Christmas Holidays

Before I knew it, Christmas holidays had begun!

We had good intentions of getting down to Lethbridge where we would spend Christmas well in time for our Grandson, Jordan's first birthday. However, we decided not to leave until Wednesday, the 22nd. John's folks drove down to our place the morning of, we had lunch and then left for Sherwood Park.

Of course, it wasn't that easy. :-) John was putting the finishing touches on his gifts and I was still sewing buttons on the ones I was making, Monday evening. Wrapping the last of the gifts was done Tuesday evening. Then it was the super human effort of getting everything organized and packed into our truck. We not only had Christmas gifts and luggage to take with us, but 800 pounds of moose meat for our son-in-law's brother and friend. Finally, we were ready. John's mom and dad arrived shortly after 11 am. I made us soup and had buns for sandwiches ready.

We were grateful to God that John's mom and dad were able to accompany us and the rest of the family that awaited us at John's sister's house were also very happy to see us all. Our son, James and his family: Sophie, Evie, and Noah joined us at Johanna's for the evening meal. Johanna outdid herself again: roast pork, potatoes and veggies, salad and Swedish latkes (I think this is what they're called.). Dessert was apple crisp and ice cream. Tim and Brendan were also there to make us feel at home. John's brother, Bill and his wife, Jo and her brother, Johnnie were also there for supper. Nelly, John's sister (same age as me), also came for a visit after supper. John and I stayed at Nelly's overnight.

Early Thursday morning, John and I left for Lethbridge and arrived there at noon. We stopped for a few groceries for Penny and then we were off to the farm at Wrentham. We arrived just in time for Jordan's first birthday party. His little cousin, Tim, was there along with many of the family of Dagnone. It was a great time and Jordan enjoyed his birthday cake immensely. It was blueberry cobbler with whipped cream. He especially enjoyed the whipped cream and blueberries. Jordan had fun opening his presents and playing with the paper and boxes. :-)

James and his family had hoped to arrive on Thursday as well, but trouble with the van lights kept them in Nanton overnight. However, they were in Wrentham by 10am. The cousins had a blast playing together. Noah made a new friend in Morris the cat, and with the combined toys received over the birthday and Christmas, all the kids had fun! Even the big kids. I know Grandpa spent some time checking them all out. Uncle Tony came down from Calgary to join in the fun too.

We all went to the Christmas Eve service at Wrentham and although it was not a Catholic mass, I enjoyed the Christmas reading and the singing. It was especially poignant when the children lit the candles to put them in the windows of the little community church as is the custom each Christmas eve. After the service, we went back to Penny's for a fantastic meal and visiting with each other.

Of course, no holiday is without incident. Evie came down with an ear infection and I ended up with a doosy of a cold that I am just today beginning to recover from. Still, we enjoyed each other's company and I'm sad that I'm home alone today.

Every Christmas I miss those I cannot be with, especially my mom, who is in heaven, I'm sure. She's been gone seven years now and I'm thinking that she smiles down on us each time we get together. Those Christmases past were her favourites too - the ones where we all came home and brought our families. I remember the meals and the pictures and the games we used to play, along with the singing and music.

That is what Christmas is all about - sharing the love of God in our families and being grateful for the loved ones we still have with us. God bless us every one!

Contradictions

This last Saturday, at a workshop entitled "The Many Faces of Jesus" given by Father Roger Keeler, something happened to make me just a little angry.

I was sitting with a dear friend and having my lunch while the speaker began the afternoon presentation. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw our parish priest bring in one of the homeless people and sit him down for a coffee and a snack while the meeting was on.

Now this act did not make me angry. It was what my friend said next that gave me pause. "Why does he always do that!" I said in response, "He probably just wants to come in out of the cold." And she said, "But he's always in here!"

The anger got me and I just said, "Don't talk to me." I think she thought I meant for her to talk to Father about it and I didn't clarify. However, I just couldn't see how she could sit in a presentation on the "many faces of Jesus" and not be inspired to do as Father did.

I regret that I did not go over to the man while he was having his coffee and say, "Welcome!"

