Goodbye March.👣

GOODBYE March. Often you have been rough and unmannerly. Many times your mischievous winds have whisked off my hat at an inconvenient moment and blown smoke down the chimney when I was expecting guests, but I am ready to forgive your wild ways, for in your footprints the damson blooms and the daffodils dance. (Patience Strong)

Miles and miles of smiles😃😃

 

Big brown Rottweiler galloping in our direction, pounced on me, granting me not a moment’s notice. His young master looking slightly alarmed uttered; ‘ Sorry....he’s friendly’. ‘I didn’t think you were going to let him eat me’, I replied laughing, to which the young man replied smiling: ‘No, I would not’. 

That young man knew pain and struggle in his life, his humble beginnings not at all ideal. Thing is, his smile shone from his handsome face like a thousand suns, brightening up his whole demeanour. So much to be grateful to God for in that one incident alone- 1) His warm gentle smile, one that does not often see the light of day. 2) Somehow I kept my calm ensuring friendly Rottweiler didn’t panic. 3) Friendly Rottweiler’s object of affection was me and not my companion. Breda would have got a horrendous fright and on top of that would most likely have been extremely angry. The story may well have had a completely different darker conclusion.

‘A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger’. (Proverbs 15:1)

Got me thinking.....how priceless is ‘smiling’, even and maybe particularly in the face of adversity, whenever possible. A smile changes everything. I am reminded of a different day and a magnificent smile that melted my heart. A few years ago, in that same part of town as I was rushing to Holy Mass, a young man and I crossed paths ever so briefly and my life was profoundly blessed. We both smiled knowingly, like we were old friends, even though we had never met before that moment. Divine connection, a smile like I never witnessed in my whole life, too beautiful for words. I believe with all my heart Jesus smiled at me that morning, leaving His sublime imprint on my heart. In that mysterious encounter, God was present.  

Let us smile today at everybody we meet, let us be generous. A smile conveys a whole world of love, happiness and gratitude. Let us remember that the folk who will not smile back are more in need of our smiles than the cheerful ones. We have a never ending supply, unlike money and stuff, smiles go on for miles and miles, they never run dry. In the process we will cheer ourselves up too. 

What’s not to love.........

‘Cheerfulness strengthens the heart and makes us persevere in a good life. Therefore the servant of God ought always to be in good spirits’. (St. Philip Neri)

‘There is no duty we so much underrate as the duty of being happy’. (Robert Louis Stevenson)

God delights in you...and me.😀😀

‘Enjoy knowing God delights in who you are...He made you for His purpose and He will be there always to see you through’.

‘Ah, powerful B!’ - my wonderful nephew Tim’s response to these uplifting joyful words from my calendar this morning. His sunny acknowledgement wafted its way down the winding road from deepest Dublin to deepest Kerry, lodging itself warmly in my heart, making me dance for joy, and causing me to read it again, imbibe it into my very being.

Yes it is pure true, God delights in us, each and every one of us, and YES, He is always there to see us through no matter how impossible our situation may seem.God knows, He has us. He gave His only begotten Son, Jesus to  die  a horrendous death on the cruel Cross in Calvary so we might have life and have it to the full.

Enough said! Let us rest in God’s delight in this Holiest of weeks, and for all time. Amen

‘Where can I go from Your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your Presence. For You created my inmost being, You knit me together in my mother’s womb. Your works are wonderful, I know that full well’.(Psalm 139)

Don’t forget about Jesus🕊️🙏🏻

‘Always be close to Jesus, that’s my life plan’. (St. Carlo Acutis).

Teresa frazzled, annoyed with herself. She forgot her mask and now she must return home to fetch it. ‘Don’t worry about it’, I say. ‘When you get to our time of life, forgetting will be no big deal’. We laughed and as she walked away hurriedly, I heard her say aloud, gently to herself: ‘We never forget Jesus though’.

