One Million Rosaries For Unborn Babies

I have a ton of things going around in my head to get out on the blog soon, but haven't decided where to start. SO- I'm going to start with a press release from another ministry. You don't need to register your email address, phone number, etc. Just let the ministry know that you will be praying! See info below...

Saint Michael the Archangel Organization
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 2nd, 2009
CONTACT: Patrick Benedict
PatrickBenedict@SaintMichaelTheArchangelOrganization.org

PRAYER EVENT FOR UNBORN BABIES GAINS SUPPORT
10,000+ Rosaries registered; '1,000,000' remains the goal for May 1 - 3

MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE (April 2nd, 2009) - Presently, more than 10,000 Rosaries are scheduled to be prayed as part of the three-day ONE MILLION ROSARIES FOR UNBORN BABIES prayer event[May 1st(Friday), May 2nd(Saturday), and May 3rd(Sunday), 2009]. Each participant will be praying for an end to the surgical and non-surgical killing of unborn human persons. The Saint Michael the Archangel Organization, coodinator of the prayer effort, has received much encouraging information, including:

* A sizable number of members from the Catholic Daughters of the Americas have registered to participate.
* A junior high youth group in Ohio will be praying 25 Rosaries; students from a school in Illinois will be praying 50 Rosaries; and, a CCD class from Georgia will be praying 30 Rosaries.
* Rosaries will be prayed within various nations, including Australia, Columbia, Mexico, the Philippines, Malaysia, Hungary, and India.
* A Family of 5 from Texas will be praying 45 Rosaries.
* More than one person has chosen to pray 9 or more Rosaries for the unborn babies.
* A prayer group in the United Kingdom will be praying 54 Rosaries.

" The unborn babies have no political power, no way to organize, and no vault of money to defend themselves with," stated Patrick Benedict, President of the Saint Michael the Archangel Organization. " Hundreds of millions, and perhaps billions, of these little babies have been killed worldwide within the last 40 or so years. For we here on earth, this is an incomprehensible horror that has no equal in history.

" These babies, created in the image and likeness of God, need the help of men, women, and children who are willing to combat the demonically-driven Culture of Death. The question is not: 'Do the unborn babies need our Rosaries?'; rather, the question millions of us need to answer is: 'Am I willing to pray the Rosary for the unborn babies?'

" The ONE MILLION ROSARIES FOR UNBORN BABIES prayer event is a great opportunity to unite in prayer with people throughout the world for these innocent unborn human persons. Right now, those who are not registered to participate in the prayer event far outnumber the people who are registered. Thankfully, there is still time to change that.

" When a person decides to pray his/her Rosary for this prayer effort, then he/she will be praying a Rosary that no one else can pray. Each person's Rosary is important," concluded Benedict.

Registration for the prayer event is easy and can be done quickly by going to www.SaintMichaelTheArchangelOrganization.org or by letting one's intention be known in writing and sending it to P.O. BOX 41257; Memphis, Tennessee 38174; U.S.A. A count of the number of Rosaries registered is being kept at the above-listed website.

In addition to participating, people are encouraged to promote the ONE MILLION ROSARIES FOR UNBORN BABIES prayer event to their family members, fellow parishioners, at schools, etc. An "Information Page/Bulletin Insert", etc. is available at the above-listed website by clicking on the menu choice "Promoting the ONE MILLION ROSARIES FOR UNBORN BABIES prayer event."

Frustrated by my "calling"--- what is a "calling" anyway?

"What's your 'calling'?" "Oh! That's your 'calling!'" "Oh, my. You missed your 'calling.'"
Have you heard these questions before? I have. Apparently, I have missed my calling to work as a camp director, or at an advertising agency, or as a professional singer, blah, blah, blah. My sister is the camp director, folks. Perhaps you have mistaken me for someone else in advertising. Yes, I like singing, but I don't want that life.

