "You wouldn't eat around the poison in an apple, so why would you watch a movie with poison in it." I think that the same standard applies to books. As my husband says, "The water is slowly getting hotter and the frog isn't jumping out."

So what books are there for tween and teen boys? Quite a few come to my mind. These include:

Anything by Fr. Francis Finn
Vision books about male saints (and others. Mary Fabyan Windeatt's books are also good, but my children prefer the Vision books)

The Log of a Cowboy: A Narrative of the Old Trail Days by Andy Adams

Watership Down by Richard Adams

The Door in the Wall by Marguerite de Angeli

Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

The Story of Rolf and the Viking Bow by Allen French

The Red Keep by Allen French

The Lost Baron: A Story of England in the Year 1200 by Allen French

Blood Red Crescent by Henry Garnett
Crossbows and Crucifixes: A Novel of the Priest Hunters and the Brave Young Men Who Fought Them by Henry Garnett
Adam of the Road by Elizabeth Janet Gray
The Hidden Treasure of Glaston by Eleanor M. Jewett
Big Red by Jim Kjelgaard
Carry On, Mr. Bowditch by Jean Lee Latham
Little Britches: Father and I Were Ranchers by Ralph Moody
Shadow Hawk by Andre Norton
Red Falcons of Tremoine by Hendry Peart
Beorn the Proud by Madeleine A. Polland
Men of Iron by Howard Pyle
The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle
Otto of the Silver Hand by Howard Pyle
The Story of King Arthur and His Knights by Howard Pyle
The Story of the Champions of the Round Table by Howard Pyle
Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott
Beowulf the Warrior by Ian Serrailier
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson

The Hobbit; or, There and Back Again by J.R.R. Tolkien

The Lord of the Rings trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien
The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Outlaws of Ravenhurst (We have this version and this version of this book.) by Sr. M. Imelda Wallace
The Treegate series of books by Leonard Wibberley
Son of Charlemagne by Barbara Willard
Augustine Came to Kent by Barbara Willard
If All the Swords in England: A Story of Thomas Becket by Barbara Willard
This book made an impression on me. All of my children who have read this book have been affected by it too.
and more...

*After further consideration, I have decided to remove Gulliver's Travels rather than linking to the abridged version (I am partial to unabridged books). Julia let me know in the comments that Seton Home Study School recommends reading the abridged edition of this book. I contacted Seton to find out why and one of the counselors responded:

"Thank you for your e-mail. I believe you're referring to the recommended reading list for English 10, which has a note following Gulliver's Travels saying 'abridged, edited.' Such a designation, along with notes like 'Mature' on the English 11 reading list, are typically in response to feedback from parents. The recommendation for this particular title of the abridged version would have been in response to parents calling to request that the unabridged version not be recommended at a tenth grade level."

I asked one of my daughters and my oldest son about the unabridged version of Gulliver's Travels and they both told me that there are two parts in the book that are inappropriate. I am thinking that I must have read an abridged version when I was younger because I was shocked at what I was told. Thank you, Julia, for bringing Seton's recommendation to my attention.

Recommendations for younger boys can be found here and here.

My oldest son is a young teen, so I do not know what he will like as an older teen yet.

Please note: If I ever recommend anything that seems contrary to the teachings of the Catholic Church, please let me know. My friend, Elena, can tell you that I appreciate the heads up and will listen. I will also remove recommendations from my blog (and items from my home) if need be.

Multiplying Love

"I am so happy that my mom is pregnant.
Every time my mom has another baby,
the love in our family grows."

~ Katheryn Lyon ~

These words were shared with me by a 15 or 16-year-old girl shortly after learning that her mother was pregnant. When I first met Katheryn, she was the oldest of eight children. Today, she is the oldest of twelve children, married, and the mother of two children (so far). When I first met Katheryn, I was the mother of two children and her words made my heart sing because I knew the truth behind them.

Today, as the mother of eight children, that truth is even more real to me. I see the love when I walk into a room and find my oldest son reading to my youngest daughter. I see the love when I hear my five year old praise my seven year old for his reading. I see that love when my oldest daughter helps in the kitchen without being asked. I see that love when I hear my second oldest daughter cuddling with and talking to her youngest brother. I see that love when I discover my oldest son playing a board game with his younger brothers and sisters. I see that love when my fourth child helps her brothers with their lessons. I see that love when my fifth child brings me breakfast in bed. I see that love when my baby looks at his daddy and says, "Da Da." I see that love when my youngest daughter comes into the room and tells her youngest brother, "I love you." I see that love in a myriad of ways each day.

