Home sweet Home.🎆

Many sublime encounters on my first day back home in my own place. Holy Mass, I sang ‘The love I have for You my Lord’, beautiful hymn choc-full with meaning and promise. Holy Mass being celebrated for deceased parents of my former Shorthand and Typing teacher Cathy (1973). Impromptu rendezvous, wonderful stroll down memory lane, tea and apple-tart. Cathy really taken with my two ‘life-folders’ plan, put in place recently for my life-journey henceforward. (My skinny folder/Feb13th Blog).

Lima, from Lithuania, magnificent knitter offered to knit me a sweater. No cost. Kind generous Lima. 

Diarmuid and I strolled in the sunshine and of course our ‘selfie’. Precious time together Mother and son.❤️ Dan gifted me a beautiful watch for no reason at all. I gifted him my prayer, sublime exchange, both of us thrilled.

C extremely downcast told me that his friend A is in hospital with the same serious liver problems as C himself is suffering. Myriad tablets are keeping C alive, well and sober. He accepted my prayer some time ago and today he took one to give to A when he visits him in hospital. Lethal Vodka. C and A would never accept my countless prayer offers, they would always laugh and say; ‘Not for us thanks’. Now they will both pray, never too late, God’s mercy forever available and totally free.

My sister Josie told me: ‘I thought I could hear you in the town’, while I was in Vancouver. Heart to heart. Coeur a coeur 💞.My sister Katy and her husband Donal visited No.6 - first time since Lockdowns began. I visited with my dear lady Sheila, she brings me so much joy.

Tony, visiting cat refused my dry food opting happily instead for a whole tin of tuna from my kitchen cupboard.🥳 🐈‍⬛

I would have loved one more week in Vancouver, I was in no hurry home, but all day today was so filled with beauty and light, reminding me that we are always exactly where we are meant to be all of the time. There are no co-incidents only God-incidents. Do the next right thing, keep on walking in the Gladsome Light of Christ. That is ENOUGH

Roy Keane one time said; ‘The only thing that goes with the flow is a dead fish’... I’m not so sure🤨

I penned the above last night and this morning as I awoke with the words; ‘1proceed-progress.com’ emanating from my mouth. ‘One’ as opposed to ‘I’ meaning (EVERYONE) - clear wisdom for each of us, totally in keeping with my core message; ‘Keep walking in the Gladsome Light of Christ’. 

Wonderful Holy Spirit never ceases to amaze and delight.😀 

                                                                          ☀️Dear Sheila.📿

‘You know I don’t like dry food’.....🐈‍⬛

‘This is sooooo much better’...🐈‍⬛

A watch and a prayer..... 🙏🏻⏱

Today, 18/10/2022, dear Lima presented me with this beautiful hand-knitted sweater. Perfect timing! Tomorrow, please God I am going on pilgrimage to Medugorje. ❤️🙏🏻

Madonna House.☀️🙏🏻

‘Acquire interior peace and a multitude will find their salvation near you’. (St. Seraphim of Sarov)

Visit to Madonna House on our final day in Vancouver lifted our flagging spirits no end. Emmanuela, Lisa and Flora welcomed us with open arms and warm hearts. Dream come true for me, I love Catherine Doherty’s writings. I love ‘Restoration magazine’. I love their way of life. We had a blessed afternoon. Three gentle beautiful ladies, my sisters in Christ.🙏🏻

‘Wherever you find perfect beauty and perfect charm you find Me’. (Jesus to Gabrielle Bossis/He&I)

                                                Beautiful Chapel. Jesus in Holy Tabernacle.🙏🏻

                                                     Hanging on to Emanuela’s every word🎆

                                                             Madonna House bird house 🐦 

Poustinia house available to folk in search of time out from the world and it’s cares. My cup of tea🥳🙏🏻

                                                     I could be happy here methinks😀🎶🙏🏻

Tanye loved the beautifully painted eggs gifted to her by Emanuella, Lisa and Flora They remained intact in my suitcase all the way back to Ireland. Tanye wishes with all her heart to return to her own country Ukraine soon. She misses her husband and her cat. Painted eggs made her smile for a while.😃