So what IS a "calling"? At this moment in time, my "calling" is to be a wife, mother, and homeschooling teacher. But is there something more? Maybe. Maybe not. It's fourth quarter...the time of the year when homeschooling parents start to get weary of the school year. I was chatting with some other moms last night and they were comparing progress in their text books. Were they going to finish by the "end" of the year? As for me, at this point every year, I doubt my capabilities and wonder if I'll continue next year. My philosophies on homeschooling haven't changed a bit. I still see the incredible value in it. I just wonder if I'm a "good enough" teacher. I start the year off strong, but things just slip away during the year. Looks at my planner. You'll see the trend. We hang in there with the basics- 3 Rs (which only 1 starts with an "R").

If I were to send the kids to school somewhere, I'd have to get a job! Yikes! I'm really not fond of that idea. Homeschooling is much more appealing at this time.

So my question is this: what do people really mean by your "calling"? It makes sense in terms of religious service. At one point in time, I felt "called" to be in full-time ministry. Obviously, that hasn't happened as far as a formal career goes. I didn't even go past an associates degree! I did work part-time as a church secretary- but that's not really what I thought I was "called" to do.

I am very frustrated right now with such things. If you have read any of this blog, you know that I am a new Catholic. I am having incredible revelations and experiences through this process! I sometimes feel like I could convert the whole world if I knew where to start! But I don't know where to start. When Friendship Bread was taking over my kitchen, I considered starting some sort of bread ministry, but didn't know where to start. Thankfully, my kitchen has recovered and that has passed. It might still be a valuable ministry, but those thoughts have passed by.

I want to serve God. I do.

I listen to Fr. John Corapi in the mornings on the radio. He has said many times that he believes that one of the highest callings is that of a mother. Yet, this seems so mundane at times. Also, I don't think I do a very good job of it. Folks outside of my house think that because my kids are mostly well behaved, I'm "doing something right." Ha! I don't really "do" anything. Seriously, folks. I'm quite lazy. How else do I have time to sit on facebook and blog! I'm neglecting other parts of my home and family. Clothes are in the washer in the moment, but aren't washing cause its too loud. I hope I remember to turn it on when I decide to go upstairs.

I now find myself rambling. *sigh*
Not even sure where I was going with this.
TTFN

New Blogging?

I am attempting to set up a blog with Wordpress (suggested by Fr. Noel). I'll post here if I do figure it out. Haven't succeeded yet.

During my walk last week...

I totally forgot about one of the amazing revelations that I had while walking uphill in the rain to Mass last week. As it is Holy Week and our minds are turned toward the Passion of Christ, I thought to myself, "If Jesus had to walk uphill carrying a very heavy cross after having been beaten, mocked, etc., just to DIE for us, then I really shouldn't be complaining at all!! Putting things in persepective can really get one thinking deeply!
These thoughts also gave me the courage to perservere to the end of my walk-- where we celebrated the sacrifice Jesus made for us!

My Trip to Mass Last Week

As the alarm was attempting to wake me up for Mass this morning, I wondered why it was so much "easier" to walk 6 miles in the rain to Mass than get up at 7:00 AM!
My little walk last week is more than just something for me to brag about. It was a very special, meaningful time for me. I hope that my story will be more than a brag story. I hope that my testimony here will inspire you in some way & that you will understand that I was truly blessed by this experience!

Recently, I've been participating in First Reconciliation Parent Classes, then First Communion Parent Classes at Church. More than once, Fr. Joe has emphasized that missing Mass is a grave matter! If you are sick, caring for someone, or the nearest Mass is 50 miles away, you are excused. Other than that, you'd better be there! (possible exaggeration on my part).

As soon as we got to the hotel in Raleigh last Friday, I grabbed the phone book to look for the nearest Catholic Church. My sister asked, "What are you doing?" I responded, "You know what I am doing!" I'd mentioned to her my intentions previously. I was going to go to Mass while on the trip. She rolled her eyes at me. In fact, she rolls her eyes at me just about anytime I mention anything about the Catholic Church.
I found the listing for the closest church, but couldn't find it on the map. I asked at the front desk if they directions to nearby churches, and they did.