Advent

Our Catholic Women's League has always made plans for the advent period before Christmas to get everyone in the mood.

This year, we invited Father Roger Keeler to speak at the church hall on the "many faces of Jesus". I wasn't able to take in the whole session, but what I did hear was so appropriate for advent. We are preparing to receive Jesus once again at Christmas, to celebrate his coming into the world as a human being and to renew our belief in Him.

The presentation was organized so that a slide image was projected on the wall that showed a picture of Jesus (some of these images were old paintings; some were contemporary depictions of the Christ), then a label such as Jesus at Cana (showed a smiling Jesus turning water into wine), then a Bible quotation (John 2:7-9).

Father Keeler talked about the many sides of Jesus: the one with a sense of humour, the builder, the miracle worker, the friend, etc. He showed how human Jesus actually was. As he introduced each Jesus, I underlined the quotes in my Bible. Afterwards, I counted at least 20 quotations, and that was just the afternoon.

By looking at the human Jesus, I could see how he would fit in with us even today. This makes me think of the Jesus in each of the people I meet this advent and Christmas season. How glorious is the Lord!

I am so thankful that we were able to get Father Keeler to come and speak to us.

Other events this season:
Dec 5 - Sunday, an evening ecumenical advent service.
Dec 11 - Sunday evening, the Northern Lites Choir is coming to sing for us
Dec 31 - Friday evening, New Years Eve potluck and celebration

The importance of Scripture

This last Saturday, I was fortunate to attend a Bible study leadership seminar. We learned how to conduct a Bible study group and we also looked at some resources. Our leader, Sister Louise, will take us a bit further when we next meet at the end of October.

Why did I take this seminar? Because I feel that I would like to learn more about Scriptures and be able to share that with others. I know I'm super busy with work and with other things going on, but it is my faith that keeps me going. I need to feed that faith too.

The Holy Bible is the way to learn more about God and to become closer to Jesus, our saviour.

Psalm 139:1-6
Lord, you have probed me, you know me: you know when I sit and stand;
you understand my thoughts from afar.
My travels and my rest you mark; with all my ways you are familiar.
Even before a word is on my tongue, Lord, you know it all.
Behind and before you encircle me and rest your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is beyond me, far too lofty for me to reach."

I find comfort in this. :-)

Credo

I am presently taking a leadership course and the class was instructed to write a Credo memo listing our major beliefs - what we stand for. We are to role play that we are leaving on a six month sabatical and that we are to leave our Credo Memo for our staffs so that they could carry on without us for that time. I thought I would share that memo with you as it really defines not only the "work" me, but the "home" me as well. :-)

I believe in God. "All life comes from God", says a priest I know. This is evident to me each day: the survival of children born too early, genetics, rainbows, a woman living for 35 years with Multiple Sclerosis, and the resiliency of children, to name a few examples. Between God’s grace and my faith in it, I get through days that would otherwise defeat me.


I believe in the power of family. Family can have a positive or negative impact. (I have been fortunate to live in a positive family situation.) Children need their families and when their home life is unstable, or they have little family support, the school becomes their family...in loco parentis. As teachers and school leaders, we need to take this seriously, building relationship with our students and their families. Parents are the first educators of our students and we must always maintain open communications with them, including them when we can in our planning, teaching, and in the evaluation process. Understanding the culture our students are being brought up in is critical to maintaining these open communications.

I believe in Catholic education. Teaching and leading in a Catholic school allows me to bring hope into the picture, using prayer, virtues education, and faith in God to bridge the historical, the present, and the future. I also believe in lower case “c” catholic education, universal, for all and for each student. Students in rural or inner city areas, from poverty stricken and/or broken homes deserve the best education, equal to any other in the province. It is education that will bring hope for the future, breaking the bonds of poverty and ignorance, and changing narrow attitudes. Education is more than academic, involving making connections between students’ lives and the outside world.

All of my other convictions fall into the above three categories.

Autumn Thoughts

This time of year often brings me to thinking about my mom.

