Groovin….

    I love the music of Ziggy Marley…he is a true extension of his father…picked up right where he left off...

Oh St. Francis!

The last few days have been interesting.  On Monday my co-worker randomly shares with me the Prayer of St. Francis.  She had shared with me that she had never heard it before until she went to a friend's funeral and it was on his funeral card.  I couldn't believe she had never heard that prayer.  It's such a common and beautiful prayer. It is actually one of my favorites that I remember reading since I was very young.

That same co-worker inspired me to google the prayer and print out a few copies of it to share with others.  I shared it with various people that day.  So, today being the crazy day that it was...I left my personal phone at my desk.  I was scheduled for my first adult faith formation workshop today for the lay ministry program and I had the address on my phone which I had left behind.  I did remember that the church was called St. Francis of Assisi.  It was a bit of a journey to get there but I made it thanks to God!  I blended right into the workshop which I found to be very interesting.  I was really excited that we received a book for the class and have already started reading it and writing notes.  Anyhow...right before I walk out of the classroom at the completion of the workshop I look to the side and there it was in a frame..."Lord make me an instrument of your peace."  I did a double take when I saw it and that is when I realized that St. Francis has been trying to get my attention all week! How significant!

 As I sat in that classroom which seemed a bit old and dusty, I felt a strong urge to take photos.  Maybe next Tuesday I will take my camera and shoot some photos.  I'm not sure what lies ahead but I am excited and want to embrace it.

    On another note regarding my thoughts on the class,  as I was contemplating on my way home, I realized that whenever I feel that something limits me I begin to resist it.  I feel like someone is pushing me back and telling me I can't do it, which makes me want to push forward harder.  These thoughts came from the first few pages I read in our new book for the workshop called "Adult Faith Formation."  It talked about how important it is to evangelize.  Yet women are not allowed to evangelize in the church.  They can run groups, ministries, and teach CCD classes but more than often these things have a curriculum to follow.  I'm still having a really hard time with this and feel resistant towards the patriarchy in the church, however I continue to endure and attempt to break through those barriers...in the meantime as the professor giving the workshop stated, "we have to do the best we can within what we are allowed to do."

tygwamh

Fun and Blessed Weekend : )

   This past weekend I had the opportunity to connect with some new and old friends.  On Friday after work, me and my new friend (and co-worker) Lili went for a drink at a small bar near the job.  This was the second time we went to this place and again we were pressed for time because we had plans afterwards.  However, even if it was for just about 45 minutes, we sat to unwind from work with good spirits and a really good looking bartender.  I am really grateful to have met someone like Lili and I truly appreciate our talks at work and our seamless laughter at the little things to appreciate about life.

    That same night I was scheduled to meet up with some old friends.  My roommate Hil and I took the 1 train out to Washington Heights to meet up with my friend Christian and Christine for some dinner and dancing.  We were running late, however, Christian and Christine arrived on time.  They actually did not know each other but they found one another and by the time we arrived they seemed like old friends catching up.  Before we were done with dinner, my friend Cesar showed up to join us for a little dancing.  I know Christian and Cesar from Chicago, we all went to University of Illinois at Chicago for undergrad.  What a blessing it has been that moving to NY has allowed me to still reconnect with my old friends.  Here we all are doing big things and taking the time to celebrate with one another.  Speaking of celebration, we were celebrating my friend Christine's new job she landed last week.  I met Christine at my last job at a law firm in Manhattan.  We became close at work sending each other motivational and spiritual messages to help each other get through our days in the corporate world.  She shared with me that she recently found a spiritual message about employment I had sent to her a few years ago and that reading it again inspired her.  I am grateful we continue to remain close and be supportive of one another in our journey through life.  Boy, did we have a great time dancing and celebrating! I'm so happy for Christine...Praise God!

    On Saturday morning I met up with Julissa who used to be my supervisor at a hospital in Queens.  She is no longer my supervisor, she is my friend and like a big sister to me.  She has a beautiful daughter Julianna who is so smart and sweet.  She has the cutest curly hair and smile ever! There is nothing like being around children with their innocence and curiosity about everything.  I had such an amazing time with them.  We had brunch and then shared dessert at Martha's Bakery..YUM! I'm so grateful that God placed Julissa in my path, I have learned so much from her in the work but also about being a mom in the short time that I've known her.  I know that much of who I will become as a social worker will be because of my rich experience at the hospital under her supervision.