My sister had told me that one of the ladies on the trip, a coordinator of some sort, was also Catholic, so I went to her room to express my desire to attend Mass. Her daughter looked at me as if I had dropped in from another planet when I mentioned it. (Her mom wasn't available at the time.) I was quite possibly on my own for this.

In Advent of this past year, I began praying the Divine Mercy Chaplet everyday at 3:00 PM. Real Life Radio plays it on the air everyday but Sunday, so I typically just sit by the radio with my rosary for ten minutes. On the band trip last week, obviously, I couldn't tune in to my beloved 1380 AM. HOWEVER, I had planned ahead and downloaded the Chaplet from their website to my MP3 player.
Because it was on my MP3 player, I didn't have to wait until exactly 3:00 to pray. So a little before 3, I turned on the Chaplet. While I was praying, Jesus revealed to me that I needed to go ahead and come to Mass, regardless of what anyone else thought/said. I finished praying around 3. According to the paper from the front desk, Mass @ St. Michael's Church started at 5:00 PM. The directions indicated that it was about 6 miles away. Now, I don't exercise...ever...but I figure that I walk about 3 mph. So it would only take me 2 hours to get there. How convenient! So I grabbed my coat and took off.

IT WAS NOT RAINING WHEN I LEFT THE HOTEL.

However, less than a mile away, it did start to rain. Just some sprinkles. No big deal. I had a hood. I was good to go. It was going to pass. Or not. At times, it did seem to stop...but then it would start again. Not raining hard, but raining. And raining. And raining. For the rest of the way, it continued to rain. Even light rain, when constant for 2 hours, can get one a little wet. No matter, by the time I realized that it was not stopping, I wasn't stopping.

I had my little MP3 player with me and thought that some music might help me along. Nice though, except that I dropped the thing once and it is very particular about movement. If it moves, it may pause itself. This is very annoying when walking!! So, I gave up on that after a few songs. During the first part of the walk, I enjoyed the scenery, the sounds, the atmosphere of my surroundings. It was nice to be outside for a walk. I got a real kick out of an Arby's sign. It was the type of sign you would see with an "H" indicating a hospital nearby. However, it was the Arby's hat! Ha! If I had been hungry for Arby's that would have been very helpful. Nevertheless, it was amusing.

Now, once my leg started hurting and I started to FEEL wet, my attitude changed a little. I began to ponder what I was doing and WHY I was doing it. "I'm going to Mass because Fr. Joe will not approve if he knew I had a way to Mass and didn't go." No...that wasn't it.

If you have read much of this blog at all, or if you have talked to me recently, you know that I am a new Catholic. One of the things that had been tricky for me to grasp is the True Presence. Fr. George McInnis spoke at the March Family Holy Hour about this topic. His passion for the Eucharist and the True Presence really impacted me.
As I was walking up a hill on the way to Mass in NC, I began to tell myself, "I am going to see Jesus!" Jesus! That's why I was walking. It wasn't about me. It wasn't about exercise. Not even about Fr. Joe "coming to get me." It was about Jesus! How exciting! Fr. McInnis mentioned that if more folks believed in the True Presence, they wouldn't leave the Church. It's JESUS, folks!!

At one point on the walk, near the place that the sidewalk disappeared and I was walking in mud puddles, I took hold of the rosary in my pocket and prayed the Rosary. What a blessing! I had uninterrupted time to pray the Rosary, ponder the True Presence and other aspects of my faith.

Near the end of my trek to the church, I started to become discouraged, figuring that I would never find it, but I kept going. I was already soaked!

I made it to the church in 1 hour & 45 minutes. Right on target. I was hoping to make it there 10-15 minutes before the Mass began.

I took that time to hang out in the bathroom for a little while, hoping to air dry just a little before going into the service. When I did go in, I found a spot in the back quarter of the sanctuary (which was very big!). I slid into a pew with my wet coat beside me. There are many details about the service I could share, but the most important was the emotion that I experienced. I was cold, tired,...well...wet. I felt a little out of place; slightly embarrassed, self-concious, etc. But when the Mass began, I knew I was where I was supposed to be. There were many moments during that hour when I wanted to cry for love of Jesus, the Eucharist, the Mass, etc. I was very glad to have been able to receive Jesus even though I was far from home. It was worth it! Every step.