She passed away August 22, seven years ago. Because she had Multiple Sclerosis and was bed ridden for so many years of her life, I sometimes thought, at the time, she had left us years before that date. How wrong I was.

Friends of ours are now contemplating the loss of a mother. She is very sick and the prognosis is that she won't live much longer. Her son has brought her home from the hospital, but she needs constant care. My in-laws are both still alive and engaged in living, but they are very close to 90 years old. Dad is going to have his 80th birthday next May. And we have lost aunts and uncles that have passed on.

I don't often contemplate death and what happens after, but in the fall, when the plants die and when I am reminded again of my mother leaving us, I am also reminded of the connection I will always feel with those who have gone on before. The communion of saints - the creed allows us to say it: I believe in the Communion of saints. "Saint" here doesn't meet Francis of Assisi or Pope Gregory. The small "s" saints encompasses all those we believe to be in heaven with Jesus awaiting the end days when everyone will be reunited with Him.

To think that there would be any question about whether or not Mom was in heaven is ludicrous. Her faith alone would get her there. That and her love for us. Mom, in her good times, was a doer. She worked hard, raising us all; making sure we also knew the value of hard work. She also played with us and laughed with us. When she couldn't work any more, she showed us how to live simply with faith. Oh, she showed her frustration with the hand life dealt her, but at the root of her frustration was the inability to look after herself so that she wouldn't be a burden to others. During her last years, she prayed and listened to music, visited with us when she could and provided me with an ear when I needed to talk.

To think that there would be no afterlife, as some do, is also ludicrous. Why else would I still feel connected to my mom? What would be a reason for living, if there was nothing more than this? I have heard it said by non-believers that we believers believe because we can't handle the truth. I return the comment by saying, we believe in the communion of saints because it's true. We truly feel connected. How many times, if we sit still and allow ourselves to think and feel, that the presence of God and the presence of those that have gone before us invades our thoughts and our being? How many stories are there of people seeing and experiencing that connection? Yes, it is unexplainable, but that is the mystery of God and of life.

I do prefer to believe in the connection to the communion of saints because I hope that some day I will also be present with them. That is what keeps me on the straight and narrow. That and the inherent willingness to be a better person. Thank you, Mom, for that too. :-)

Back to School

Wow! A friend asked me today, "How was your first week back?" She's a teacher.

I said, probably for the first time in a long time, without reservation, "Excellent!"

The icing on the cake of the week was a Friday night date at the lake with my husband. It was quiet; we had a fire, a relaxing seafood supper, and an early night.

We spent some time talking about our lot at the lake - we've only been there 23 years.

We are in the process of making a change. We are planning to move to property we've bought and build a cabin there, same lake just a little further along the north shore. I know we'll miss Shaw's Point, but I think it's time to set up something a little permanent for retirement before retirement hits.

The plan is to get the new lot ready to park our motorhome on it next spring and see what that brings. In the meantime, there are quite a few projects around the house that need to get done. The garden and yard need to be cleaned up and windows need to be washed, etc.

With the new school routine, I am putting excercise on the back burner, but I've finished an embroidery project I've been working on, and I've also done a little watercolour painting. That said, I think it's time I quit procrastinating and go clean the stove.

If God is for us...

As I was driving home this morning from the lake, the preacher on the radio did a sermon on God's protection. He cited the song, If God is for us, who can be against, which is a favourite of mine.

I thought back to my childhood and I can't remember a time that I was really afraid, at least not for long. Sure, I get nervous at a new job, or having to speak in front of a new group of people. I've also been afraid for a few moments walking alone in the dark. Saying the rosary usually helps me push those fears away.

I also remember the night prayers my mom and dad taught me, especially the one to my guardian angel.

Angel of God
My guardian dear
To whom God's love entrusts me here
Ever this night be at my side
To light, to guard, to rule and to guide. Amen.

When I was young, this prayer gave me comfort. That and the faith that God made me; Jesus loves me; and I would be looked after.

I see many children that are afraid, in my line of work, and I wonder, do these children have a protector? If their parents do not or can not protect them, and they don't believe in a God that will protect them, what fear they must feel. I know that God does protect the innocent, but the innocent need to know that God is there.

