1/2 cup soft butter 1 cup sugar 2 eggs 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon salt 1 cup mashed, ripe bananas…
2 CommentsRelevant Fiction for Body & Soul
Month: June 2015
In my Catholic grade school, we played what was known simply as “The Religion Game.” Short explanation: it involved a person guessing a religious terms using clues provided by teammates. One of the vocabulary terms committed to memory was ejaculation.
Ejaculation: a short prayer meant to be memorized and repeated throughout the day
In those pre-pubescent days, before its utterance would elicit a round of giggles and snickers, this five-syllable word had the potential to propel a team into the winner’s circle. In the ensuing years, the use of these little prayers fell by the wayside.
3 Comments10 Minute Novelists Why I Write (June 24, 2015) “I emerged from that experience with a horrible first draft but a concrete means of transferring the…
Leave a Comment- Working hard for your family is honorable. My dad leased a Gulf gas station/service station for decades. He worked ten-hour days, six days a week for many years. Then tended to “book work” when he was home. He didn’t harbor any great any ambitions or wallow in his lot in life (although he always wanted to be a trolley conductor). It is simply what he did to provide for his wife and children.
Mom and Dad celebrating their 50th Wedding Anniversary in 2004. - Volunteer. Give your time freely in service to others. I never realized the extent to which my dad’s life was marked by service until the priest spoke about it at his funeral Mass. From his Navy service during World War II to being a parish usher, bingo volunteer, a lifelong member of the Rennerdale Volunteer Fire Department, and helping out at one of his favorite places – the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum – my dad happily served.
Some day I’m going to write about weight and weight loss and a slew of related issues. There’s even a novel along those themes that has been percolating in the back of my brain for a while. I’ve established the main characters and formulated an idea of what makes them tick.
I’m not going to write about either of those things just yet, but I would like to bring meaning to the ever-present fasting in my life by inviting you to send me your petitions. I’m not doing a bread and water fast or any kind of wacky diet, but losing weight requires a whole lot of fasting. Fasting from certain foods and portion sizes, obviously, but also fasting from enjoyable sedentary pursuits so that I can increase my activity, fasting from self-defeating thinking, fasting from bad habits and ineffective coping mechanisms, and fasting from instant gratification.
3 CommentsI recently came across this prayer by St. Pio of Pietrelcina. It has no title, but it could be called “Stay With Me.” Stay With…
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Slacker Mom Edition
Since I’ve gone from one kid to four, I’ve slacked in a multitude of ways. Obviously, the number of small people for whose welfare I’m responsible for has something to do with it. There’s also the fact that we’ve got a mix of genders and ages, ratcheting up the variety of interests and activities. Not to mention I’m old and tired.
The fact is, you cannot parent two children the same way. They may have the same parents, genes, and home, but their birth order is different. In some ways, being the mom of one or two is a different animal than parenting three or more. (It’s also easier in my opinion.) The kids have built-in playmates and companions and demand less individual attention. The best analogy my weary brain can come up with is mom’s role shifting from instructor to conductor.
(Just to be clear, these are the MOTHERING areas in which I’ve slacked. I’ve slacked in many other ways as well, but I prefer to maintain an aura of mystique around at least some of my shortcomings.)
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Occasionally, I’ll be sharing some of my reviews here, under Relevant Fiction Reviews. I don’t review every book I read. Not even close. So these are hand-picked selections that I either loved or struck a chord with me. Maybe some time I’ll even sneak in a little nonfiction. Three of my recent reviews follow, all very different books but with similar themes.
I read two novels in one weekend, both of which dealt with the suffering endured by Iraqi and Afghanistan war vets. Both are, at their essence, love stories. One was a romance, the other was literary fiction. In both, the protagonist struggles with PTSD and the age-old question of how a loving God can allow evil. In both, we learn God’s love can heal our hurts. (A longer version of my review of Wounded Healer will appear at CatholicFiction.net.)
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