RE-SPECT

So we're wrapping up our "Parish Mission" this week, and it has been SO wonderful. Msgr. Jim Telthorst has been leading the Mission, and he is a fantastic speaker.



His presentation the first night talked about the difference between being a "student" and being a "disciple" of Jesus. A student of Jesus could recite his teachings, memorize prayers, etc., but as disciples of Jesus we need to watch Him in his daily routine...to walk with Him. Msgr. suggested we do this by reading the Gospels with a point of view. For example, if you are reading the story of the woman caught in adultery, you could place yourself in the position of the woman, or one holding a stone, or simply a passerby. He challenges us to view Jesus through the perspective of one of those particular people in the story. Since I'm not a big bible reader, I think this is a GREAT idea. I even mentioned to my hubby that it would be neat for both us of to read a particular passage, each with a different perspective, and then talk about it. That would be an "easy" way for us to pray together.



Now onto RE-SPECT... Msgr. Jim described respect (from the Latin root) to mean "look again" or "take a second look." He showed a video from Youtube (http://www.sermonspice.com/) called "Got Service?" which really hit home with me. He talked about how we so often pass people throughout the day, without really SEEING them. We judge them based on their appearance, or how they talk or act. We often only see them in relation to how they are affecting US. As in the video, we often get upset by someone driving slowly ahead of us, or waiting in long lines because the cashier is too slow, or a server in a restaurant not getting our order correct. And we get upset (either internally or out loud), beause we fail to truly see these people who have inconvenienced us...seeing them as people like us...people who hurt, people who have problems, people who are broken. So I'm making a diligent effort to work on RE-SPECTing others more; to reserve judgement, and to try to see them through the eyes of service...really, through the eyes of Christ. That may be the most important effort I make this Lent!



As tiring as it has been to be gone from 8:30am to 9:30pm this week, I am SO happy that Dan and I have attended this mission! I feel very blessed and inspired.

2009 Update

Ok, so I've been largely absentee from the blogging world for a couple of months, but I really want to start blogging more regularly again. It's been a very busy 2009. I was nominated (by our Pastor) to serve as President for the ACTS (retreat) Core Team (governing body) for 2009!! Yikes. It has been alot more work than I had anticipated, but organization is one of my gifts, so I guess this is the right place for me. I feel good about the 2009 Core Team. We are on track to accomplish many good things this year!

I suffered two losses this year as well. The first loss was the miscarriage of our first baby, who was only about four weeks along. The second was the loss of my Aunt Doris (Sister Judith) in early February from pancreatic cancer. Her death affected me a bit more than I expected, quite possibly because of miscarrying at the same time, and also just realizing that my own parents are getting older...

But I'm recovering well, and I am very happy with the results of the CT scan of my lungs. In October, I had had two enlarged lymph nodes near my lungs. All blood results were normal, so the Specialist just advised me to repeat the test in 3 months. It has been 3 months, and the new scan was the same as last time, so the lymph nodes did not grow. This is good news! (although I was really hoping they would shrink back down). We'll have to keep repeating the scans every 3-6 months for awhile to make sure those nodes don't grow. (Any prayers you may have would be appreciated!)

I took a trip to Florida in February to see my sister Sharon...and really just to get away for a bit. We had a great time, enjoyed the beach, and did LOTS of shopping at her store (White House/Black Market). I LOVE that store!! It did wonders for my winter "blahs."

Dan and I have a couple of trips planned as well. In May, we're headed to Jamaica for five days of fun in the sun! I've never been to Jamaica, and we're staying at an all-inclusive, so I'm looking very forward to it. We also want to meet Sharon in Dewey Beach, Delaware over July 4th. I've been there about 6 or 7 times... It's a weekend filled with nothing but beach time, lives bands for HOURS on end, and Miller Lite... Good times!! We also want to camp alot this year, since we didn't get to last year with the wedding and all. We have a couple trips already planned, and a couple more in the works. Yipppeeee!

The Big Apple

Can I just say how much I love New York? We had such a fun visit. We did all the "touristy" stuff, like the Brooklyn Bridge, Empire State Building, Metropolitan Art Museum, Central Park, Natural History Museum, etc. We walked EVERYWHERE! I'm talking about 5+ miles per day... That's my theory as to why New Yorkers are so thin...They WALK! It was great. NYE was way too cold to go to Times Square, so we met up with a friend of a friend, and she and her boyfriend took us to a party at a club! It was fun--I felt like a local. We went over to Brooklyn one night to have dinner with my sister Sharon's friend, Karen. She took us to a "real" Italian restaurant...and it was amazing! The server/owner even gave us a round of shots (and he did one with us!) We saw Arthur Miller's play "All My Sons" on Broadway...It starred John Lithgow, Diane Wiest, Katie Holmes, and Patrick Wilson. They did a great job, and it was so awesome to see "real" actors up close. The weather up there was cold, but we had a blast. It was a much needed vacation! Now, at times, I did feel like I was in a foreign country, but that's the neat part. At any given time, walking down the street, one could hear five different languages being spoken!! You won't get that here in the Lou...

However, on the flight home, I did overhear a couple of "native" New Yorkers talking, and one asked the other why on earth he would be going to St. Louis... I mean...she asked as if he were going to the middle East or something! And then I overheard them talking about how midwesterners have "typical" male and female roles, and all this other stuff... I just wanted to turn around and let them know that we don't ride around on covered wagons these days, and that we even have cable TV! I mean these people think us midwesterners live in another century or something! Is it the traditional family values that bother them? Or the slower (relatively) paced lives we lead? I don't know, but it really kinda bothered me. But, alas, it did not take anything away from the awesome experience I had in the Big Apple. It's a fantastic place to visit, but I'll take my town anyday!