     Mid-Saturday afternoon I spent some quality time with my aunt (Titi Monin).  We did one of the things that we both LOVE to do.  I took her to this little thrift shop in Astoria where they have a huge collection of books for sale at a very cheap rate.  We spent at least an hour scanning all the books.  We were both able to find some that we really liked (see pic below for my books).  Afterwards we drove over to Best Buy to pick up the movie Star Trek she wanted to get for my uncle.  While there I saw that "The Bible"  DVD series was on sale for $30.  I had to get it!  It's a 4 disc movie series about the stories of the bible from Genesis to Revelation.  I decided that if I would purchase it then I would also share it with others.  I think it is a great way to have conversations about the bible and about Christ. I am looking forward to watching it and sharing it with others.  After Best Buy I took my aunt back home, watched some Star Trek and had dinner with her and my uncle and rushed home.  I truly cherish the quality time I spend with my family in New York.  

       When I got home I chatted with my roommate for a while and then my new friend and co-worker Samantha came to pick me up with her husband.  She invited me to see the Mayweather boxing fight with her husband's family at the Rosedale projects (n/k/a Sonia Sotomayor projects) in the Bronx.  I had a really great time with everyone.  I felt like I was back at home watching the fight surrounded by my brother and cousins.  Samantha and I also got a chance to share some psalms and proverbs.  I am truly grateful for my new found friend of which we can talk about Christ all day and never get tired or bored!  

       On Sunday I went to mass and had to announce an event to kick off my ministry at Our Lady of Mount Carmel.  I am blessed to have the support of Monsignor Ogle and the rest of the young adult leaders at the parish.  We will be doing a "meet and greet" with coffee and donuts to see if we can build a solid foundation for a consistent group.  I pray that God can make it all work out for the good.  I was a bit nervous making the announcement and didn't quite say everything I wanted to say but nevertheless I got through it.  I sure hope it reached some folks and they show up next week.  I have to say that lately I haven't been too motivated about the ministry.  I had been contemplating if I went through the process of choosing too fast but perhaps that is not coming from a good place.  So I claim in the name of Jesus that this ministry will flourish and become a community of young adults that Jesus will be pleased with! I have this part of me that always wants to plan things ahead of time and the uncertainty of the structure of the ministry can consume me at times.  But I know that God will make it all work out for the good..like He always does.

     Sunday evening I watched the movie "Life of Pi" with my roommate Hil and our friend David.  It was interesting for me to watch the movie since I had read the book a few years ago.  It's amazing what movie makers can do.  The animation and graphics were amazing, I imagine it had to be a difficult movie to make.  Besides the animals and the beautiful scenery in the movie, I loved the storyline about how Pi, the Hindu boy, also became Muslim and Christian.  His innocent curiosity as a boy and his family's ability to allow him to decide for himself was really inspiring.  As he explored all three religions, he ultimately sought to just love God and his faith was reflected throughout the movie.

     And that, my friends, was my fun and blessed weekend.  Here are some pics:

Dinner in Washington Heights!

Mini UIC undergrad reunion!

She only ate the M&M's! So Sweet!

My curly sweety...I love her!

My weekend treasures...religion, social justice, and magical realism!

tygijn

PROGRESS

     This message from www.dailyword.com spoke to me today...so grateful:

I APPRECIATE MY PROGRESS!

Living in the moment is a powerful practice; yet at times I may need to step back for a larger perspective. As I contemplate where I have been and what I have accomplished, I awaken to and appreciate the progress I have made.

I may not have reached my full potential yet, but I can appreciate every phase of my journey—past, present, and future. Each step forward deepens the meaning and purpose of my life.

I need not rush or force my progress. I am one with the One Presence—in everything that is and will be. Knowing I am divinely supported, I relax and enjoy life’s abundant opportunities to learn and grow.

"I am going to send an angel in front of you, to guard you on the way and to bring you to the place that I have prepared."-Exodus 23:20

Spiritual Sunday 08-18-2013

     Lately, I’ve felt a bit outside of myself and I’m not sure what that means.  I’ve just been going with the flow of life instead of having everything planned or getting myself into doing stuff just to do it.  I feel like I am staying open to the possibilities in life, yet it is a bit nerve wrecking.  I am used to being part of many things and right now I am sort of free to just sit back and take it all in.  Perhaps it is because I just finished grad school a few months ago and it took a lot of thinking, concentrating, studying, and focusing to get me through it all.  I’m not quite sure how to take all that I have learned and put it into perspective in my life, when I am often too busy thinking about what comes next. 

