Joy☀️🙏🏻

 ‘Be very careful on over complaining. Focus on God’s goodness, experiencing that goodness, sharing that goodness with those close to you and transmitting that goodness’. (Fr. John Bartunek)

I awoke this morning thanking God for restful sleep and at the same time pondering over my many aches and pains. Arms aching, could my beloved backpack be to blame. Feet hurting, could my sandals be at fault. Or could the fact that I am in my late (exhilaratingly late!) sixties, have anything to do with it….

Then ping!! Phone message touches down that reads like this…

‘My daughter got to write a little passage about her Confirmation name, to display in Church. She wrote that she chose ‘Bridget’ because of you and her teacher, (also named Bridget). Both of you represent Faith in motion to her’.

Joyful tidings shift our gaze, gladdening our heart. Instantly, all pains and aches fade away as I praise and thank God from my deepest heart for my wonderful life and oh so much more.

My morning reframed with gratitude and joy. True joy is not the absence of pain, it is the presence of God.

‘Lord help me to make time today to serve You in those who are most in need of encouragement or assistance’. (St. Vincent de Paul)

Made of sand!! I love Cork city!

Ash Wednesday, distributing Holy Ashes in a little country school. Before we begin, Teacher asks the children why the sign of the Holy Cross is imprinted on our foreheads with Holy ashes on this day. Silence for a moment until one little girl, probably tiniest of them all, speaks with unvarnished clarity; ‘We are sorry’.

Three little words choc full of beautiful theology from the mouth of a child! Unforgettable!!

Killarney☀️🙏🏻

One whole day strolling about Killarney. Heaven on earth! Holy Mass in Franciscan Friary. Sharing countless powerful prayers. Leisurely lunch. Helping dear struggling lady haul her heavy suitcase. Sharing warm fleece and chips with cold hungry soul. Much laughter too.

Thank you Father God. I love the life You give to me. Everything is better with You in it.

‘The vocation of every man and woman is to serve other people’. ( Leo Tolstoy)

Love my birds! Newcomers arriving all the time.😀

‘Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your Heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they’. (Matthew 6:26)

Jesus and Mary☀️🙏🏻

Three prayers shared on my way to Church this morning, elderly Ukrainian gentleman, former jockey and man in a van. Delightful encounters all three.

Later ‘man in a van’, happened to be sitting in company I was invited to join. Turns out he happened to be an Electrician and wouldn’t you know it! I happened to badly need some advice on my smart metre readings and smoke alarms. God knew!! He set it all up, glory be to God.

When Holy Spirit whispered the words; ‘You mind mine and I will mind yours’ into my spirit one night as I lay sleeping, I thought He meant my ‘people’. Today, while chatting with gracious Electrician, it began to dawn on me that Holy Spirit was speaking of my ‘problems’ too. Wow!!

Praying Holy Rosary in Church, elderly gentleman and his adult son (Downes syndrome) came and knelt near Holy alter. Together they prayed aloud three Hail Mary’s and Glory be to the Father…. Arising, they genuflected and on their way out I got to thank them both from my heart. Sacred snippet!

On my way home, (How I love going home), young African father tells me that he needs a bicycle for his upcoming two weeks work experience some distance outside of our town. My friend Mike is happy to oblige. Young African guy so so thankful. Prayerful faithful guy, I told him that God found him a bike! ‘Yes’, he replied. ‘God found me a bike through you because you allow yourself to be used by God’. What a beautiful compliment and privilege.

Our  Faith-filled African visitors, known to all and sundry as Asylum Seekers, are in actual fact Missionary Disciples sent by God to our post-Christian secular land. I believe it with all my heart. Time will tell!

Every day I touch Jesus beautiful Feet on Station of Holy Cross above. Others, witnessing, do it now too. Jesus Feet and mine are one and the same! I touch Mother Mary’s Hands with mine so her beautiful Hands will be mine too. 

With Jesus Feet and Mary’s hands, hard things become easier!

Thank you Mother Mary for urging us to pray Holy Rosary. Meditating on beautiful Jesus in your gentle maternal presence moves me, more and more, to love and live like Jesus.