Open your heart to life. You won't regret it. As my pastor says, "You cannot possibly outdo God in His generosity."

Under the Weather Tip

When you have been sick for over a week and the sky turns blue and the sun is shining, don't go outside to do some light gardening. If you do, you might be in bed for at least another week. Don't ask me how I know this. I just do.

He's Still Got It

Growing up, my brother would occasionally walk on his hands. Even though he is over 40, he still does so sometimes. More importantly, he still has a strong faith. He and my sister-in-law are trying their best to pass on the Catholic Faith to their five children, assisting at Mass regularly and praying the Rosary as a family.

We have been happy to have my brother and sister-in-law visit, and I have appreciated seeing what wonderful parents they are to my nieces and nephews. The love in their family and the spiritual and physical care that they show for their children is inspirational.

One of my brother's favorite quotes is from St. Therese of Lisieux. She said, "I am not dying. I am entering into Eternal Life." My brother says, "I am living, so that I may hopefully enter into Eternal Life." I pray that he and his family may all one day enter into Eternal Life.

Gentle Reminders

A couple of weeks ago, I made a mistake. I responded to someone out of anger and without thinking. The next day, I responded to the person out of pride. I left a message, apologizing a day or two later, but the individual still isn't speaking to me. I have gone to confession and am trying to remember to pray for her regularly. I am also reading gentle reminders about how I should have responded.

Based on my pastor's recommendation, I try to read My Daily Bread by Fr. Anthony J. Paone each morning. In the days following my blunder, I read about conquering bad habits.  More specifically, I read about conquering anger, impatience, fault finding, and rash judgements. I needed to read Fr. Paone's gentle reminders and I wish that I had read these passages before I offended this individual.

Rash Judgments

CHRIST:

MY CHILD, mind your own business, and do not set yourself up as the judge of those around you. There is a good deal that you do not know about your neighbor. It is not easy to judge others as they deserve. Be wise and leave all judgment to Me.

2. It is far more profitable for you to look to yourself and judge yourself. You can do a great deal about correcting your own faults. As for the faults of others, the best you can do is to give good example, offer a bit of advice where it will help, and say a sincere prayer for the persons involved.

3. Your concern over your neighbor's faults, does not always arise from a virtue in you. Some people annoy you because you are not minding your own business, or because you have not yet learned patience and understanding.

People are not always at fault when they get on your nerves. The real fault is often in you. I suffered many things in silence for your sake. How often do you suffer in silence for Me?

Get to work and correct your own faults. You will then be too busy to be annoyed by the faults of others.

THINK:

How much peace of soul I could enjoy if only I could learn to mind my own business. judging others is such a waste of precious time. I am so often wrong when I think ill of others. If I dislike someone, I feel inclined to judge him more harshly than others. If God were my main interest, I would never think ill of anyone, even those who really offend me. How often I am aroused against someone because, knowingly or unknowingly, he has opposed my pride or selfishness in some way. I should not expect everyone to see things my way. Every man is different and each one has his own tastes and experiences. So often God excuses those whom I condemn.

PRAY:

My Lord, I long for a ray of heavenly wisdom, so that I may not be unreasonable in my judgments and opinions about others. You treat each person as an individual. You do not ask me to be like others in my ways. You only want me to take the talents and circumstances in my life, and to make the most of them. You ask us to imitate You as far as we are able, according to the intelligence and grace which each one has. Let me not judge rashly those who do not do things my way. I want to follow Your holy Will in all things. Though I observe the mistakes and faults of others, I will try to refrain from any harsh judgments. If I cannot say something kind of another, I will keep silent. Amen.

Fr. Anthony J. Paone, My Daily Bread, pp. 79-80 

I Miss my Mom

My Jesus, I adore Thee.

My Jesus, I love Thee.

My Jesus, I trust in Thee.

My Jesus, have Mercy on me, a sinner.

My Jesus, Thy Will be done.

My mother died several years ago and I still miss her terribly. During her illness, I had seen her every other day and sometimes every day until St. Valentine's Day; this was the last day that I saw her alive. My children got colds and what I thought was the throw-up flu (severe ear infections were diagnosed on February 22) and I could no longer visit her. The night she died, my dad tried to call, but by the time I answered the phone, the person on the other end had hung up. My dad called me early the next morning and told me. My children and I rushed over to my parents' house. My husband met us there.