       Somehow I feel like I had a mental shift and my mind is often now on wondering who will be the man I will share my life with.  I remember thinking that it would be nice to have a crush.  But be careful what you wish for.  I don’t want to worry about who will be the one for me.  I just want to live my life and be open to all the possibilities that God places in my path whether its friendship or potential romantic relationship until it feels right with the one He has for me.  It has felt pretty tough to meet people in this day and age and perhaps it is because most people are doing online dating.  Somehow I don’t’ feel motivated to put myself out there like that.  But folks who do are brave souls indeed! Yesterday I heard another success story through online communication.  I wonder what God thinks about online dating.  Either way whether I do it or not, I am always waiting on the Lord.  I wait for His indication in my heart, in my soul, and in my spirit.  Which is why when someone comes into my life and I feel drawn to them, it makes me wonder what their purpose is in my life.  Not everything that shines is gold...but God has come to put the fire on this earth indeed.  If we are not refined already..He will put the fire on us so we can become shiny and pure hearted for Him.  (Oh God, please make me pure hearted  and brave for you.)

     Today’s scriptures were really moving for me.  In the first reading we hear how the

prophet Jeremiah was sent to be put to death by those who were close to the king.  According to them, Jeremiah was not looking after the welfare of the people.  The king’s men believed Jeremiah was blaspheming and that he was on the side of Babylon.  Little did they know that it was the Lord himself speaking through Jeremiah.  It is inspiring to see how Jeremiah spoke the truth.  When I think about modern times I wonder what is the truth.  It feels like nowadays there is a thin line between right and wrong.  It’s hard to think about what would Jesus do in modern times.  But as He used Jeremiah, so He will use us to bring messages, signs, and peace to the world. (Oh God, use me as you used Jeremiah to spread the truth.)

     The second reading was from the Book of Hebrews.  Paul’s words cannot be paraphrased here are the verses:

Brothers and sisters:

Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses,

let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us

and persevere in running the race that lies before us

while keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus,

the leader and perfecter of faith.

For the sake of the joy that lay before him

he endured the cross, despising its shame,

and has taken his seat at the right of the throne of God. 

Consider how he endured such opposition from sinners,

in order that you may not grow weary and lose heart. 

In your struggle against sin

you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood.

That’s deep right?  Well I just want to emphasize again the last two lines because they stood out to me the most:

In your struggle against sin

you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood.

     I went to mass today.  I thank the Holy Spirit for pushing me to get up and go.  After reading the gospel this morning, I was actually looking forward to Father Bartalomew’s homily.  He is a visiting priest form Africa who has been giving the 11am English mass, and when I went last week I took a whole bunch of notes on my phone.  This time around I knew better so I took my pen and notebook.  His homily was powerful.  He reminded me of Jeremiah speaking up there in the altar with conviction.  He was spitting bible verses and I was really trying to keep up.  His homilies make me want to go to church again.  I thank God for that.  

     The Gospel was from the book of Luke and it took a lot of contemplating for me to understand it.  The priest’s homily really helped to put it into perspective.  Here are some of the notes I took:

God wants us to be thinking...He wants to challenge us to think critically about the circumstances in our lives.
Why do the Gospels seem to contradict themselves..Jesus came for Division (Book of Luke) and Jesus prince of peace? (Book of Matthew) which one is it?

In the Gospel of today Jesus is talking about opinions.  We have to endure opposition against sin.  Peace does not mean to agree with what everyone says.  It's ok to disagree with mom, dad, or other loved ones for the cause of Christ.  The challenge of Christians is to know the truth and to stand by the truth.

Christians are always being attacked in the world.  Your life is a challenge to people.  Your life is a symbol of Christ!
Our position should be where there is truth.  Disagreeing does not mean you don't love the person you disagree with.

There are disadvantages and consequences for standing up for the truth.  People will turn against you (look at Jeremiah)
However, it's not always bad consequences when you stand up for the truth, as there are always witnesses in the heavens and they will come forth in due time including the saints, the angels, and the Virgin Mary.  


Today's challenge:

Be positioned against evil, against what is not good .  You will suffer in the body but your spirit will be saved! 

tygijn

(c)rosewillberose 

True to myself...

...a little music therapy for the soul.

Son las cosas pequeñas...(It's the little things...)

     Este fin de semana he recibido unos regalitos especiales y inesperados... (This weekend I received some unexpected special gifts.....)

Una cartita especial de mi querida mama, que me alegro el corazon! Yo se que mi motivacion 
para escribir o hacer algo creativo siempre ha venido de mi madre 
(A special letter from my dear mom that brought joy to my heart! I know my motivation 
to write or do anything creative comes from my mom!)

Monedas y billetes de otro pais que me trajo una amiga en su aventura del verano (Kuna and BAM currency of Croatia and Bosnia which a friend brought back from her summer adventure back to her homeland..she even wrote a blog about it here!

Son las cosas pequenas y inesperadas que significan algo GRANDE!

   (It's always the little things that are meaningful in a BIG way.)

Estoy muy agradecida..

(Truly Grateful....)

tygijn