Now, I am not superwoman. The thought of walking back 6 miles in the rain, starting out wet, did not appeal to me. I walked outside of the church to survey the situation. There was a minibus transporting people from the church, but you had to have called ahead. I broke down and cried as I walked back to the church. The priest was finishing his post-Mass greetings as I approached him. I'm not quite sure what he thought of this drown-rat crying about walking in the rain! He did help to find a parishioner to drive me back to the hotel. She was a mom with her kids in a minivan. :-) I pray that Sonja and her family will be richly blessed for taking time out of their evening to drive me back!

I was SO GLAD to have had extra shoes!! My poor little shoes still haven't recovered from the walk. :-( Glad new shoes were part of the band gig!!

Later, I talked with the Catholic lady from the band. She mentioned trying to find a Catholic Church. I said, "It's about 6 miles THAT way. About 1 hour 45 minutes on foot." Her response, "Maybe I can find Mass on TV in the morning." Oh well.

I wanted to tell her everything that Fr. Joe & Fr. McInnis had taught me recently. I want to tell EVERYONE!! How I wish I had learned all of these things a long time ago! Of course, God didn't choose to reveal these things to me until now. I am very thankful & very blessed.

"Playing" clarinet in the band

Playing in the band was an interesting experience. Being that I hadn't played clarinet in such a long time, I had a little bit of difficulty actually playing. A bunch of the people on the trip were there, like me, to be an extra body. I know that a couple of the girls didn't even really know how to hold the instruments they were given! At least I had once been decent on my horn. Ah, my horn. My clarinet is in sorry shape. The cork has come off in many spots. The pads are worn. I had to borrow some tape from a tuba player to wrap the thumb rest because the band-aid that once had on it fell off. Before the game on Saturday, my keys started sticking because a spring wasn't springing right. It seemed to have corrected itself, but I decided just to not play with those notes. Turns out that I ended up just working with the top half of the horn. When I tried to play the whole instrument, it never turned out pretty. The sound wouldn't come out or a key would stick or it would just be a very nasty noise.

Playing with just the top half isn't so bad, I reckon. Especially if you aren't able to keep up with the quick pace so that you aren't really playing anyway!
Whew! The director would call out a tune. I had to sort through the pile of music to find it. Then it usually went a lot faster than I would have liked. Some of the songs were super easy for me. Some were just a joke to me. Heck, I don't even know how to make notes that high on a clarinet!! Can it even do that?!?
Then there are the times when the band "dances" with their instruments. Well, just forget me playing during that part. I can't look at the music and move around at the same time. There was another clarinetist and we used an extra chair for a music stand. It kinda worked ok.

The first game really left little impression on me. I wasn't bored, but I wasn't really "into it." The saxophone players behind me were very funny though. It dawned on me that I don't think I have EVER been to an NCAA Women's basketball game...ever. Heck, it's been a while since I've been to ANY basketball game! I was sitting on the front row of the band near the basket. If the ball ever made it to the right side of the court (ie other side of the basket from me) I couldn't see what was happening and had to look at the jumbotron. U of L won the Saturday game. Yay.

The next game was on Monday evening. I looked over the music during the day on Monday for a few minutes hoping to get a better idea of what was coming at me! I alphabetized the small pieces of paper, which was VERY helpful during the game. The band plays right outside the hotel as the team loads up their bus for the game. I figured out how to hold one of the songs in my right hand with the extra music under my arm while playing. Since I was only using the top half of the instrument, it wasn't TOO difficult.

I think I did play a little better (or at least more) at the second game. I had at least been exposed to the routine. I got more "involved" in the game. The saxophones were making up cheers and taunts and I joined in. As I said before, those guys were pretty funny. They had inflatable numbers, 3 and 0. I'm not sure they used the 3 very much because there weren't really a lot of 3-pointers shot. However, if ever the other team failed to score on a possession, they would hold up the zero. Some of their taunts made absolutely no sense to me at all, but it was fun anyway. I can honestly say that I did have fun at that second game...even though I couldn't keep up in the music department.
(Clarinets are basically pointless in a pep band anyway. You can't hear us. No big loss if I didn't really play.)