That was yesterday, and still, this morning  that beautiful tender moment shines in my deepest heart like a glistening diamond engagement ring. Hugs from Heaven stay the longest, in fact they go nowhere, they stay put, waiting in the wings to warm our spirits when the cold wind blows. Cornucopia of Blessings.

‘We never forget Jesus though’, and He most certainly never forgets us. Jesus carries his stumbling sheep to safe pastures, putting our scattered lives back on track, leading us Home.

‘You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rests in You’. (St. Augustine)

Dance with abandon.💃

Today first catch-up in St. Anne’s Day room today after many months, eager reunion for both of us. Marina vaccinated so we are now free to meet up every week. I wear my mask, have my temperature checked and sit a distance away. For the longest time it looked like it might never come to pass, and while we don’t know what the future holds, all is well with the world today.

As I waited at St.Anne’s door, I spied Mary reading ‘The Kerryman’ newspaper looking so peaceful and content. The sun, beaming in the huge window of the Dayroom enhanced the picture perfect setting and I got to pondering how content some folk are even in lockdown time, their own interior world providing the sustenance required. Others feel loneliness acutely and subsequently regress. QThis is true not just in Nursing Homes, it can be stated for the world at large, life is tragicomic, one size does not fit everyone.

What a privilege for us then to do what we can, in all the ways that we can, to lighten another’s burden whenever possible. ‘Bear one another’s burdens and so fulfil the law of Christ’. (Galatians 6:2)

Returning home full of the joys of spring, a little boy in a pushchair says ‘hi’ grinning from ear to ear, his preoccupied mammy staring at her phone, missing the beautiful moment from God. Further on Christy declares, startling me; ‘Always that oul smile on your face. Rogaire’, laughing loudly. (Rogaire: Kerry slang for ‘mischievous’). Vignettes from Heaven above. ‘People who come into our lives are as pieces of canvas on which we must paint the image of Jesus’. (Blessed conchita)

I invite Margaret to join me as I pray a ‘Hail Mary’ at Our Lady’s grotto in the middle of town. She accepts hesitatingly, she doesn’t pray aloud, tad embarrassed perhaps. It is one thing to pray at Dear Mother Mary’s grotto in Lourdes, Fatima, Medugorje and our own Knock Shrine, but quite another thing altogether in our small town in a cold March afternoon. People might see us praying!  What on earth might they think........John on the other hand happily stood as we prayed together. When I told him that he was the first ever to accept my invitation, he simply said, surprised: ‘It is a positive thing to do’. John has supped with suffering all his life, in the end, when all is said and done, life is easier when we have nothing to lose.

‘So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in Heaven; but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in Heaven’. (Matthew; 10-32)

If my dear friends in St.Anne’s had the option today, they would pray with abandon at Our Lady’s Grotto amongst their many other endeavours, they would waste no minute. Like they are now, my time will come too for sitting still and reading the Kerryman newspaper, but for now and until that time, my purpose, goal and objective is to dance like there’s no one watching me, even when the music has stopped. Live like there’s no tomorrow even when the effort is great. Love like I’ve never been hurt even when the pain is piercing. 

Not always easy but eternally enriching.

‘Lord, help me to forget myself for others, that in giving myself I may teach myself to love’.            (Micheál Quoist)

‘Every moment of our life has a purpose, every action of ours no matter how dull or routine or trivial it may seem in itself, has a dignity and a worth beyond human understanding’.

(Father Ciszek spent 23 years in Soviet prison.)

Heavenly Dream.🌟

Awake from my slumber, my dream danced into my heart, graphic, clear as crystal. Three of us silently strolling along the deserted street, my dear Mom, a lady I had never met before, and me. Passing by a shop, I spied in the spacious window the most sublime life size statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, His two Arms outstretched in a most welcoming manner. I yearned to enter the shop but did not feel it appropriate to ask. Then, the unknown lady opened the door and stepped inside, my mom following her. As I placed my foot on the doorstep, about to step inside too, I awoke. I can still see that beautiful Sacred Heart Statue in my deepest heart, it has never dimmed.