Passing on the faith to our children and grandchildren is so important on many levels. Faith in God gives us the assurance that we do have protection and we need not fear. Faith also gives us a basis for being a good person and living a good life. I can see that our children have hearts that are loving, generous and compassionate and I believe that this comes from a belief in a loving Creator. I pray that our grandchildren grow up also knowing and believing in God as loving creator and protector.

I haven't been to church in a few weeks and I was glad to be there today. The readings, prayers and songs seem to give me strength for another week, but more than that - I have a joy in me that I didn't feel before I went. That joy I know comes from sharing the body and blood of Jesus with a community of believers. I just wonder why I have stayed away this past month. :-)

Canning

This week I made strawberry rhubarb jam and canned peaches. My favourite thing to do in the late summer is harvesting, whether it is the garden, berries that have been picked and cleaned, or fruit. I think my favourite fruit are peaches.

Remembering canning in our little old house on the farm in Fort Vermilion, I believe that we did some of our canning outside over a camp stove. When it was too hot inside or we had too many pots for the kitchen stove, we moved outside to can our garden vegetables and jams. We didn't have much fruit as it didn't grow on our land. Our few acres did provide for us, our cows, pigs, and chickens, who, in turn provided for us. That was a time we all worked hard, for we grew or raised all our own food. I think that we only bought our staples like flour, sugar, salt and pepper, and things like cinnamon and baking powder. The rest we grew or foraged for.

The foraging came in the form of berry picking. I don't know how many times someone got stung by a bee or ended up standing on an ant hill. But I do know that we enjoyed the fruits of our labours: mushed up wild strawberries and cream on homemade white bread, saskatoon cake or pie, and cranberry jelly. I can still smell the high bush cranberries as we walked through the poplars in the fall.

Our roasted chickens and smoked ham and beef roast came to the table from out in the yard, after hours, weeks, and months of work by our parents and us to get the food ready for eating. Dad would butcher the chickens, and Mom and the girls would pluck the feathers, clean out the insides, singe the hair, pick pin feathers, and clean them, getting them ready for freezing. Dad would butcher pigs and steers and dress them, freezing the meat, or mom would can some. Dad would put the hams, hocks, and bacon in a brine and then smoke them for days in the smokehouse. Sometimes, we would go along to 'check' the ham and we'd get a treat carved off. Yum!

Those times and that food will never be fogotten. I know that some of us resented the work we had to do on the farm, and I must have complained a time or two as well, but today, in the age of convenience, I miss the taste of food grown and prepared by hand. I find myself canning, freezing, and foraging for berries in a new way, at the farmer's market or at the fruit stand, in order to capture what I'm missing.

For all of the nostalgia of canning and preserving, the one thing I miss most is the comraderie of the family, yes, sometimes the fighting too. :-) We worked together, played together and prayed together, and for all our little faults, I know my family loves each other and I wish we could spend more time together. That's why, when we get together for family weddings, etc,. we try to forget our disagreements or differences and we remember the fun we had and the simpler times.

Family Reunions

Oh my! We just had a wonderful weekend reminiscing with family!

Jared, youngest son of our brother, David, just got married. I don't know about the rest of you, but I enjoyed myself immensely. The whole thing was held in the back yard of the bride's parents. Everything was set up beautifully! The ceremony was officiated by a justice of the peace, who made everyone feel welcome and at home. There was a bit of humor which added to the informal, family feel, and it was evident that there was love in the room. The food was wonderful and the hospitality shared by Devina's family made us feel as if we'd always known them. We really enjoyed ourselves, all the while, visiting with family that were able to make it. We ended up staying until it got too damp and cold for baby Jordan, as we were riding with Penny and Jamie.

When did we have the last reunion of our immediate family? I think that the sisters were all able to get together for Dad's 75th, but I believe that the last time we were all together was at mom's funeral. That's not good - we need to get together more often. I talked with a few others in the family and I think we are all in agreement on that. I miss all of you guys and I don't want to wait until another wedding, or heaven forbid, a funeral to get together again.

