Zinnias and Cucumbers

Yesterday evening, after helping to move a couch into our apartment, a dear friend of mine and Ish's invited us to visit the farm he and another good friend of ours started this growing season. Having spent the past several days shuttling back and forth between our apartment, Ish's parents' house, and various shops, our friend's invitation was received warmly and with much excitement.

After a short yet scenic drive, we arrived at the farm. Despite vacationing on a farm throughout my childhood, I have never seen anything quite like this. Even with a tough year weather wise, their endeavor is doing quite well. It was a joy to taste and see the fruit of our friends' labor.

They had an abundance of cucumbers in many varieties, some extra lettuce, and parsley. We were blessed to receive portions of them as well as a beautiful bouquet of freshly cut zinnias. Hopefully next summer Ish and I will be able to help them in the field.

Photo of the day- An oldie but a goodie edition.

This photo of Andie and me was taken a few years ago on UD's campus.  I used to joke with people that I was going to start giving tours of all the bizarre art on campus.  I do believe on that night I introduced some people to "Ode to Joy" infront of  the library and that awful statue of the boy reading and the girl feeding a squirrel.  By the by, the nubian goats featured here are named Chloe and Lucinda.

It is the little things that count...

Today I woke up with a sore throat and pain in my ears. It was not a pleasant way to wake up to say the least. After a cup of hot tea and a shower I was still feeling pretty gross and kind of down. Then, I signed into my e-mail--usually a haven of a lot of useless advertising mixed with wedding related correspondence--to find a message from my dear friend Andie. It was a short but sweet message that put a smile on my face. Receiving this e-mail reminded me of how much the little things we do can change a person's mood, feelings, and/or outlook.

Want to hear from the women who made my day today? Check out her blog Theophany All Over.

Of dragons and cave trolls...

This weekend has been incredibly refreshing thus far, and I have really enjoyed its length as well.  My brothers both came home for Thanksgiving which made for a wonderful holiday.  For once, dinner went off without a hitch.  Everything was ready on time.  After dinner we headed over to my grandmothers for dessert and a few rounds of Scrabble.

Friday I spent the afternoon and early evening with Meghan.  It was so good to spend time and words over a cup of tea and later a bowl of soup.  It just reinforced just how much I missed her over the past few months.  Clearly the two of us need to hang out more often (if only schedules would allow).

Yesterday was great.  I had a quiet morning working on my knitting and chatting with my mom.  I am working on a baby blanket with no intended owner (as of yet).  If nobody I know is pregnant by the time I finish, I will probably donate it to a Birthright Center or a women's shelter.  Ish and I had lunch together--there is no better lunch than Thanksgiving leftovers.  Last night was spent catching up with friends who were home for the weekend.  Genevieve, Sara, Sara's boyfriend Luke, Ish and I had a boardgame night.  After escaping from dragon's, stealing gold, and mostly failing at Trivial Pursuit, our night came to an end. 

This weekend has served to remind me how important staying connected with friends and family truly is.   

Labor Day Road Trip

Ish and I went to Delaware for Labor Day weekend.  It was a whirlwind event.  We got to see all sorts of wonderful people in a very short span of time.  I didn't realize how much I missed the folks at the Oratory and the New School crowd.  Thankfully we had plenty of time for visits with both.  We got a chance to hang out with Ish's family on various occasions, including a gathering for pizza and playing with the Wii.  We also got the chance to hang out with Reet and the kids.  Owen can now say my name; I am no longer a banana.  I was able to get some really good pictures of the kids.  Here is my favorite:

...And to top things off, we got to visit Livia on the way back to Massachusetts!  :-)

Last episode of lost and found photos

                                   Chicago, IL--January 1,2006

Lost and found...

The lost and found photo of the day is dedicated to Andie.  Despite the oddity that this photo presents, Andie, although indeed weird, is one of those people who touches lives wherever she goes.  I got the opportunity to see her interacting with her students during her mission year--if those children never know God in their daily lives, they certainly got more than a glimpse of Him working through this remarkable woman during the last year.

Some people help you grow closer to God...

               February 2006-- Cape May Point, New Jersey                   

In a life time, a person is blessed when they find a handful of people who help lead them on their spiritual journey.  I have been blessed beyond measure when it comes to finding these people.  The photo above is of all the leaders from the DOCS 2006 retreat.  These are people who have served in leading me closer to Jesus in so many ways.  I have seen God work through these individuals on countless occasions, and I thank God that I have had the distinct pleasure of calling them friends.

Lost and found continues...