Next morning, my sister in law Mary called to break the heart-rending news that my dear Mom passed on to her eternal reward, peacefully, with no warning, during the night. Was her lady companion Mother Mary? I believe She was. 

Every time I called my mom up she would say two things right away; ‘Hold on a moment, I will turn the radio down’ (lower the volume) and ‘I’m looking up at the Sacred Heart picture thanking God for everything’, she dearly loved Jesus and Mary. My beautiful Mom was going home to Heaven and I had the awesome privilege of accompanying her for part of her journey.

That was twenty three years ago and it is as real and clear to me today as it was back then. True beauty never fades, Love never dies. ‘Love triumphs, love enjoys, Love finds in God it’s joys’. (St. Faustina)

Dad and Mom passed on their deep love for Jesus and Mary to my siblings and I, what a legacy of love. That Heavenly  dream brought great comfort and peace in the days of my Mom’s funeral and it still does. As I meditate and mull over it through the years, fear dissolves, hope rises, desolation departs. A visitation from on High, Divine encounter.

‘The adorable Heart of Jesus is our comfort, our way, our life’. (St. Francis Xavier Cabrini)

On my way home from school, I would pick bluebells for my mom. She would place them in a vase at Our Lady’s statue. My bluebells at the end of my garden evoke such happy memories of days long gone but never forgotten.

Strong shoes. 👞

Do not look for easy paths, but see your shoes are strong - so that when the track is stony you can get along. Don’t go shod for pleasant ways but for the uphill climb - then you’ll be prepared for any road at any time. (Patience Strong)

St. Patrick’s day 2021. 🇮🇪

‘How Blessed is the Nation whose God is the Lord’. (Psalm 33:12)

Today we celebrate Feast Day of St. Patrick, Patron Saint of our island of Ireland. After many days of torrential rain, sun is shining, birds singing, calmness abounds like no other St. Patrick’s day thus far. This year no parade, no pubs, no music, no mayhem, no tomfoolery. The Corona virus has put a stop to our mighty gallop and how!

Instead, a deeper realisation of, and gratitude for, the myriad sacrifices you made, dear Saint Patrick, on our account. You passed on to our people the priceless gift of Faith. Because of your selflessness we were once hailed and lauded as ‘The Island of Saints and Scholars’, but that was long ago and far away. Sadly, nothing more now than a distant memory. 

Saint Patrick wished the Irish to have two phrases on their lips, Kyrie Ellison and Deo Gratias; Lord have Mercy and Thanks be to God. Between these two prayers will we find fullness of Life - trusting in the forgiveness of the One who loves us and eternally grateful for everything.

In this our day and time, the dust has settled. We are beginning to see clearer and further, scales falling from our eyes. Please intercede for our land, Dear Saint Patrick, our needs are many, we have forgotten about God. ‘You were unmindful of the Rock that begot you, you forgot the God who gave you birth’. (Deuteronomy 32:18). Forgetfulness of God leads to disaster, as we see all around us in this fair land.

Remind us of our mission: Go out to the whole world and spread the Good News of Jesus Christ. Each and every one of us is uniquely equipped for the assignment, all of us have much to offer. We may consider ourselves unlikely disciples but let us embrace the challenge, through the way we speak, the way we love and care for others. ‘Love makes bitter things sweet and heavy things light’. (St. Anthony of Padua).  

Bloom where we are planted. If not me, then who...

‘I must die to self, leave everything behind me, go into the market place and leaven the masses. See Christ in people, especially abused minority groups, homeless transients, the poor and unfortunate of all kinds’. (Catherine Doherty, Madonna House)

May the strength of God pilot us. May the power of God preserve us. 