What say we plan the next one? Yearly is too soon and too hard to plan for; five years is too long for some of us; how about in year three? That would give people a chance to plan ahead and for the family to make changes should the need arise.

I don't mind being the organizer for the next one - 2013, I hope no one is superstitious. We could include all immediate family to begin with. If we think it's possible we could also reach out to others in our families that might like to come. I am thinking that summer is the best season, and I'll be in touch with the rest of you to talk about narrowing down the date and the place. I know we won't be able to please everyone and I know that things come up, but if we plan these every three years, we should be able to catch all at some point.

Let me know what you think by posting a comment here, or in a phone call, email, or letter.

God bless you all.

Summer Holidays

We always look forward to summer holidays and this year was no exception. Our kids came 'home' for some beach time with their children, upholding a tradition we began when they were just infants. We would pack up the first week of July and head out on a camping holiday, somewhere in British Columbia, then settling for beach time at the West end of the Lesser Slave Lake, at Shaw's Point. Often, we'd go fishing, play on the beach, BBQ breakfast, lunch and supper, and end the day by 'watching TV' or gazing into the fire, if you want to have the real story. We'd pretend we'd be changing the channels as we threw another log in. As soon as our children were of an age they could participate, they would clamber to have their turn at changing the channel.

Now, our oldest grandson, Noah, helps his Daddy make a fire, giving us cause to be apprehensive when he gets too close with his little stick. We haven't told him about the changing of the channels yet. :-)

This summer, we already have enjoyed having our family time at the lake, with water fights, naps, sandcastle building and tanning at the beach; a little fishing, fireside dreaming, jolly jumper time under the outdoor kitchen roof, card games, and other kinds of fun. Thank you Penny, Jamie and Jordan; and James, Sophie, Noah and Evie for coming 'home' again. Also, thanks to Granda and Grandpa VandenBerg for making the journey and sleeping over. Thanks to Morgan and his girlfriend for adding to the mix! It's been a wonderful beginning to the summer holiday!

As long as our family continues to make the journey to our little piece of summer heaven, we have no reason to make changes. However, change is inevitable. With rising costs of renting a lot at Shaw's Point and with the purchase of a lot at Hilliard's Bay Estates, we are considering moving to that lake edge and setting up camp there. Originally, the purchase was made as an investment and as project potential to give us something else to focus on besides work. Now, with input from the family and friends, we are making plans for a more permanent holiday set up.

We alternate between planning for a future home and wanting to put up a for sale sign. :-)

Right now, we can see ourselves putting up a 1200 or so square foot home worthy of the lake view with enough room to house the immediate family when they come to visit, or with room for a few others, as have been known to drop in over the course of the summer. We really do enjoy the visits to the lake from family and friends as it gives us a chance to relax and play a little. We are looking forward to taking our grandchildren on adventures as soon as they are able. In order to do that, we need to have a home base. Why not a cabin at the lake?

In the future, who knows? It could become the principal residence for retirement. But we have many years before that happens!

Mother and Daughter Chat

I had a wonderful chat with my daughter this evening, just as I do every time I talk to her. It amazes me each time we can discuss important things and since I began this blog and since she is following it, I seem to be able to talk about the more important things in my life.

We spoke about many things, but the one thing that I want to share right now is that we discussed baptism. She has a 5 month old baby and I brought up the subject of baptism. She said that her and her husband were of the same mind. They are hesitant to go ahead because they felt that they were then expected to attend church every Sunday. My daughter said that she would feel either pressured to go or guilty that she didn't. Fair enough. I can see how this might happen. Before I listened to the Blueprints speaker, Dr. Thomas Beaudoin, I would have felt I would need to push her into it.

I have thought of this before as my son also has a family and their little girl, four months old now is also not baptized. I have always been taught that babies should be baptized to erase the original sin they were born with as a result of Adam and Eve's sin in the garden. You can see my dilemma.