The team won the game and the right to be in the Final Four. I'm almost sad that I won't be going to St. Louis for the games. However, the people who've been faithfully playing in the band and who actually PLAY are going. *sigh* Oh well. Maybe I'd have figured out more of the music or something by then.

But I do have a life here at home...with responsibilities! Although I'm not really a U of L fan, I will probably tune in to see how the women do next weekend. (Especially since the Men's team didn't make it to their Final Four)

I do think I was on TV a couple of times though. Does that count for anything? Probably not.

Jennifer Joins the Band

I am in Raleigh, NC as I type this today. I am here as part of the NCAA Women's Basketball Tourney. The University of Louisville Women have made it to the Elite 8! If they win tonight, they will be headed to the Final Four, which is more than the Men can say. (They lost yesterday.)
Here's my question:
Do I live in Louisville? Nope.
Did I go to U of L? Nope.
Am I a fan of U of L? Nope.
So what the heck am I doing here?

My sister, Cindy, called me last week and said, "Do you want to go to Raleigh?" She recruited me to come as part of the U of L PEP BAND!!! How crazy is that!?! This poses another question:
Do I play an instrument? Well...I own a clarinet, but haven't really played in 13 years or so!
Doesn't matter. Since most of the band went to Indy to be a part of the Men's tourney, they needed people for this trip! And apparently they weren't too picky. :-)

So here I am. We are staying in a REALLY nice hotel. Embassy Suites. Free breakfast. Free drinks from 5-7 pm EVERY DAY! (Yes. Unlimited drinks...and that does include alcohol...maybe not the best idea for a band trip...) A business center which includes the computer I am now using. This thing is really slow, but it is something to do to keep me awake at the moment.

Anyhow - it is a diverse group of folks on this trip. Some of them are college students and are typically part of the pepband. Some of them are out of college, yet are still typically part of the pepband. One of the fellows is over 65! the "director" of the trip is here with her daughters (in their 20s). The girls can't play instruments, but they hold trumpets in the band! It is kinda funny.
I felt a little old when we were checking in at the airport. If you are under 21, your drivers license is vertical. If you are over 21, it is horizontal. I was certainly in the minority...folks with horizontal licenses! :-)

Am I having fun on this trip? Fun is relative. Am I getting drunk every night while drinking the beer I was able to get because I wasn't carded and then taking advantage of free drinks at the hotel? No. Are some of the "kids" on this trip doing that. Seems to be so.

Am I catching the bus ride to the mall, movies, bar, wherever? Except for the first night when a LARGE group of folks when into town to a nice sports bar to watch the Men's game together. That was fun. Other than that, I haven't taken any of those outings.

Have I walked 6 miles in the rain to see Jesus? Yup.
Did I get totally drenched while walking uphill quite a bit of the way? Yup.
Did I cry at the thought of having to walk 6 miles back in the rain? Yup.
Did I hitch a ride with an unsuspecting parishoner so I wouldn't have to walk 6 miles back in the rain? Yup.
Did I have fun doing this? YUP! :-)
(This event is going to get its own post.)

Yesterday, the weather was SO PRETTY! There was no way I was going to stay inside all day! I found a nice patch of grass (still a little wet from Saturday's rain) and read my book for an hour or so. I called home to talk to Bill and the girls.
I wandered over to a close-by shopping center and found a used bookstore. I used some of my per diem money to buy books. :-)
Yesterday was a lot of fun for me!!!

Today I am so sleepy! I tried to read my book inside, but it just isn't bright enough to keep me awake. I tried to go outside, but it is a little cooler today and wouldn't have been as comfortable.
SO - here I am at the computer. :-) Can't get on facebook from here, so I thought I would blog.

Oh! More people have come to use the computers and I am just wasting time, so I'm going to hop off. Maybe I will come back to this subject soon. :-)