The day my mother died, I took advantage of the fact that my husband stayed home to help me, and I went to Mass.  I arrived early and I knelt and prayed before the Blessed Sacrament, "Dear God, my mom has suffered so much. If my mom will go straight to Heaven, please take her." I did not expect God to answer my prayer at 10:03 that night and I have regretted my prayer so often, but a priest told me that it was a prayer of love. I am thankful that she is no longer suffering; however, sometimes, I selfishly wish that I had continued to pray for a miracle.

The day my mother died, I lost my mom and my closest friend, next to my husband.

Dear Mary, as I told you shortly after my mother died, I entrust myself totally to your care.

Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thine intercession was left unaided. Inspired by this confidence, I fly unto thee, O Virgin of virgins, my mother; to thee do I come, before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer me. Amen.

O St. Joseph, whose protection is so great, so strong, so prompt before the Throne of God, I place in you all my interests and desires. O St. Joseph, do assist me by your powerful intercession and obtain for me from your Divine Son all spiritual blessings through Jesus Christ, Our Lord; so that having engaged here below your Heavenly power I may offer my Thanksgiving and Homage to the most Loving of Fathers. O St. Joseph, I never weary contemplating you and Jesus asleep in your arms. I dare not approach while He reposes near your heart. Press Him in my name and kiss His fine Head for me, and ask Him to return the Kiss when I draw my dying breath. St. Joseph, Patron of departing souls, pray for us. Amen.

Please pray for the repose of my mother's soul.

When you're feeling miserable...

When you're feeling miserable with a fever and sore throat, and your head feels all funny, and you haven't left your bed all day, it is generally not a good idea to post comments on people's blogs.  Grammatical errors, "wonderful blessings that comes", and misspellings, "I know have some more ideas", may be made.  Refraining from leaving telephone messages or even speaking on the phone at these times is also a good idea.  Don't ask me how I know.

The Walls are Broken Down and I am on my Knees

It's been a hard week.  By the time yesterday rolled around, I was ready to hold up a white flag.  As I worked on lesson plans, Finnian scattered flour all over the kitchen, the dining room, the hallway, and some of his siblings.  No one said a thing.  I knew something was wrong, when I said, "What is going on?"  The only response I received was the sound of a certain two-year-old's feet scampering away.  I spent a couple of hours vacuuming and cleaning the floors.

My husband knew that it had been a difficult week and joked with me, "Your walls are broken down.  You have no defenses left and they know it...  I can bring in the big guns if you want."  I let him know the walls were not completely gone.  I went to bed feeling optimistic, knowing that things could only get better.  Then, today dawned.

This morning left me reeling and feeling completely sick to my stomach.  Someone sent an email, letting me know that they were planning on jumping off a moral cliff.  I responded out of love and let the person know that I could not support them in their decision.  I received an eloquent email from someone else basically saying that I had no right to judge, only God can do so.  I wanted to ask, "If someone were about to jump off of a cliff, would you let him do so or would you advise him against it?"  My husband encouraged me to simply remain quiet.  I am doing so and I am reminding myself of my mom's words, "God knows the truth and that is all that matters."  The walls are broken down and I am on my knees, but I know that tomorrow is another day and I will take up my cross.

...After Cain had killed his brother Abel, our Lord came to him and inquired concerning the whereabouts of Abel. Cain replied: “I do not know; am I my brother’s keeper?” (Genesis 4:9).

6. Christ has supplied the definitive answer to Cain’s question in the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37) and ultimately, on Calvary, by giving Himself up to death for the salvation of the world (John 3:14-15; and 12:31-33). Yes, we are our “brother’s keeper.” We are responsible for the good of all our brothers and sisters in our nation and in the world, without boundaries. The Good Samaritan gave every possible care to the foreigner, a citizen of an enemy people, whom robbers had left along the roadside to die. His fellow countrymen, indeed religious leaders, saw him and “passed by on the other side” of the road, avoiding him and failing to help him. As followers of Christ, who is the Good Samaritan, we can never excuse ourselves from responsibility when there is something to be done to save the life of a brother or sister in great need. We are called to be “Christians Without Borders,” without boundaries to our love of neighbor.

~ Most Reverend Raymond L. Burke, D.D., J.C.D., Civic Responsibility for the Common Good ~

I Miss Her

Sometimes, I find myself wishing that my mom was still here.  She was a truly amazing Mother.  I often think about her and wish that I could ask her how she disciplined my siblings and me.  I know that this might sound odd, but her form of discipline was completely different from anything I have witnessed or read.