‘To us too Mary addresses the command she gave to the servants at Cana in Galilee during the marriage feast; ‘Do whatever He tells you’. (St. Pope John Paul)

This little light of mine!☀️🙏🏻

‘No one ever heals himself by wounding another’. (St. Peter Chrysologus)

Two guys drinking Guinness as they slated our poor Refugees, spouting gross untruths in their tipsy tirade. Nobody exempt! Ukrainian, African, anyone and everyone from distant shores. Disgracefully pathetic. Horrible ‘Herd’ Mentality.

Barmaid obviously noticing my discomfort and disgust, kindly began playing music loudly on some device. Soon after, preparing to leave, I fully intended ignoring them, but instead Holy Spirit ever so gently prompted me to offer them my prayer. What a change!! Even the pretty Barmaid received one. Definitely surprised, all three extremely grateful. One guy asked the barmaid if she would read it aloud, he being unable to read it without his glasses. She called it out for all to hear! Right there, abject abuse silenced by my powerful prayer.

Had I gone on my way contributing nothing, how utterly ashamed I would have been. Beautiful Holy Spirit knew that!

In another establishment, young guy, member of a Rock Band gratefully and joyfully accepted four prayers, one for each member. Thing is, I was fully intending ignoring him also but once again wonderful Holy Spirit shifted my gaze. That same Rock Band displayed a picture one time deeply offensive to those of us who love Jesus with all our hearts. ‘We will take your prayer on tour’, he told me. I wasn’t expecting that!

Never a dull moment! How utterly grim my life would be without You, wonderful Holy Spirit, giver of light and life. Only You can change minds and hearts.

‘The unadulterated love of one person can nullify the hatred of millions’. (Mahatma Ghandi)

‘The nicest part is being able to write down all my thoughts and feelings; otherwise I’d absolutely suffocate’. (Anne Frank)

Me too!!

 

The ordinary is EXTRAORDINARY!☀️🙏🏻

‘Great occasions for serving God come seldom, 

but little ones surround us daily. (St. Francis De Sales)

Young cheerful guy arrived early to update my ESB metre. Smart metres are all the rage it seems! At my time of life though, it matters little thank God.

My compact cottage tiny, he worked just a few feet from my kitchen table where I sat imbibing Romans:14. St. Paul! What a guy!

‘If we live, we live to the Lord and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s’. (Romans 14:8)

Extremely capable young guy, he sang all the while like he was the only one in that place. I love that!. Apart from ‘Good morning’, we spoke not a word, until, packing up his stuff to leave, I ask if he would like a really beautiful morning prayer. Stopping in his tracks smiling he uttered; ‘I’ll be honest with you. I haven’t prayed in a long time’. ‘No problem’, I reply. ‘Pray it every morning and all of Heaven will be minding you’. 

(Of course I offered him tea too but he already had some).

Holy Spirit wonderful wisdom danced into my heart right then and I spoke it aloud; ‘I cannot promise you nothing will be wrong but you will be strong’. 

I shared with him that I had received those comforting words some time ago when a lovely young guy, much like himself, gave me that exact reply; ‘I haven’t prayed in a long time’.

Tad surprised, he read and loved my powerful prayer, taking one for his girlfriend too. He even took one for the guy in Head-Office who set up our meeting. 

I asked if he had ever before received a prayer from a client. His words lifted my heart no end;  ‘No! I must have converted at least one thousand meters and not until today did I receive a prayer. You are one in a thousand’. Both of us laughed.

Precious moments like this remind me that Christ is alive and He wants each and everyone of us to be alive. Service joyfully!!

‘In this day and time, when the Faith is in danger of dying out like a flame that no longer has fuel, the overriding priority is to make the Face of God present’. (Pope Benedict)

                                             Seven days without Prayer makes one weak.

‘Not to pray, not to be a true Christian, is to declare a reluctance to live life to the full. It is the choice of a small, warm, selfish life. It would be like Rembrandt refusing to paint because he could live on his wife’s money’. (Sr. Wendy)

‘You changed my story!☀️🙏🏻

‘I have never met a soul who set out to satisfy the Lord and has not been satisfied himself. 