I decided to think of it this way - would God accept a baby into heaven should he or she die before baptism? One of my theology professors a few years ago said something to the class that made total sense to me. God is a loving and forgiving creator, ergo when we die, he opens his arms to us and says, "Come my child and be with me. I have created you for this purpose. Come." Those of us that recognize God and say, "Yes, Lord!" - we will be welcomed with open arms and we will go with God. Those of us that are evil or do not believe, will probably turn away either in fear or shame. What will a baby do? What does a baby do when an adult that loves them opens their arms? The baby opens their arms too and says, in their own way, pick me up. There are so many teachings in the Bible that tell us that God loves children. He even wants us to be like children so that we will enter the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 19:13-14) So, if a baby is not baptized before they die, I am confident that they will end up in God's arms.

Also, there is the whole question - why do I want my baby baptized? Is it so that they can go to church? Or is it so that they can say some day, when asked, "What are you?", "Catholic" and have an affiliation with a community of believers. They will not end up alone. I like the idea of inviting babies of all ages into the community of believers, the sooner the better I say, but it has to feel right. The idea of having the family all around the child, no matter the age, celebrating the miracle of the gift of life and the gift of belonging to a belief in a loving and forgiving God is where I'm at. I want to be at that celebration!

What do I wish for my children? and their children? Hearts that are compassionate and empathic, that stand for life, that love and are loved, and that believe that their Creator is loving and forgiving. God bless us all.

How do we measure Faith?

Can we measure faith? Years ago, and probably still some do measure faith in the Catholic Church by how often one went to church, by whether or not a person had celebrated the sacraments, by how much they knew about Catholicism.

Two weeks ago, I spent 3 days in Kananaskis at the Blueprints Conference, an education administrator's conference. The speaker was Dr. Thomas Beaudoin, Catholic theologian, who is presently teaching at Fordham University in New York City. He challenged me to think of other ways a person's faith might be measured. He also challenged me to open my mind and my heart to other ways of practicing the Catholic faith than the traditional ways. He spoke of how people may not go to church every Sunday, and that these same people believed in Jesus and lived a faith-filled life, but may feel that they do not need to go to church to be fullfilled. He also stated that he loved going to mass and taking part in the Eucharist.

If I were to measure his faith according to what he was teaching, I would say that he had tremendous faith. He is living in an interfaith marriage, with a Jewish woman and he is raising his daughter as a Jew. He supports her in that he takes her to synagogue every week and is enrolling her in Hebrew school for the next school year. He wants her to be the best Jew she can be.

The only way I can describe Dr. Beaudoin is that he is Catholic enough and loves his wife and daughter with a love that allows them to live in this way.

There were several points he brought up that I will be talking about in future posts. Suffice it to say, that the three days I listened to Dr. Beaudoin had a great effect upon how I think.

My Mother

For many years, more than forty, my mother suffered with MS. Actually the whole family suffered with it.

This last weekend, I was able to walk in the Lethbridge Walk to End MS with my daughter, Penny and my grandson, Jordan, and Penny's friends. The weather was great and we walked 10 kilometres. I am so thankful that at 53 years old, I can still walk 10 kms.

My mother was already confined to her bed for most of the day by the time she was 53. She survived until she was 72, thanks to my youngest sister, Judy and my dad. They looked after her long after the rest of us left home. My dad, especially took great pride in looking after our mom and both the parents have given us so much in the way of modelling faith in God and each other. When you think about it, they truly lived their lives in service to one another. I only hope that I can be half as dedicated to my family as they are/were to theirs.

God bless Mom! And thank you, God that we still have our Dad with us to remind us of the love one can have for another and for God.

Remembering Family Times

The one thing I remember most about my family - there are lots of us. In my immediate family, I have four sisters and two brothers (I lost one to a car accident 20 some years ago). These sisters and brothers all have families and we are scattered all about. I really don't know how that happened, as we were quite close growing up.

