we are standing on the edge of a precipice. the precipice of summer; and fall looms in the great beyond, a veritable unknown season of possibilities for this texas girl. it is the grand torch of glory giving life one last cry of joy that sets the world ablaze (so i am told and so one fall weekend in south bend indiana 10 years ago showed me) before the time arrives when creation hibernates in quiet expectation for its glorious renaissace through the breath of Resurrection that blows so mirthfully in that magical time of year we call spring.
in many ways, though, i believe it will be a spring time for me. a spring time for my soul and i will open as many windows as i can for that sweet and cleansing breeze to sweep through. i will, with the grace of God, take a leap of faith off of that precipice into the unknown beauty the Beloved has prepared. it is all darkness down there, but i no longer reach for the nearest match to light my own torch. finally, i am beginning to gradually soak in the reality that i have the Light of the world within me, and i do not need any artificial light source to give me some fake feeling of safety. for even when i light my own torch, i still do not know the way. thankfully, He who is the Light is also the Way.
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"I love you. Do you love me back? Come and follow me in the darkness. I want to know i fyou are ready to go into the things that you do not see yet, on faith alone." Then you look at God, or at what you think is God in your mind, and you say, "Look, this is fine, but you're inviting me to what? An emptiness? A nothingness? There is nothing to see. I cannot touch you. I cannot feel you."
Then God goes on to say, "I invite you to a relationship of Love; your love of me, my Love of you."
-Servant of God Catherine de Hech Doherty |
i am sure i will still, like lovely old St. Peter, forget to look at Jesus and begin to focus on the storm and the water i am trying to walk on and try to depend upon myself. but He already knows i will. and He is already there waiting to reach out His hand and pull me up and lovingly hold me again. and again and again and again...until the very end.
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| sea of galilee, taken by the lovely Christina (hope you don't mind the pilfering) |
thus ends my Sunday reflection and my jellydrop of insights, which bubba guessed to be the probable title of my blog.
my soul is being fed with the sweetest manna. first and foremost, by the Bread of Life in the Eucharist. over and over again i marvel that i can walk to our wonderful little church that i am extremely all about (if it hasn’t been obvious yet). i have been sitting in one part of the church that faces the other little side part with more pews and after most of the Masses i have noticed that when they open that side door for people to leave, it is my favorite.
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| favorite alert |
| the contrast of the darker inside of the church and the bright light of creation and the branches of a droopy old and majestic pine tree in the perfect door sized picture frame. in those few moments i witness the marital embrace of the two worlds i love. the creation and her Creator. i get to be with both at that moment and i got to stand outside the church and capture it on my camera (i don’t like taking pictures inside the church unless it’s a wedding or baptism). |
secondly, with family and friends and finding love in all the right places.
on Friday, it was the feast of friendship in a small circle on a back porch surrounded by trees with but a few cracks in the foliage to give me the view of one precious star. tiki torches surrounded us in a protective hug of warmth and the joy of being with friends laughing about earthquakes and arguing about what song was in some scene from the classic film of our youth, matilda. drinking beers and eating goldfish and brownies. it was a smorgasborg (i will not look that spelling up so try to deal) of delights for the heart. it warmed the very cockles of mine.
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| the sweet taste of friendship, a little blurry but still real |
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| chris is wearing his "i work for the fbi face" |
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| natalie wearing her "i am pretending not to know a picture is being taken" face |
that was followed by a generous helping of sisters, brother-in-law, and niecey-pie. with a delightful background of rain and hurricane breezes through window screens that beckoned the dumpling to watch the miracle of the outside world. all complimented by special-ed (good one, i know) coffee made with his deft spanish trained hand and homemade biscotti. not shabby, life. not too shabby at all.
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| wonder |
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| there are too many good ones |
we topped off saturday with a neighbor’s birthday party where babies ran amok amongst noise makers and adults with delicious beverages to cheers the birthday boy and his beautiful family.
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| sisters and watermelon a very sweet and pink combo |
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| collette getting the party started |
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| the birthday boy's lovely wife and precious son |
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| party accoutrements |
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| the mcCabes know how to throw down |
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| cristin gave me a humongous treat that night-she lent me anne of green gables and i am most indebted to her for such a gift |
saturday night irene hit us with a few gusts of wind, a clap or two of thunder, innumerable rain drops, and an 8 hour power outage for china and me. the power came on in perfect God timing to allow us easy preparation for mass and a perfectly delightful stroll down west coming home to survey the damage myself.
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| west post-hurricane note the strewn branches |
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| my cinnamon babies took a few hits for the team but they were not overcome which we cannot say for some pansy tree branches thus making them even more impressive than ever |
i proceeded to indulge in tasting as much of the deliciousness of the post-hurricane beauty that was the weather this day. i did this outside under wind-induced whispering trees, eating yogurt with plenty o’ oreos, and catching up with someone i have wanted to see for a long time. another heaping bowl of soul food.
and, if you are not yet convinced that i have been immersed in goodness, all of my siblings and the little peach pie came to falls church for dinner. and we had a feast indeed.
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| i love our kitchen with my sisters and the sophia mess on the floor in it |
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| my lil kitchen helper and by helper i mean destroyer but she is welcome to dismember my kitchen any day |
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| the cuteness cannot be contained here she is having me kiss my cross and medals because she kisses anything with a cross or a picture of Jesus and our Lady on it because the cuteness will just not stop |
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| thank you so much for capturing these moments, li |
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| love feast |
the sky capped off the weekend with dessert for my eyes as i drove bubba to the metro station. i love you, bub!
onto more job hunting, more leaps into the unknown, and extra helpings of soul feasts. happy week to you all and to all a delicious, fresh from the oven serving of Love!
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| start the week off with a laugh |
and something to ponder from our wonderful Pope Benedict:
"The cross forces us to look upon the fact that we are loved by God"
i love that so much. i hope you do as well. peace of Christ be with you.
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