To have God do His own work through us even once, is better than a lifetime of human striving’ (Watchman Nee)

Lady in the Refugee Centre called to know if I would come meet a new lady who had just arrived in our town. Exhausted with not one ounce of energy to spare, I almost refused. Our group ‘Blanketiers’ had not been set up at that stage. Just me meeting folk in dire need. (E pluribus unum - out of many, one’. Guy from Refugee centre words to me, at that time).  Truly, on that particular day it was all beginning to feel just too much. 

However, thank God I did visit her, dear lady traumatised beyond anything I had ever witnessed in my long glorious life. She came and knelt down in front of me, I knelt down too. Then gently placing my hands on her shoulders, both of us stood up slowly at the same time. 

She needed a coat and God Bless Charity shop lady who gave us a long black warm coat, fur collar, for half the stated price. Putting it on, smiling, she began to relax instantly. Her beautiful black long coat providing insulation, covering she so earnestly required not only from piercing Kerry winds but more than that, from the world at large. Speaking not a word, she simply nodded all the while, it was as much as she could manage in her new strange surroundings.

Like me, she loved attending Holy Mass. Holy Rosary too. Over time, she began to trust and talk as we drank tea. She introduced me to her husband on FaceTime. He was so comforted knowing his dear lady was safe and happy far away from her African homeland. 

Then one day she was gone. I worried about her but not for long. My new friend had her own road to travel and just like each and everyone of us, sometimes we must go it alone.

Then, one fine day, surprise text message assuring me that all was well thank God. What joy then hearing her joyful tone today. Nowadays, after some amazing journey, she works in a Nursing Home. Soon, please God, her husband and children will join her in Ireland. They are really looking forward to meeting up with me. I told her I am really looking forward to meeting up with them too. 

‘You changed my story’, she told me. Words I will never forget as long as I live.

I could easily add; ‘Who am I to be used like that’, but even that is false humility. I simply showed up!

Jesus did EVERYTHING! I was too tired, He was not!

‘To be a slave of Christ is proof of the highest nobility’. (St. Agatha)

If we can pray, eat, laugh and sleep then we are doing what God is asking us to do! I like that😀

‘Whoever I send to you on any particular day’. Holy Spirit wonderful words to my harried heart on one of my many overwhelming moments. Simplicity of heart and mind walking with Jesus because He knows the way. ‘He IS the way the truth and the life’. (John 14:6)

‘Christ’s voice reaches an ecstasy beyond and above any voice ever heard on earth. The tone of His voice is a bearer of the sublime message that we are on our way to another lovelier world, tinted with unimaginable wonders, alive with ultimate music and bursting with radiance and joy’.               (Archbishop Raya)

‘God reveals Himself in the midst of our faithfulness’.(Fr. Ciszek)☀️🙏🏻

 

Generous folk gifted me this colossal colourful suitcase stuffed with men and women clothing for the purpose of distribution. Compartmentalised case!! Perfect for storing one’s belongings.

Placing mens’ clothing in a black sack, I walked the short distance to the charity shop. Ladies stuff remaining in suitcase at home. Mostly women cross our path. 

Almost there when I spy walking towards me, lovely young couple with two little children in a buggy. I learn that they reside for now in a refugee centre in a nearby village. We chatted a while, they cope well enough in their new strange surroundings, they tell me, but of course it is far from easy. 

Young man happily accepted my bulky black sack and so it never did arrive in Charity shop. Yes, they could really use a large case for storage and yes, lady would welcome lady’s clothes. Amazing! All of it!! and right there, on the spot, we thanked and praised God for His bountiful blessings every day of our lives. 

Breda kindly delivered everything to their place of refuge this afternoon. I don’t drive, always God provides.

Holy Rosary in St. Anne’s. Dear lady speechless having suffered debilitating stroke. She cried as we prayed Hail Mary together, she and I. Then, into my heart popped: ‘You are praying in your heart. You are where we all need to be. Praying with our hearts’. Instantly, unforgettably, on hearing my wonderful Holy Spirit words, dear Lady’s face lit up as she tightly clasped my hand, other hand wiping away her precious tears. Moment of transcendence beauty and peace.

Thing is, tired and emotional, I really wished with all of my heart to stay home nursing my own heavy heart. Just a few days ago my dear brother in law Donal, died suddenly. His dear wife, my beautiful sister Katy passing away only two years ago. I miss them more than words can tell. Grief upon grief.