Visiting Madonna House beyond my wildest dreams. Thank you so much Killian from my deepest heart,  for setting it all up. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I would ever be in that special place. I had always wanted to visit a Madonna House and here I was in one at last.😀☀️

Emmanuela, Lisa and Flora sang and danced for us as we said our good byes. I couldn’t help joining in!! I simply just had to dance with sheer delight and gratitude to God for His myriad Blessings all the days of my life.🎆🙏🏻

Every road must end.😔

Final day in Vancouver. Up early for 8AM Holy Mass in Church of the Guardian Angels. On way back to our wonderful apartment I met Ian sitting on his chair outside his apartment block. ‘Sure’, he replied when I offered him my prayer. Gently soft-spoken elderly gentleman and when I suggested: ‘Let us pray for each other Ian’, he replied with the most glorious smile: ‘You bet’. Ian tucked in my heart and prayers now too.

I spied a busy squirrel too on my way home from Holy Mass.😀

Last time joyously racing down to to let Killian in to our apartment for our day’s adventure 🎶

                                               Last stroll around Kitsilano where Killian resides.😌

                                               In the afternoon we visited Madonna House.........🥳

‘Do not value any external thing too highly even if it were to seem very precious to you. Entrust everything to me and do nothing on your own and you will always have great freedom of spirit. No circumstances or events will ever be able to upset you’. (Jesus to Saint Faustina)

                                             Not wise to drive with the car door open Mary🤨😀

                                         Killian’s work-place downtown Vancouver 🧑‍💻 

                                       Superb wheels for our Whistler adventure 🎆🎶🎶🎶🎶

                                           Night scene from our Barclay beautiful apartment.👑

So sad to say Goodbye to Killian....to Vancouver.....to our apartment.....but our hearts are full to overflowing with joyous gratitude to wonderful Father God for our holiday of a lifetime. Unbelievable every step......What a Mighty God we serve. Allelulia.☀️🎶🎶🎶🙏🏻🙏🏻

Guardian Angels.🙏🏻

I didn’t realise I had wandered onto the bicycle lane as I went to read a notice on a shop window. The guy on the bicycle coming towards me did very well to avoid me. Miracle🙏🏻 Definitely our ever-watchful Guardian Angels came to our rescue, no doubt in my mind whatsoever.

Of course that unnerving incident played itself over and over in my mind as I tried to sleep, during the night too in my waking moments, ready and waiting to ambush. Morbidly ruminating.....What if? 🤨 Then just before I awoke this morning a verse from a prayer I heard one time danced into my deepest heart clear as crystal: ‘This day is full of promise and opportunity; let me waste none of it. This day is full of mystery and the unknown; help me to face it without fear or anxiety’. 

Beautiful Holy Spirit soothing my aching spirit. In one fell swoop calm restored.

11AM Holy Mass in the Church of the Guardian Angels. Most appropriate.🙏🏻😇  We chatted with Father Pinto afterwards, his homily inspiring and uplifting.

Jericho beach in the afternoon, Mary’s first swim in the Pacific Ocean. 

Dinner this evening in the Old Spaghetti Factory, Gastown. So many homeless folk everywhere again. Eunice did not look bereft as she sat holding her green cup, well-dressed, hard to tell if she was just enjoying her coffee. I was inspired by the promptings of Holy Spirit to offer her my prayer and her reaction surprised us all. She began to sob and thank me, holding my prayer to her heart. Wonderful Holy Spirit knew Eunice really needed that prayer. 

A guy on crutches badly in need of food accepted gratefully my prayer while Killian ordered him bacon cheddar burger, 2 x fries and a large coke. One of the great medicines of the soul is helping other people.

As I sat and chatted with Jessie on the cold pavement, folks milled by dressed to the nines noticing neither one of us. We admired their pretty shoes. As I listened to Jessie’s story I was suddenly deeply aware that I was sitting apart with Beautiful Jesus. Mine was the best seat in the house, my joy could not be contained.☀️

‘It was here beneath the very feet of the passers-by, in a cellar under the very floor of the world that Jesus Christ was born....’. (G.K. Chesterton)

We walked by Hastings Street where numerous homeless folk dwell together in miserable mayhem. Shocking to the core.😪

‘So you are giving to Christ when you give to a needy person - or are you afraid that such a keeper may lose some of what you give, or that such a rich person may not be able to pay you back? God is almighty, Christ is almighty; you can’t possibly lose any of it’. (Saint Augustine)

Downtown🎶🌟

‘The call to serve the poor is an invitation to happiness’. (Fr. Ho Lung)

Heavenly day strolling around Downtown Vancouver, Killian and I,  splendid sunshine. Amazing buskers, guy putting on display with playing cards conned Killian into holding his coat, elderly Chinese man played the most amazing music on his violin.