Like most mothers, my mom disciplined us out of love.  However, she did not use spankings, a raised voice, time outs, or visible incentives to do so.  Rather, she used love.  My four siblings and I were fairly well-behaved children, because we did not want to hurt our mother or father.  I distinctly remember doing two things that I should not have done and although my mom did not say a word, I felt so guilty because I knew that I had hurt her.  I never did them again.  I remember my mom calling my dad at work once due to the fact that a sibling had yelled at her.  A "punishment" was not administered.  My sibling never yelled at my mom again because he knew by that simple phone call how much he had hurt my mom.  When we would fight with each other and then claim our innocence, she would remind us that it takes two to fight and that there are two sides to every story.  When a curious sibling learned what she was getting for Christmas, my mom switched gifts. When one of us would threaten, "Well then I'm not going to do my homework."  She calmly and simply replied, "The only person that will affect is you."  When we were falsely accused, she would remind us, "God knows the truth and nothing else matters."  She disciplined calmly and effectively out of love and with love.

The manner in which my mom disciplined us, helped us (or at least it helped me) to realize in a very real way that when we sin, we hurt God.  I am thankful for the sacrament of Confession.  I am thankful that God provides us with an opportunity to apologize for our sins and to let Him know that we love Him.

O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, and I detest all my sins because I dread the loss of Heaven  and the pains of hell,  but most of all because I have offend Thee, my God, Who are all good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve with the help of Thy grace to confess my sins, to do penance,  and to amend my life.

Amen.

Wondering

I know that it is late and that I should be sleeping, but I can't.  Why is it that with good things, we also often have crosses?

I Need a Break?

Recently, I have had a couple of well-intentioned people tell me, "You need a break." and "I hope your husband gives you at least an hour all to yourself each week." I took some of the children to a doctor's appointment and I read on the nine-month well-child check form that I am supposed to be getting at least 3 hours a week all to myself. The problem is that I do not want a break.

I don't view motherhood as a job that requires a break. Just as children are a gift from God, motherhood is a gift from God. Faith and family are gifts from God.

My mom used to say that I was happiest when I was busy. Having a family definitely keeps me busy and happy. Yes, there is always something to do. There are meals to prepare while I pray for my mom's soul and my dad. There are dishes to wash while I pray for my family. There is laundry to wash while I pray for my mother-in-law's soul and my father-in-law. There are clothes to fold while I pray for my husband and children. There is a husband for whom I am so thankful. There are children to hug and love. There are lessons to teach, books to read, and children to tuck in bed. There are quiet moments at night and in the early morning hours when the children are all asleep when I thank God for blessing me with such a wonderful family.

How could I ever need a break from my princess, my monk, and their brothers and sisters?

I love being a mother!

This Is For My Husband

I LOVE YOU!

God is Good!

I have so much about which I want to write, but for now it will have to wait.

Disappointment

Finding out the day before the homeschool conference that the person who you thought would be helping you watch your children, will not be doing so due to a birthday party.

Despite being an optimist, knowing that the above will most likely make it impossible for you to listen to any of the presentations and will most likely cause you to have to leave the conference early.

Thankfully, one of the mothers had you read her talk prior to the conference. Said talk reminded you that your responsibility is to your children and sometimes you have to wear blinders when it comes to external, desireable activities.

St. Joseph, pray for us!

Murielle Yeoman

Growing up, I was blessed to know a very beautiful lady, thanks to my youngest sister. One day while at daily Mass with my mom, my youngest sister (age 2 or 3 at the time) wandered off to sit with an elderly lady. This act led to a friendship that would last a lifetime. The elderly lady's name was Murielle Yeoman and she used to fondly call my baby sister, "Pumpkin".

Murielle was born in Canada on December 28, the Feast of the Holy Innocents, and experienced suffering early in her life. When Murielle was three years old, her parents died in a car accident, leaving Murielle an orphan and a hunchback (her back was injured in the accident). Some nuns in Quebec (I am sorry that I do not remember the name of the order or Murielle's maiden name) took Murielle in and raised her. She was forever grateful to them.

As a young lady, she met Alan and fell in love. When Alan asked her to marry him, she sought permission from the nuns and from her Bishop. Alan was an Episcopalian and Murielle wanted to be sure that it was okay to marry him. The Bishop granted Murielle permission to do so and blessed her marriage. Shortly after their marriage, Murielle and Alan conceived a child. Murielle was overjoyed to be expecting, but her joy turned to sorrow when her baby boy died soon after birth. The nuns who had raised Murielle knew of her suffering and of a baby boy who needed a home. Murielle and Alan happily adopted the baby boy. He was to be their only living child.

Unfortunately, despite all of her prayers for her son at daily Mass and at home, Murielle's son got involved with drugs. He wandered in and out of prisons, breaking his mother's heart, but like St. Monica, Murielle never stopped praying for or loving her son.