May the wisdom of God instruct us.May the Hand of God protect us. May the way of God direct us, and may the shield of God defend us, now and evermore. Amen. (St. Patrick)

The robin and the sparrow.🐥🐣

Said the robin to the sparrow, “I should really like to know, why these anxious human beings rush about and worry so.”. Said the sparrow to the robin, “Friend I think that it must be. They have no Heavenly Father, such as cares for you and me’. (Elizabeth Cheney)

The joy of the Lord is my strength. (Nehemiah 8:10)🌠

‘Would you like a scone’, I asked Joan as we walked down the steps from our Church. My friend Pauline gifted me some of her home-made delicious scones. A miracle if Joan would say yes, I waited with bated breath. ‘Yes’, she replied and we began walking to my home. Joan is more true to herself than anyone I know, fiercely independent, truly genuine lady. Caring little for material gain, she dresses in her own inimitable style, walking her own road, bohemian, individual. One time when I told her that her smile was like the sun, she replied smiling: ‘Oh be quiet will you’.

As we talked about our lives, she was completely taken aback when she learned that I am an exceedingly grateful to God widow, blessed with four caring sons and three delightful grandchildren; ‘I always thought you were a retired cheerful single lady always stuck in the Church. I had no idea you had all that stuff’, she said, looking at me with new eyes, a place of deep encounter. ‘I thought you must have lived a very pleasant easy life. I had no idea’. 

‘Joy, the gigantic secret of the Christian’. (G.K. Chesterton)

Walking away from my door, scone in hand, she looks back, stands for a moment and repeats; ‘I had no idea’, like something in our sweet encounter resonated in her deepest heart.

Kindness like snow beautifies everything. Headway made in our fledgling friendship, all thanks to that tempting scone from kindly Pauline. Trust emerging, new horizons opening up, God’s Amazing Grace. We never give without receiving, that’s the Trinitarian principle.

‘Let every action of mine be something beautiful for God’. (St. Mother Teresa)

Finally, today, 4/11/2021, Joan and I sat and chatted over hot coffee. Long time coming and so well worth the wait. ‘I thought you were joking’, she said, re my invitation. Right there, her meek words spoke volumes. Leo Tolstoy was ‘bang on’, when he wrote: ‘Real goodness is always simple. Simplicity is so attractive and so profitable that it is strange that so few people are really simple’.💎

‘Jesus said: “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your kinsmen or rich neighbours, lest they also invite you in return, and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. You will be repaid at the resurrection of the just’. (Luke 14:12-15)

Christmas dinner in Camo’s. 17th December 2021.

Joan, Sheila and I in Kells. 🎆

Joan and I, September 2022.🌸

Joan walking SLOW😂

Mother’s Day.☀️

‘She is the beautiful gift of God which outshines the fascinations of a bad world and which no one ever sought in sincerity and was disappointed’. (St. John Henry Newman)

“Am I not here who am your Mother? Are you not under my shadow and protection?  Am I not your fountain of life? Are you not in the folds of my mantle? In the crossing of my arms? Is there anything else you need?”  (Our Lady of Guadalupe to Juan Diego)

‘To me, that Hail Mary which you recite every evening brings great consolation, and you do well indeed. will find, as She is your advocate, that if you hold her in reverence and pray to her humbly, She will defend you and aid you in all your adversity and deliver you from it’.                                                        (St. Bernardine of Siena)

For artist’s brush can never trace, the beauty, Mother, of Thy face; and if on earth ‘tis fair to see, O what must it in Heaven be. Amen

God’s picnic blanket.🌠

Every morning new creation freshly minted from God’s Holy Hands, yesterday history, tomorrow a mystery. God’s picnic blanket.

Every night He rolls it up, discarding it into nothingness, as He rolls out a brand new pristine one so we can all begin again. What a Mighty God we serve. No need to keep the broken pieces of yesterday, everything we need is on God’s new picnic blanket, we are safeguarded and protected. 

Living in the past we are alone, ‘No man’s land, God is not there. Future likewise, God is not there too. He is with us in this present glorious moment in time and wherever God is, so is His Grace.