Kindly lady at Gastown Clock went out of her way to ensure our photo would be picture-perfect.

Homeless brothers accepted my prayer; Greg, warm and friendly as he lay flat out on his sleeping bag on the pavement, Joe sad and blue, Chris from Ottawa simply said: ‘I believe. I believe’, as he took my prayer. (I gave money to Chris on my first night in Vancouver and wished I had my prayers with me then - today I got a second chance).

Musician with his dog on a rug at his feet nodded as I placed my prayer in his money basket. I love to share my widow’s mite with them too, never my prayer only. God owns everything.

Lyle O’Sullivan stood tall, out on his own. His family came over from Ireland when he was probably two years of age, he told me. They lived in Yukon and Alaska. He accepted my prayer with the words; ‘This is worth more to me than all the money in the world’. As we walked away he raised his hand as if in blessing saying; ‘The best to you and you’, (looking at Killian). Wonderful uplifting encounter.

Vancouver beautiful city, lots to see, much to do but oh so many homeless folk. Too many.😪

            We cooked dinner for Killian and Jonathan. As always, leisurely stroll in the evening.☀️

                                                              

                                                                  Heron waits patiently.🧐

                                                                 Still smiling.😀😀

                                                                    Best mates.🤝

                                                                    My boy and me.❤️

‘Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything that is beautiful; for beauty is God’s handwriting’. 

(Ralph Waldo Emerson)

 

Scenes and Tunes.🎶

 

Unforgettable road trip back to Vancouver from Whistler today, awesome scenery, catchy tunes. Killian, DJ extraordinaire kept us entertained the whole journey. Johnny Nash’s ‘I can see clearly now’, Elton John and Duai Lipa’s ‘Cold heart’, Dan Fogelberg’s ‘The leader of the band’ , Simon and Garfunkel, Roger Whittaker and countless others. Snow capped mountains standing stately all around, breathtakingly beautiful. No way of articulating such grandeur from Almighty God.

Our firm favourite ’Cold heart’ forever reminding Killian and I of our road trip from Kerry to Cork last Christmas when we visited dear Paulina RIP in Auburn Lodge Refugee Centre. That catchy tune was being played nonstop. On our return journey we spoke of  how content and settled Paulina was in her own place. So hard to believe our dear friend is gone to God. Our final photo together was taken by Killian that day. We had no idea.🥲

I was really looking forward to visiting a little Church near Alta lake but as we began to walk towards it, Mary fortunately spied a Momma bear and her two Cubs. We dashed back to our car and enjoyed the bears from a safe distance. We sat in awe as the Cubs dashed up the tall trees at the speed of knots. Amazing unexpected experience. Disappointed to miss the beautiful Church but grateful to God for happy ending.

In a shop nearby I found bandana just like the ones my sister Katy and I wore in our days of youth. I don’t think I ever wore a bandana again until today. Happy find! Life is a big circle. 😀

We dropped by Lost lake located in Whistler and watched a guy walk a tightrope oblivious to all and sundry. Concentrating on the task in hand, inspiring to watch. Lesson in there for all of us - keep our eyes on our own paper. Stay in our own lane.🎆

Life is a gift more precious than gold, every single second a dazzling diamond from the Holy Hands of Father God.

‘Do not seek to be regarded as somebody, don’t compare yourself to others in anything. Leave the world, mount the cross, discard all earthly things, shake the dust from your feet’. (St. Barsanuphius)

Whistler stop⛷⛷

We are staying in Whistler ski resort for two days, unforgettable picturesque town north of Vancouver.⛷⛷

                                                              Whistler ‘Big Bear Beer’. 🍺