I thought I'd continue my lost and found photo theme with this picture of 2 people who have had a profound impact on my life.  Msgr. Szupper was the Catholic priest for the University of Delaware for 42 years.  He is currently UD's Chaplain Emeritus.  His kind heart and endless hospitality helped make my return to the Catholic church a much smoother path.  Kim is the Catholic Campus Minister at the Oratory (Catholic Chapel at UD).  With her help I was able to take a leadership role at the Oratory when I was a student.  She is an amazing woman and I am pretty convinced that she works more than she sleeps.  Her dedication to students has never ceased to amaze me.  Kim and Monsignor have provided me and many others with an excellent example of what it means to live a life of faith.

Adding memories...

Livia's visit to Boston has come to an end.  Many memories were made.  It was so nice to spend time together cultivating our friendship, and just enjoying the time we spent together.  We spent a lot of time knitting, which gave me the kick I needed to work on some of the gifts I am making currently.  Livia is making an awesome pair of very long socks; I am ready to give sock-knitting another go.  Between knitting, walking through the treetops, and candlepin bowling, I would say it was a wonderful time.

Photo of the day

This is a photo of my friend Tony and me.  Tony and I took a walk with our cameras one day at the end of Spring semester in 2006.  I decided to take a picture of our shadows, but as I am a good head and a half shorter than Tony, I stood on the wall for this picture.  It was a fun time, and afterward we went and helped make dinner at the Oratory if I recall correctly.  Observe the shadow puppets...

Happy birthday!

Happy birthday Meghan!  Enjoy 23--you deserve it.  

Good Citizen Award

Meg gets my good citizen award of the day.  Thank you for stopping and bringing me to the post office and bringing me home.  You are wonderful.

Hey Jesus

I have had Jason Upton's song Into the Sky stuck in my head for 2 days now. I therefore find it necessary to share it with everyone else. This video actually tells the story of the song and how it was written. Warning: if you watch this video, you will feel a big old tug at your heartstrings. Also, thank you Brian and Liz for introducing me to this song.

Weekend

I had quite the weekend.  I spent most of Saturday at the Paulist Center (my church).  As it was the  Palm Sunday liturgy, the liturgical dancers were asked to dance (we only dance at certain liturgies).  I know that many Catholic's object to liturgical dance during liturgies.  I hate to knock liturgical dance ministries, but I think we often get a bad name because some ministries do very unliturgical things during the mass.  I have yet to hear a single negative thing about liturgical dance from people at the Paulist Center, and although I am sure that it bothers some people, I believe that the director of the liturgical dance ministry at the Paulist Center is very liturgically conscious.  She is constantly reminding us that liturgical dance should help people focus on the liturgy and not detract from it.  This is why during the liturgy, we processed in, presented the gifts, and processed out--no interpretive dance during the music at communion and no abducting the Bible during the Gospel.  The response I have heard from many in the congregation was that the dance added to the liturgy.

Something else happened this weekend at mass.  Every year the Paulist Center gives out the Isaac Hecker Award to a Catholic American who is working to promote social justice in the world (Isaac Hecker was the founder of the Paulist Fathers) .  In 2006 the award went to Martin Sheen, but he was unable to visit to receive the award until this Saturday.  If you were unaware, Martin Sheen is extremely involved in social justice and has gotten himself arrested because of it (apparently on more than one occasion).    Normally when the award is presented, the recipient of the award reflects on that days readings and Gospel , but because of the sacred importance of Palm Sunday, this  was not the case.   He did talk to us after communion about his connection to the Church, and his connection to the Catholic Worker (which started when he was receiving food from their breadline in NYC in 1959).  I was inspired that a man with Hollywood fame uses it to do what is good and right in the world.  Oh and just so you know Martin Sheen is his chosen not his given name.   I asked a priest if Martin Sheen was related to Fulton Sheen; I was not surprised when he said "no", but I was very happy to hear that he named himself after Fulton Sheen.  Oh, and for the record,  Martin Sheen apparently enjoys liturgical dance; at least, that is what he told me.

After mass, Meg and I went to Zoe's for turkey burgers.  They are the best turkey burgers I have ever had, and so it has become one of the two restaurants Meg and I frequent when together.  I am always glad for a chance to hang out with Meghan, and having turkey burgers surely didn't hurt the situation.

I pretty much spent my entire Sunday with Genevieve.  It was a wonderful break from my generally mundane social life.  We went and got crepes in Harvard Square, and then decided on our destinations for the rest of the day on whims and fancies.  Clearly, a bookstore was involved.   

  Now that the weekend is over, the next two days are focused on me getting ready to spend 8 days in DE.  I can't even start to express my excitement for this trip.