All merciful God, His Nature is Goodness, Truth and Charity. Everything that comes from God comes from that Nature, God’s gifts reflect His character.

If I hang on tightly to that one sublime image, even just for today, I will be very rich indeed.

‘It’s because we think of the past and the future that we become discouraged and fall into despair’. (St. Therese of  Lisieux)

Bare essentials.💎

                        Holy Spirit fill us and use us for the greater glory of God. Amen

First catch-up since Paulina’s unjust departure from our town last August. Dining merrily, no chairs, standing room only.

First bus journey in one whole year, jolly driver generous of spirit. First ‘Free pass’ trip for Mary, ‘open road’ now - if only she had somewhere to go! First brain scan ever for me, in C.U.H, all seems well Thank God. A day of firsts, laughter go leor, many compelling conversations. God’s Amazing Grace.

Outlet Centre solemn, shops shut, silence deafening, but that did not dampen our spirits one bit, demonstrating yet again how little we needed all that stuff we thought we could never live without. 

Henry Thoreau comes to mind when he declared; ‘I enjoy going to the town and visiting the stores and the market place and seeing all the things I do not need or want that I can do without’.

‘Find your joy in simple things, for money cannot buy - the music of a blackbird or the rainbow in the sky - the fragrance of the roses and the stars at eventide. All the green and golden glory of the countryside’. (Patience Strong)

Katy and me.☀️

We were meant to share the lovely things that Heaven sends. Joys are doubled, sorrows halved, when we are with our friends. Fortunate are they, who looking back with smiles and tears, can trace the thread of Friendship through the pattern of the years. (Patience Strong)

(My sister Katy)

Home alone. 🏡

When we are called upon to give up the familiar and embark on the unknown, anoint us with Your Grace dear Lord. Amen

Home alone, first time in forty years. What did my life look like before Eric and I settled down and our children joined us, one by one. I forget, I have no idea. ‘I can’t tonight, I’m washing my hair’, would oftentimes be my reply to friends. Hilarious to me now.😅

Today I realised with a pang that the only reason I should clean my house now is ‘me’. Shopping just for me. Lighting the stove, just for me. ‘Who will you berate when the fire goes out’, Ruairi asked in laughter. Cooking my famous (infamous!) stew, just for me.

Unfamiliar territory, new journey. No reverting back to those ‘washing my hair’ days of freedom and self-obsessiveness, that door locked and bolted. Onwards and upwards, ever forward, never back. Each season must end for the new one to begin. ‘The only thing constant is change’. (Socrates)

Without passion and purpose in my life, I would drown in despair and loneliness. God created each and every one of us on purpose, for a purpose. Walking with Jesus fills my heart with joy and elation to be alive in this wonderful world, He guides me along the right path for me. 

Every day a new creation, freshly minted from God’s Holy Hands. Every morning a new adventure awaits as I forge forward in the Light of Christ.

‘Without you Jesus, I know not how to live’. (St. Faustina)

Today, panicky visiting black cat gingerly emerged a little closer, scoffing down his meal anxiously. Beginning to trust, he reminds me of myself embarking on this new voyage of discovery.

Crows too enlightening the eyes of my heart as they gather twigs and straw for their nests. To see them swoop with sticks in their beaks breathtaking, cacophony of sound emanating from tall trees at the end of my garden. 

Corona putting no damper on their celebration and appreciation for the wonderful gift of life. Their Joie de Vivre contagious filling me with enthusiasm for whatever lies ahead. 

‘Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Let the day’s own trouble be sufficient for the day’. Matthew-6:34)

Industrious crow breaking off branches with his beak for his family’s cozy nest. Nature Divine.

The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. (Psalm 23)🙏🏻

The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want; He makes me lie down in green pastures, 

He leads me beside still waters: He restores my soul. 

He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil; 

for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.

 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies; 

Thou anointest my head with oil, my cup overflows. 

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; 

and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for ever. Amen