So glad now that I did not stay home!! Plain to see and getting clearer all the time. Jesus does EVERYTHING!!

Show up!! That is all I am asked to do. The Lord truly is my Light and my Life. 

Right this minute I read in my Magnificat magazine;

‘If we have already found our vocation, are we faithful to it even when it is difficult? It is only by following God in our vocation and loving Him in obedience that we can be truly happy and fulfilled’.

Timely heartwarming wise words!!

Christmas Day 2023. Dear Donal, Killian and I enjoying beautiful Holy Mass together.❤️🙏🏻

‘Earth’s crammed with Heaven and every common bush afire with God, but only he who sees takes off his shoes; The rest sit around and pluck blackberries’. (Elizabeth Barrett Browning)

Holiness is life in it’s fullness. (Sr. Mary David)☀️🙏🏻

Sun peeping through the stripped back trees as I stroll from Holy Mass this morning. Trees without foliage are beautiful, bit like ourselves when all pretence is gone. Beauty beyond comprehension.

I am spending a few days with my loving family in Wicklow, rest and renewal, fun and laughter. Long sleeps, longer walks.

In the midst of all that, sharing my powerful prayer of course. Mind body and spirit. So many amazing encounters. Wonderful Holy Spirit continues to delight and surprise every step of my journey home to Heaven above. Here’s a few…

Dear Anne dancing daily with dementia, her kindly carer Lea by her side. Incidentally Lea calls Anne her ‘friend’. ‘Carer’ not once entering our conversation, I love that. All of us care for one another, every action is a transaction. Anne read my prayer aloud before turning to Lea uttering earnestly: ‘Look, we were all upset this morning and now God does this’. Then turning to me, dear lady places her hands on my shoulders, looked me in the eye saying intently: ‘You are lovely. You are healthy and you are full of beautiful energy’. Tears welled up in my eyes. Wow!!

I am so grateful to God that I get to spend precious time with my Holy Rosary group in St. Anne’s every week. Elderly folk have always meant the world to me and even more so nowadays as I fast approach becoming one myself. (We must age of course but we must not ever grow old!)

Bernie in Church prayed my prayer aloud and then asked; ‘Are you a nun or maybe a healer’. I love Jesus, I told her. Jesus is the healer, I His willing delighted instrument.

Sean, young guy on my train, helped put my case on the overhead wrack. Tad embarrassed, his friends weren’t bothered (except for one girl). Sean felt the fear and did it anyway. His shock and happiness when he received my prayer stays with me. Another ‘Holy’ moment. I offered him prayers for his friends but that just seemed a step too far!

Guy angry and frustrated gazing on empty bottles spilled out all over the pavement. His rubbish bin fell over as he loaded it onto his truck. I would have gladly helped but knowing I could not, I offered him my prayer instead. ‘No thanks, love. Prayer will do me no good right now’, he replied as kindly as he could muster. ‘I will pray for you so’, I said. Stopping for a moment, he smiled thanking me from his heart. God’s amazing Grace in vivid display!

Another guy kindly refused too. Definitely all of us are searching for God whether we know it or not. Sad refusals always remind me of the rich young man in the Bible. (Mark 10: 17-31)

Sitting in Holy Mass one morning feeling anxious about something and Father spoke these much needed words in his homily; ‘Fear is useless. What is needed is trust’. Holy Spirit knows our deepest needs at all times.

Young guy pushing Tea trolley on train took my prayer and then gifted me a complementary tea! Delivery guy and his helper outside a shop extremely moved too.

I love being a prayer-sharing Nan from Kerry. Not always easy but immensely rewarding. 

Last night I heard myself speak aloud: ‘It bounces around in my head until I get it all said’. Truly only when I put it all in writing does it literally leave my mind, flying freely into my deepest heart for posterity. Until that time though, I relive each beautiful encounter and happening many times.

‘In the measure in which we live out our vocation generously we shall be brought to a spiritual and human maturity which we could not have reached in any other way, and outside of which is only illusion and escape’. (Sister Mary David)

Strolling with lovely Luna. How great is our God!!