Sundays were the best days! After church, we'd often go visiting, especially in the summer. I remember going to Grandma and Grandpa Wiebe's in La Crete. Actually they lived in the country. They had animals: chickens, cows, and horses mostly. Grandma had a huge garden with all sorts of savory and sweet smelling plants. The cousins and brothers and sisters would play hide and seek in the garden until Grandma would call out the window for us to pick the weeds while we were in there. Well, we couldn't see any weeds, at least we didn't recognize any, so off we'd go to bug Grandpa. He'd take us for a ride in his buckboard behind the horse. They did have a car, but we loved to pretend we were in the wild west and Grandpa was only happy to go there with us too. In the winter, when we'd visit, Grandma would cook us pots of homemade soup and pile the chicken feet on a big plate on the table. I never did try them, but my uncles loved teasing us by chewing on a chicken foot in front of us. Grandma's homemade noodle soup and sauerkraut soup were the best. I've tried copying the recipe several times and I just can't get it right. Perhaps my pot is too small. :-)

Yes, visiting my mom's side of the family was always a big production. First of all, you need to imagine several families with at least 6 kids each all crowding around a hall sized kitchen table with benches all around. Then the smells of the wood cookstove in the manufacture of all sorts of homemade goodies, from bread to boiled chickens and desserts of all kinds. It didn't matter which house you went to in La Crete; if you were related to the Wiebe family, the crowds were relatively the same.

After the meal, the women would clean up and the men would go into the living room to smoke and talk about the farming, trucking, saw mills, etc. whatever industry they were in at the time. The kids would bring out the puzzles and games and toys and have contests with each other. Someone would bring out a guitar, a fiddle, or mouth organs and the singing would start. Wow! The noise of it all! The beautiful noise of it all.

Grandpa and Grandma Rosenberger

My dad's mom and dad were also faithful churchgoers. I believe they were also faithful Catholics. I don't ever remember my dad or any of his family talking bad about grandma and grandpa. They were both hard workers; I remember Grandpa Rosenberger as living in Edmonton for a period of time and then as a farm hand on my Uncle Frank's farm. Grandma kept a beautiful house and garden where ever she went.



Every Sunday that we lived in Fort Vermilion, I remember going to church and seeing them sit about the third or fourth pew from the front on the right hand side. When the choir would begin, both grandparents would sing. I could hear them both and see them with their chins raised and eyes closed, enjoying the music and the words of the church songs. I think this is where I began feeling at home in church. My whole family was there, from grandma and grandpa, to aunts and uncles, cousins, my own mom and dad and brothers and sisters.



Church was a time for worship and thanking God for our blessings. I never ran out of blessings to be thankful for and enjoyed the experience of church. This was the one day I could sit beside my mom or my dad and they had to sit there still too! I would lean on my mom's arm. Sometimes my dad would poke his elbow against me; I'd look up and he'd be grinning at me. Church and family went together hand in hand.



This last week, my husband and I spent our Easter vacation in Jamaica and we went to church at at liitle church called Immaculate Mary in Discovery Bay. It was wonderful to walk in and see the St. Joseph's Sunday missal at the door, the same mass book we use at home. The priest spoke better English than our priests from India back home. And the music had a reggae lilt to it. Loved it. Even John enjoyed the mass. It doesn't matter where you go in the world, the Catholic mass is the same, sometimes it's in a different language, but the prayers are the same, the format is the same and because of the Holy Eucharist, we feel at home no matter where we are. It was wonderful to celebrate Easter Sunday in that little church.

Childhood prayers

One of my earliest memories is of my sisters and I kneeling beside our beds and praying our goodnight prayers.

Angel of God, my guardian dear. To whom God's love entrusts me here. Ever this day be at my side, to light, to love, to rule and to guide. Amen.

Then we would say, Dear God, bless mommy and daddy, my brothers and sisters, my grandmas and grandpas, aunts and uncles, cousins and friends. Amen.

Then we would kiss mom and dad (if he was in the house) and they would say, Good night, God bless you, have a good sleep. See you in the morning!

I still smile thinking of those sweet times.

Memories

My family, extended and immediate, are the reason for my blog. I wish to share my memories and thoughts with my family so that they may be inspired, or at the very least understand what makes me tick. I've always found it difficult to speak to them face to face about the deeper things within and now that I have grandchildren, I wish to share my memories of childhood and the things this grandma has in her head.