My family met the Yeomans before their son was led astray, before Murielle picked up another heavy cross. She and her husband quickly adopted my siblings and me as grandchildren. Once a week, she taught my older brother and sister French. I always enjoyed going with my mom to pick them up and see my "spiritual Godmother" (a name that Murielle had given me for herself). I remember her split pea soup, her crown of thorns plant, a little container full of sayings, their German Shepherd, running through the sprinkler on the Yeoman's front lawn, Grandparents Day at school, care packages in college, and sitting with Murielle at Mass. Whenever a Protestant hymn was sung during Mass, Murielle would sing, "Love God, love God, love God." She truly did LOVE GOD!

My fondest memories of Murielle are wrapped up in childhood Christmas celebrations. Murielle used to go with my family to Midnight Mass and after Mass we would go back to her house, have a little treat, listen to her and my dad singing French Christmas carols, and open Christmas gifts from Alan and her. The gifts were usually religious in nature (books, etc.) and some are still treasured today.

Fast forward several years to when I was going out with my future husband. At that time, Murielle and Alan were living in the Bellingham area. We drove to their house so they could meet him. We spent a lovely afternoon with the Yeomans, eating split pea soup and visiting. Murielle pulled out a Christmas gift that I had given her years earlier and asked me if I wanted it back. I told her, "No", not realizing that she wanted me to take it. I wish that I had done so. Murielle and Alan were at my wedding. They gave my husband and me some antique glasses with a matching pitcher. Little did I know that this would be the last time that I would remember seeing my dear "spiritual godmother".

Requiescat in pace.

Meaningful Gifts

Today, we received some very thoughtful gifts from my dad. All of them are wonderful, but three of them are very special.

The first is a holy card printed in remembrance of a relative's (Elisabeth Gautier) First Communion and Confirmation on 5 Juillet 1906 or July 5, 1906. This is for my youngest. If I am reading the note on the card correctly, then I met Elisabeth Gautier's daughter (my paternal grandmother's cousin) in Switzerland several years ago. She made us (us includes my brother, my uncle, and a maternal great aunt) a delicious lunch. After lunch, we all went for a walk in the Swiss Alps. I am now wondering whether a crucifix with an ivory corpus which hangs on one of our walls originally belonged to Elisabeth Gautier or to her daughter.

The second took my breath away. I don't know whether it belonged to my paternal grandmother, but I do know that she had an incredible devotion to the saint I am about to mention. It is a small leather bifold. On the outside is imprinted, "Je veux Passer mon Ciel a Faire du Bien sur la Terre." (I will spend my Heaven doing good upon Earth.) On the inside right is a picture of St. Therese. On the left is written "Coton qui essuya les ossements de Ste. Therese de l'Enfant-Jesus 27 mars 1923." (Cotton that wiped the bones of St. Therese of the Child Jesus March 27, 1923.) There is a red thread cross with some cloth underneath it. I have told my Therese that this will be hers when she is older. Curious about the date, I did a Google search and found that St. Therese's body was transferred from the public cemetery to the Carmel on March 26, 1923. It is also the year that St. Therese was beatified.

The third was a holy card and medal from Lourdes celebrating the 150th anniversary of Mary's apparition to St. Bernadette, 1858 to 2008. I do not need to mention who gets this.

I have been trying to call my dad to thank him, but the phone has been busy. I will be trying again in the morning.

Conference Ponderings

Prior to the Northwest Catholic Family Education Conference, I contemplated the theme of this year's conference, "The Catholic Family: Called to be in the World, not of the World", many times. We have a framed text from Human Life International, "Ancient Advice for Modern Times, How True Christians Relate to the World" by St. Justin the Martyr, in our downstairs' hallway which addresses this very theme. I knew that being in the world, not of the world meant that: we are living counter-cultural lives; we believe in the Blessed Trinity; we believe in one, holy, Catholic and apostolic church and we abide by the teachings of Jesus Christ; we go to Mass each Sunday, on Holy Days of Obligation, and often to daily Mass; we are familiar with the stories in the Bible and so are our children; we spend time in adoration, praying before the Blessed Sacrament; we value family (father, mother, children) life. However, as I listened to the speakers at the homeschool conference, it seemed to me that another theme ran through the talks of most of the speakers. The theme of TRUTH seemed to be an integral part of the speeches. The more I heard the word "truth", the more I realized that to be in the world, not of the world, we need to live the Truth, recognizing that God is TRUTH and all truth comes from Him.