‘Poems are made by fools like me, but only God can make a tree’. (Joyce Kilmer)

 

Ora et labora☀️🙏🏻

‘The journey towards Heaven begins in the plains, in a daily life broken and shared, spent and given, in the quiet daily gift of all that we are’. (Pope Francis)

Someone told me recently that I should not be feeding my birds. Seemingly our little hungry birds are growing too dependent and should be encouraged to fend for themselves. I am reminded too of a time when someone told my dear Mom that she should stop feeding countless hungry cats who visited our humble home daily or they they may well continue to drop by. My dear Mom did not stop, our visitor cats continued calling. I will not stop feeding my birds either. 

The idea of anybody hungry hurt my Mom deeply, me too. 

Another memory dances into my heart. I was told, in no uncertain terms, to not assist a fragile lady, in floods of tears, put her stockings on. She needed to be able to do it for herself. Poor lady had a really painful arm too. I did help her of course and when someone shouted at me for doing it I replied quietly: ‘You are free to do it your way, I will do it my way’.  

Poor lady was so grateful. 

To this day, many years later, I am so glad and grateful to God for being in that place at that time. My accuser got some space that day too to rethink her not-so-kind actions.

Storm Eowyn did some serious damage to my television aerial. My Christian channels have disappeared without trace!! Multiple other channels remain. Thing is I only ever watch EWTN and other Christian channels. Strange!! More time for prayer. 

Sun is shining on delightful birds loving life in my garden as I write. Mantle of pure peace and calm covering us. I know we are truly blessed, my birds know it too. God is good all the time. 

So much unrest in our world right now. Folk frightened of what their future might bring. Easy enough to feel utterly helpless in the face of so much pain and suffering but despair does not come from God. Instead, let us do what we can while there is still time. Bloom where we are planted!,

May my life be full of prayer. May my days be full of kind deeds. Our loving Father God will do the rest as we walk hand in hand with beautiful Jesus, in glorious light of wonderful Holy Spirit, home to Heaven above. What joy!

A beautiful life is lived in imitation of Christ.

‘We are labourers, not master builders; servants, not the Messiah. We are prophets of a future that does not belong to us’. (St. Oscar Romero). 

‘Give us, O Lord, a love for You that is so pure, so holy, so devoid of self-love, so full of charity towards our neighbour and so much Your own that we will only concern ourselves with pleasing You and consoling You’. (Blessed Concepcion)

‘In the presence of the heart of Christ, I once more ask the Lord to have mercy on this suffering world in which He chose to dwell as one of us. May He pour out the treasures of His Light and Love, so that our world, which presses forward despite wars, socio-economic disparities and uses of technology that threaten our humanity, may regain the most important and necessary thing of all; it’s heart’.                          (Pope Francis/Dilexit Nos)

‘I am with you always to the close of the age’. (Matthew 28/20)

‘All of Heaven will be minding you’, words I offer folk every day as they accept my powerful morning prayer. 

Right now, as Storm Eowyn rages outside my window, those beautiful words dance into my heart and oh how much I need to hear them. All of Heaven are minding me in my little cottage. I am not alone!! This changes everything. Alleluia. Nothing to fear - All of Heaven is here!

What a mighty God we serve! He will either still the storm, or still us in the storm.

3.30AM. Hour of Mercy. Praying Holy Rosary in the company of Heaven. No place else I would rather be.

‘Jesus came and said to them; ‘All authority in Heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age’. (Matthew 28:18-20)

‘We shall steer safely through every storm, so long as our heart is right, our intention fervent, our courage steadfast, and our trust fixed on God’. (St. Francis de Sales)

Do what you do do, well☀️🙏🏻

‘Whether you walk here on earth, or are free from earth’s limitations in my Heaven, it is Heaven to walk with Me’ (Jesus/God calling)

Every tiny thing we do, and every tiny thing done to us while here on earth has intrinsic value for eternity, this I am beginning to realise more and more. Let me explain…

‘Eternity is the wrong thing to be wrong about’. (Billy Zeoli)

Distraught Guy called me up, somebody had given him my number. Tired, hungry, freezing, I had just arrived home from Legion of Mary meeting, thirty miles away. Of course we met up anyway and miraculously my own story of utter upheaval and upset gave him hope in the midst of his own upheaval story happening right now. My boys and I made it through that barren land, and holding Jesus beautiful Hand, he would too. ‘I was not expecting this’, he told me, tears in his eyes, as we parted, ‘But it is most important’. He had ‘dropped God’ many years ago. Tonight He met God again!

Distraught lady sitting in cold empty Church sobbing quietly. Another lady in their accommodation upset her greatly, blaming her for something she did not do. No, she will not reveal who the real culprit is. She will sit here and cry with Jesus. I could share that one time, many years ago, in a similar situation I was granted a beautiful Grace. Placing Jesus centre stage, gazing on His beautiful Face, shifted my gaze from my offender forever. I actually (almost physically) moved her to the periphery. I am remembering that momentous moment vividly as I write. Dear lady, smiling, did exactly that and honestly her tears dried there and then. She began to sing aloud thanking and praising Jesus in her native tongue. Wow!!

Guy told me that his apartment inside wall is continually damp. Mould everywhere. I could advise him, I know all about mould!! My little cozy cottage was once an igloo, I told him and now by the glorious Grace of God I live in an incubator.

One such encounter would have gladdened my heart but three of them!! and all within twenty four hours.

What an honour for me to share with dear devastated folk banished from their lives and homes by cruel self-indulgent regimes. Hard to fathom it! Their day will come.

Father forgive them, they know not what they do. 

Yes Jesus, it is Heaven to walk with you!!

‘Well then listen, I have found happiness, I possess it. I enjoy it so fully that I am able to say with the great Apostle; ‘I am overflowing with joy’. My heart brims over with happiness so that I cannot contain it within me. It is found in Jesus. At the Feet of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament’. 

(Herman Cohen)

In God we trust☀️🙏🏻

Killian returning to Vancouver having enjoyed to the full, five fabulous family weeks together, timely uplifting message on my calendar makes me pause and pray. Impossible to be unhappy and grateful at the same time.

I am reading an extraordinary book right now. ‘He leadeth me’, by Daniel J. Flaherty.  Jesuit Father Walter J. Ciszek spent twenty agonising years in Soviet prisons and labour camps in Siberia. Only through an utter reliance on God’s will did he manage to endure the extreme hardship. 

Amazing read. Layer upon enlightening layer. I urge one and all to check it out. Too beautiful not to share!

‘God does not ask the impossible of any man. He was not asking more of me, really, than He asks of every man, every Christian, each day of his life. He was asking that I learn to see these suffering men around me, these circumstances in the prison at Perm, as sent from His Hand and ordained by His providence. He was asking me to do something as another Christ’. (Fr. Ciszek)

So glad I know you Father Ciszek. So glad I know you, Dorothy Day, too. How blessed we are to be guided on our earthly pilgrimage by those brave generous souls who walked this way already, step by painful step.

‘Nor was I powerless to do it, for it was within my power to do it, and I could count on His Grace to sustain me. Not the least of His graces was the light to see and understand this truth; to see that this day, like all the days of my life come from His Hands and served a purpose in His providence. I had to learn to believe that, no matter what the circumstances, and to act accordingly, with complete trust and confidence in His will, His wisdom and His Grace. (Fr. Ciszek)

‘We must contain ourselves in patience, remembering each morning that our main job is to love God and serve Him, and if we don’t get things done due to interruptions, well, it cannot be helped and God will take care of what we leave undone’. (Dorothy Day/The reckless way of Love)

‘I need each one of you as though you were the only person in the world, as though the cosmos had been created for you alone, and My love is greater than the cosmos. So let this thought be a strength to you and your smiling calm’. (Jesus to Gabrielle Bossis/He and I)

‘Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father’. (Matthew 5:16)

Impromptu☀️🙏🏻

I dashed from my cozy home just to photograph my favourite mountain and there met a really lovely couple all the way from New York City who were just about to photograph my favourite mountain too.

Uplifting encounter. I photographed both of them standing lovingly in front of snow capped mountain. I offered them my prayer, they accepted joyfully. I told them about our New York visit last October, my sons and I. How much I loved every minute including and maybe even particularly, Broadway show ‘Our Town’. (Thornton Wilder’s wonderful classic).

We talked about Emily who has no idea how wonderful life is until she dies. Her family, her town…

Gentleman, retired New York Fire fighter, went on to tell me that his life has always been an exciting one and although now retired, he is still every bit as excited about life as he always has been. Me too. I love every inch of my wonderful life from God. Always there is something to be grateful for, no matter what.

All three of us wholeheartedly agree that being alive is no small thing!

My dear Mom would oftentimes say; ‘While there’s life, there’s hope’. I had no idea what her wise words meant back then. I do now!!

‘We will meet in Heaven’, my favourite parting words these days. Lovely lady laughingly replies: ‘We don’t have to wait that long, honey, we purchased a house in your town’.

Was not expecting that magnificent encounter this cold bright day in our town!!

‘O earth, you’re too wonderful for anybody to realise you. Do any human beings ever realise life while they live it…every, every, minute’. (Emily/Our Town)

‘O tall mountain of confidence in God, you never surrender when the Lord tests you! Although you stand far away from me as if in exile, all alone, you remind me that no armed power is strong enough to best you. Your trust in God is wonderful’. (Hildegard of Bingen)

The singing stopped a while ago☀️🙏🏻

‘The singing stopped a while ago’. My granddaughter’s reply to Killian last evening when he wondered if Nan was asleep already’. What a beautiful reply! (I must be asleep if I stopped singing).

Holy Mass this morning in compact Church of my childhood. Myriad memories packed with joy and gratitude warming the cockles of my heart. Sitting in the pew with our dear Dad, all eight of us. Someone told me recently he would walk up the aisle just ahead of us and then wait until each one of us had entered the pew, before sitting down himself. 

Eight pairs of shiny shoes polished by Dad specially for Holy Mass.

Singing all the way to Holy Mass. Singing all the way home again. Funny, I don’t ever recall feeling hungry and yet we were out of home for many hours. Perhaps a whole bunch of theology packed into that!! We were being fed spiritually every step of the way. Goodness, truth and beauty all around.

To this very day we sing all the time, my siblings and I. Mostly unaware that we are actually singing. Second nature!

Dear Mom waiting patiently in our humble home for our glad return. Much appreciated dinner waiting for us too on our old well-used stove.

My dear granddaughter’s beautiful reply gifted my heart with the most glorious of memories, this snowy Sunday in deepest Kerry.

‘Real goodness is always simple. Simplicity is so attractive and so profitable that it is strange that so few people are really simple’. (Leo Tolstoy)

Holy Crib highlight of our childhood Christmas and still is to this very day.

Visitor guy to our village took our family photograph every Christmas Day. This is our last one. Our dear Dad died the following September. 🙏🏻❤️

God alone is sufficient ☀️🙏🏻

‘O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting’. (Hosea 13:14)

Bridie passed away peacefully at 4AM this morning.

 Sitting by her bedside last night, praying Chaplet of Divine Mercy and Holy Rosary, stroking her beautiful hair, talking to her, will remain forever in my heart.

Ninety years of age, not a line on her beautiful face, white hair stunning as always. I doubt she ever realised her real beauty or gave it a second thought.

Bridie had no idea either how much she impacted the lives of countless others during the course of her long hard life. Her determination in the face of myriad struggles. Her acceptance and endurance. Her saintliness.

She knows now!

‘It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit’. (Harry S Truman)

So glad to have recording on my phone of Bridie calling out St. Teresa of Avila’s prayer in our Holy Rosary one time. That last line; ‘God alone is sufficient’, comforted many, coming from Bridie who was ‘living proof’. She owned nothing but God! 

For the longest time, Bridie lived in her own world, sight and hearing gone. Yet, with just the slightest prompt, she would pray it aloud at the end of Holy Rosary. ‘Bridie’s prayer’ will go on being prayed while our Holy Rosary continues.

I prayed it aloud last night, one last time. Then, miraculously, she opened her eyes and whispered; 

‘Good bye’. Precious parting gift from my forever friend, dear sweet Bridie.

‘A tree is known by its fruit; a person by his deeds. A good deed is never lost; she who sows courtesy reaps friendship, and she who plants kindness gathers love’. (St. Basil the great)

St. John Vianney (Cure D’Ars) would oftentimes tell his parishioners that the only way to die well is to live well. Having witnessed with my own two eyes, dear Bridie’s peaceful passing, I want with all my heart to live well and when my time comes, die well, in the Gladsome light of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen