Tim Tebow Superbowl Ad

I find the controversy over the airing of Focus on the Family's pro-life ad featuring Tim Tebow and his mother very interesting.

I find myself asking what exactly is the objection? Here is a woman explaining how she chose life for her baby in spite of having been advised to abort. Isn't choice what the pro-abortion folks say it's all about?

I think what bothers them is that Tim Tebow will be standing there with his mother. Tim is the former fetus!! Now he is the Heisman Trophy winning Christian quarterback for the Florida Gators. There he will stand-- a real live human being, while his mother talks of the recommendation made to her that he be aborted.

I think the complainers are outraged that the connection will be made that an abortion ends a life-- a human life, and that every abortion that is not done results in a human being who will make a contribution to the world. In the case of Tim Tebow, the contribution is that of an outstanding athlete contributing to the world of football-- no small contribution in the eyes of the millions of football loving viewers of the Superbowl.

The ad, I imagine, will also bring to mind the idea that in the question of whether to abort or keep a baby there might actually be one choice that is better than the other. If one choice is better, obviously the one that gives the baby life, the suggestion remains on the table that maybe the question of abortion is actually a moral question. Maybe there is a right and a wrong choice. Maybe abortion is the wrong choice. Maybe it isn't just a matter of what the woman decides. Maybe one decision is better than the other. Maybe there IS a right and a wrong here. Maybe a woman who aborts her baby has done something wrong. Maybe a country such as ours that allows the killing of unborn children is guilty of denying a fundamental right to utterly innocent human beings.

I think the feminist pro-aborts are afraid that women who have had abortions will see this ad and it will cause them pain. Some of the pain will be feelings of guilt, shame, and regret. Such feelings could change the public discussion of abortion. It could encourage people to decide that abortion is indeed wrong and that we should rethink the issue.

I applaud Tim Tebow, his mother, and Focus on the Family for having the courage to do this and I look forward to seeing the ad. It will only be speaking the truth about one woman, her baby, (now the football star) and the choice she made for life. I say let the opponents shriek. I'm sure it will be a beautiful celebration of life.

President Obama's State of the Union address

Any thoughts on Obama's speech last night? (Did anybody see his speech last night? Anybody care about it?)

I was not impressed with the President's speech. I found it uninspiring and sometimes even irritating.

His chiding of the republicans for only saying no, implying that they were not being bi-partisan had to have some members of congress grinding their teeth. Only saying no? Not offering bi-partisan cooperation? This from the party that has systematically excluded all republicans from the negotiating process for the health care reform bill. They were not even allowed in the room!!! What unbelievable gall for the president to imply that it was the fault of the republican party that an agreement could not be reached. It also implies the lie that the democrats keep repeating-- that the republicans have no ideas for health care reform. They have plenty of ideas. It's just that the democrats will not listen to what they have to say nor even allow them to join the discussion table. Fortunately, this arrogance has now backfired on them.

I also thought it quite inappropriate for the President to publicly criticize a ruling of the Supreme Court, especially in a State of the Union address. Juan Williams on Fox News noted this saying that he was concerned about the separation of powers and the possibility of the executive branch exercising pressure on the court. I don't think I've ever heard a President publicly criticize a recent court decision in the presence of the judges. It kind of smacked of more power grabbing to me.

How about the tone of the speech? Obama seemed smug to me. (as in Merriam Webster's third definition for the word-- "highly self-satisfied." ) I acknowledge that appearances can be deceiving and that may not be what is in his heart.

Any thoughts?

More March and Washington pictures

Mary, Anne, Liz, and Jim in front of the White House...

And on the steps of the Supreme Court. May the Lord guide those justices!

The Capital...On the back of my sign I added the words, "Obama, Reid, Pelosi, can you hear us now?"

Hundreds of thousands of people crying out for the unborn. And yet the powers that be still don't seem to get it. I do, however, think that the tide may be starting to turn.
May the Lord have mercy on our country.

Pictures of the March

We awoke on the morning of the March to pouring rain. A steady downpour. Hourly weather predictions showed rain all day long, possibly changing to freezing rain or snow. chance of precipitation? 90%. We were prepared. We had hand and foot warmers, umbrellas, and our warmest coats, scarves, and gloves.

As we left my friend Nan's home to drive to the metro the rain was changing to sleet and ice.

When we emerged from the Metro there was nothing coming down. It had stopped completely. AND it did not start again for the entire March. In fact, it felt rather warm, I thought. I never used the hand and foot warmers. I didn't even wear my mittens at all for the first few hours.

I felt very strongly that God was blessing the March. It almost seemed miraculous.

Below is pictured a group of people carrying a giant rosary, maybe 20 feet long or more? Definitely the longest rosary I've ever seen in my life. Maybe people marching were saying the rosary.

Below are the signs my daughter Anne and I made.
More on the March and our trip tomorrow.

Well, we made it. Headache taken care of and after three hours or so of driving in the freezing rain we have arrived at my dear friend Nan's home. And she had a hot pan of zucchini lasagna waiting for us! Delicious.

Now I'm just trying to wind down before I sleep.

The trip, in spite of the treacherous driving conditions, was surprisingly peaceful.

Thanks for all your prayers.

This morning I have woken up with a splitting headache. The pain was so great that going over speedbumps while driving my daughter to school brought tears to my eyes. I hope I will still be able to leave for the March. Definitely will not be able to finish the running around I was hoping to be able to do this morning.

Strong coffee and three motrin seem to be helping.....

Preparing for the March

March for Life-- Anybody going?

(last year's march)

We are in full swing now getting ready to leave tomorrow for the March in Washington. This year all my girls will come as well as my youngest son (Jim, Suzanne).

I'd love to meet anybody from the blogosphere who's going to attend. If I've "known" you for a while we can exchange cell numbers if you email me.

Last year I had the pleasure of meeting Denise from Catholic Matriarch in my Domestic Church. she is just as interesting in person as she is on her blog.

Tonight Anne (oldest daughter) is coming over to make signs. I'll pick the kids up from school about noon (right after Jim and Mary's finals) and we'll leave for the nine hour trip from there. This year we made an appointment to meet with a staff member at our legislator's office. Liz's classic question--- "You're not going to yell at him, are you, Mom??!" I assured her I would not and that I would be very respectful. (We have a very pro-abortion congressman.) Let's hope I keep my promise. Ha!

May God bless the March for Life. Safe travels for everybody. And may he also bless the thousands of other local events all over the country. We can pray wherever we are. I ask a special blessing on the 24 hour prayer vigil at our local Planned Parenthood. We have always participated in that rosary vigil until last year when we first went to the March. God bless Ann C. for organizing it every year.

May the Lord have mercy on our country.

My Father's Birthday

Today would have been my father's birthday. The above photo is one of my favorites. It's taken in Northern Michigan where my father vacationed with us for many years. He was always so happy up there.

What do I most appreciate about my father?

My father was calm and steady, very reliable except in the area of punctuality, although he could be on time if the situation required it. He was very devoted to his family, always there for us. Both he and my mother never missed an event that was important to us kids. We knew he loved us. And we knew he loved our mother. She was in a nursing home with Alzheimer's for over ten years and my father visited her every day. When she could no longer feed herself which was pretty early on, he would feed her one meal, every day. For ten years. Yeah. That's commitment.

He loved his grandkids and he showed it. I think there was nothing he enjoyed more than listening to John play the piano. He could listen for hours. When we were up north and a local church gave John permission to play their grand piano during the day, my dad would go with John just to listen. The year he died it was very difficult for him to get up the 7 or 8 steps into the church. And, because of construction, there was no bathroom available. He went anyway and sat for several hours in the wooden pew just to hear John play. The Steinway sitting in our living room now is there in my dad's honor.

He went to nearly every one of John's competitions. John's usual fan club sitting there would be me, his teacher, and my dad. Afterwards, he had nothing but compliments for John. And then he would take us to McDonald's so John could have a milkshake. How these little acts of kindness and love form the fabric of our fondest memories.

He was conservative and staunchly pro-life. He had been involved in and very committed to the successful initiative in Michigan in the early seventies to have abortion declared illegal in Michigan. The initiative was successful and for a short time there were no legal abortions in Michigan. Then it was all overturned by Roe v. Wade. My father was livid that a group of unelected judges could overturn the will of the people.

My father suffered from heart disease for many years. After his heart attack at 59 he decided to eat a diet that included almost no fat. Now that I'm trying to eat a similar diet, I can appreciate what great self-discipline that required. He stuck to it. He was the model patient, walking every day and following his doctor's instructions to the letter. He lived another 2 decades after that heart attack, and didn't even die of heart disease. He was mentally and emotionally strong.

May my father rest in peace. May he be before the throne of Jesus even now. And may he know that we all really love him and miss him a lot.

Strength from adversity...

Here is my diehard snapdragon. It's still hanging on as it does every winter. As you can see the remaining blossoms are tissue paper thin and translucent. This plant continues to amaze me. Here it is in mid-January, having survived single digit temperatures. Leaves are still green. You can even still see the faint pink of its last blooms.

From the time it started blooming on its own between a rock and the wall, it has continued to be a metaphor for me of the strength that comes from adversity.

I am tired.

But I''m going to curves with my 15 year old daughter anyway. It will probably perk me up. Especially if she talks me into stopping at Starbucks on the way home. teehee

Tomorrow I'm subbing at my younger daughter's school. (anticipating more exhaustion:-) But this teacher does usually leaves very simple and good lesson plans. Maybe I'll even get a little reading in. That would be nice. I'm reading The Omnivore's Dilemma, a Christmas gift, recommended by my oldest son. It's interesting. I'm enjoying it.

And, once again, we're planning to attend the March for Life in Washington this year. Just talking about it at dinner tonight. Everyone is starting to get excited.

Witnesses to Hope Talks

I just realized you can listen to the Witness for Hope talks by downloading them to an Mp3 player or to your computer!!!!! Click on the link above in bold to take you there. As of this morning Sister Ann's talk is not yet up there, but the prior two are. I imagine Sister Ann Shield's will be there soon.....

Just thought you might like to know.

Witnesses to Hope

I went to a wonderful woman's event at my parish last night. It was called Witnesses to Hope and it's sponsored by the Servants of God's Love, an order of sisters who belong to our parish Christ the King, here in Ann Arbor.

What a lovely evening it was. The talk by Sister Ann Shields was just what I personally needed to hear. I went with a very dear friend Patti and we had a wonderful time driving there together and catching up on things.

This event is held bi-monthly and consists of a talk followed by dessert and fellowship. The Servants of God's Love do it all, and this is just one example of how appropriate is the name of their order.

I had so much fun. The talk was fabulous and the fellowship was something I guess I really needed. I haven't had so much fun with girlfriends in a very long time. (OK, with sisters in the Lord. You get the idea.:-) There was a lot of laughter, a lot of warmth and friendship. Pat, who often comments on this blog was there too. Pat, add your thoughts if you care to.

What a blessing this event is to our parish. The next will be held on March 15 at 7:30. If you live in SE Michigan you should come. Sister Dorcee Clarey, the order's superior, will be speaking. Sister Dorcee was my oldest son's first teacher after I stopped homeschooling him in 6th grade. She has a heart of gold. I'm looking forward to her message.

Sister Dorcee also has a blog called Witnesses to Hope. You can find it here. I only found this out last night. It will definitely be one of my regular reads. Check it out!

Sisters in Faith Award!!

Jean at Catholic Fire has given me the following award. I am honored, Jean, to receive this award from you. As many of you know, Jean's blog Catholic Fire has won the Best Overall Pro-Life Blog in the American Life League Awards. What a privilege to be considered Jean's Sister in the Lord.

If you want to know how you can support Jean in her efforts to get to Washington to receive her award please go here.

This award originated at Blessings For the Day.

The rules are as follows...

...as blog awards go, you are supposed to pass them on to others whom you feel represent the spirit of the award...

In this case, the instructions are:

1. To pass this award on to sisters who have been blogging with me from almost the beginning,

2. Include at least one new Sister In Faith.

I give this award to the following sisters....

To those I have blogged with since the beginning:

Deb at UKOK's Place

Mary Poppins Not at Crazy Acres

Salomeellen (whom I have actually met in person)

Suzanne at Suzanne's Shorelines (whom my son has actually met in person)

Mimi at Bigger Than a Breadbox

Denise at Catholic Matriarch in my Domestic Church (whom I have actually met in person)

Catholic Wife and Mother at Deo Gratias!

And a new sister in the faith....

Aussie Therese at Aussie Coffeeshop

Thank you to all my sisters in the faith, those listed here and so many more!!!

One Word Challenge

Sarah from So... This is the Road I'm Traveling On has started the following fun challenge. My word for Sarah was "genuine."

One Word Comment

Let's see how forthcoming my blog buddies are. Leave a ONE word comment that you think best describes me. It can only be one word. No more than one word. Then copy & paste this post on your blog so I can leave a word about you. This should be interesting...

If you care to join in, leave a word that describes me?

Schools are open...

No snow day. I'm disappointed. So are the kids.

Roads are described as slushy and/or snow-covered. I really wish schools would err more on the side of safety. I know it's a difficult decision to make. And they only have so many snow days allocated. Still....

There is a major accident on US23 southbound. Nine vehicles were involved. My kids drive up US23 northbound. If the accident were on the northbound I'd probably be trying to drive out there. Thankfully, Jim just texted me to say they arrived safely.

Above is my unofficial measure of how much snow we've received. Pretty much all of it has fallen in the last 24 hours.

Anyway, the kids and hubby are safe. I'm happy. God bless your day. Stay safe and warm. (Except those of you for whom that doesn't apply :-)

Christmas undecorating

I have not taken down a single Christmas decoration. I don't feel like it yet. The tree still looks lovely. It seems like I just put everything up. I'm in no rush. After all, yesterday was just the traditional day for the celebration of the Epiphany.

And I'm still tired. I don't want to take on another monumental task (like the putting up of the decorations). I'm still recovering from the whole celebration. Laundry still needs to be done. More tidying.

So. They're going to stay for a while. My John does teach piano lessons in my living room, though. By next Tuesday (the next lesson day) I suppose I'll look like a slouch if they're still up. Hmmmm. Maybe by then I'll take them down. And maybe not.

Weight Loss Wednesday

I haven't posted a weight loss Wednesday in a long time. I stopped because I wasn't making any progress and there wasn't anything to talk about.

I'm STILL not making any progress, but I have had a notable setback.

I gained FOUR pounds over Christmas. Now that may not sound like much to those of you who are 5 ft. 5 or 5 ft. 8, but for those of us around 5 feet tall four pounds is a lot.

My sister and I were terrible. We were egging each other on, enjoying the food together, and laughing and joking about our lack of self-control. We were a mess.

BUT!.....We did have a lot of fun. We laughed ourselves silly, and we ate a lot of good food.

Now it's back to reality.

26 years ago...

26 years ago, right around this date, I would have given birth to my first born child had he/she not died in utero. I miscarried this first baby. I was utterly grief stricken.

My consolation, though, was that my actual first-born, Michael, could not have been born had I not lost this first baby. Michael was born only seven months after the due date of this first baby whom we named Daniel.

I also lost another baby between my fourth child and my fifth. Eventually I purchased a mother's ring with the the two birthstones in it to remember the two children I never got to hold on Earth but will surely meet in Heaven. Daniel and Peter. They are remembered.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to all!!

I'm trying to get back to blogging. Since we made the reservations for Florida I feel like I've been on overdrive, frantically trying to keep up with Christmas, traveling, and guests.

Above is my family with Grandma whom we flew to Florida to visit. She had a tripod!! So we were able to take a picture of everyone together. This was 12/23. We took the picture in the morning, had an 8x10 print made at the drugstore in the afternoon. put it in a frame and gave it to her for Christmas that night when we had our Christmas dinner. I think she really liked it. Even the frame! She asked where we had gotten it. (the same drugstore:-)

I had very little done when we made these reservations. I did finish the Christmas shopping and with a lot of help got the decorations and the tree up. Then we went to Florida for 4 days. Came back on Christmas Eve on the same airlines and to the same airport (Detroit) that the "crotch bomber" came in on a day later. That felt a little close.

On Christmas my brother and his family came over for dinner, And my friend Sandy (daughter of my mother's old roommate in the nursing home whom I met by a coincidence too unlikely to not be providential) came over too. Anne, who had to work came over later with her fiance Zach.

The next day was my sweet daughter Mary's birthday! Also, my sister and her two sons arrived and were able to stay until the second. It was great so spend time with them.

And my oldest son Mike stayed through New Year's too. It was wonderful.

So, I've been busy enjoying family and never even got near my computer since my last post. Now, I'm feeling pretty tired but trying to get back on track.

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and my you all have a Blessed New Year!!

Sitting in the Orlando airport with 1.5 hours before our flight and free wifi!!! Wooohoooo!!! God is good.

We had a really nice visit with Grandma. I sure wish she'd move back to Michigan where we could see her more often, help her when she needs it, and be sure she stays safe. She falls with some frequency. Fortunately, she does wear an alarm button thing. Still, what if she hit her head or fell on her arm and couldn't hit the button? Not to mention that the fall itself is dangerous. She hasn't broken anything yet. But her mind is sharp and she wants to stay where she is. I guess it is her right to live with that risk. God bless her and keep her safe.

Four of our guys stayed at a local hotel on the beach, and the rest of us stayed with Mom. (the girls, Mike and me). The hotel pool was very warm and was a great and welcome relief to the daredevils who swam and frolicked in the very cold ocean. The girls always wear goggles at home when they swim but did not bring them on this trip. Liz's eyes were apparently very sensitive to chlorine.

Her eyes were so irritated one night she was in tears. Someone had already left to buy her some drops. Liz is often a little dramatic about physical pain. "My eyes hurt!!!" She moaned as if in agony. (I'm sure they did hurt a lot.) "Honey, the drops will be here soon. Do you want a wet paper towel to put over them while you keep them closed?" "That won't help!"

"OK," I said. Well there's nothing else I can do.

"I can't see!!!!" she exclaims. "Everything is all blurry!!!"

"Sweetie, that's because you're eyes are all teary and the tears are blurring your vision."

"I'm going blind!!!

I'm chuckling. "You're not going blind."

Nurse Anne arrives with the drops. "Anne, I'm going blind!" Liz pronounces.

With all the authority of her one year of nursing experience Anne says definitively, "You're not going blind." Thankfully, this prognosis was believed.

Within minutes of getting the drops and 5 or 10 minutes of ribbing by a brother, she was fine. Vision restored!!!

We could not resist an occasional "little blind girl" joke for the rest of the evening. Liz thought they were funny too, now that she could recognize she may have overreacted just a little.

May the Lord keep safe all those who are traveling this Christmastime, especially those dealing with the blizzard conditions.

Merry Christmas!

We made it! Florida!

Well, we made it. After waiting for takeoff for an hour on the runway in Detroit, we made our connecting flight in Atlanta with only five minutes to spare. It was a little tense but happily we boarded just in time.

I finished all my Christmas shopping before we left and have wrapped all but a couple presents.

My three sons, who came on a flight a few hours later than ours, successfully organized the thirty some items from the giving tree we hosted at our church and delivered them all to the needy family along with everything they'll need for Christmas dinner. A woman is blessed to have sons like these.

Florida is so beautiful. Grandma is doing OK. She was very happy to see us all. We will celebrate our Christmas with her tomorrow. It's good to see her.
She is a few miles from the beach and that's where we spend quite a bit of our time. This year, because of numbers, the young guys (18-25 year olds) are in a hotel and the rest of us with Grandma.
Anne's fiance Zach was able to come along and that makes the ENTIRE family down here. I absolutely love it. For four days we are all together!!
Walking the beach is one of our favorite activities....
And there are always a few adventurers who will brave the ocean regardless of the outside temperature. I think it was about 65 here. No complaints about the weather here!

A congratulatory high five!
Then my rugby playing future son-in-law wowed us with this awesome cannonball in the hotel pool
Here they are--my six, and the seventh-to-be, Zach, on the left.

I have a few minutes now on the hotel wifi to catch up on my blog reading.

God bless you all in these last few days before the great celebration of our Savior's Birth!

Busy, busy

Oh boy. It's not going to all get done. It's OK. I'm tired.

I'm looking at a pile of Christmas cards. I have not finished one of them. And it's a photo card. Liz has put all the return addresses on and stamped them all. But I have yet to write even one.

However, I am ALMOST finished with all the Christmas shopping and the wrapping is about 2/3 complete.

Tomorrow I need to call all those who signed up for the giving tree we're hosting and ask them to please bring their gifts in on the 20th so we can deliver them on that day, before we all leave. I'm trying not to think too much about what to do if they aren't all there. I guess I should have a contingency plan. After all, those kids need to get their presents.

The tree is up and there are lights on it, but no ornaments. Most of the other decorations are also not up yet. Oh dear.

Liz has a music ministry rehearsal tomorrow. She and I have just finished writing in a cello line of music on several of the songs.

Two of my children are in the Christmas play at their high school. Jim has a main part. Three performances. God bless my husband for running to Meijers at 10:00 PM to get the two liter bottles of pop they need for the cast meal.

But I am relatively calm. God is giving me peace (relative to the stress, if you know what I mean.) Lord, may I finish what you want me to finish. May I not neglect my time with you. May I let go of what simply won't get done. And remember to love. (And ask for help from my family---which I have been doing :-)

I am preparing for the celebration of the birth of the Prince of Peace. May I never forget that. Come, Lord Jesus.

It's SOOO cold

Oh my goodness. It is so cold here. It snuck up on us. It was so mild up till now we were unprepared for the blast.

It's 14 degrees on my porch. The local mall says 7.

It's your breath freezing in your nose kind of cold. Chilled to the bone kind of cold-- even in the arctic parka. LOL

It's so cold I actually RAN from my car into Meijers. Weather that can make me run? Now that is REALLY COLD.

Stay Warm!!

The pressure's on...

We worked for hours online yesterday trying to get reservations for 9! to fly to Florida for a few days to see Grandma over the holidays. You can only book 6 at a time so we tried to coordinate it on 2 computers. The reservation for 3 went through and the one for 6 did not!!

It took 3 hours to get flights for the six! Finally we got it several hours apart and different airlines. Fortunately, we booked the three boys together, including Mike who has a lot of traveling experience.

I guess we'll meet there!

Then, while trying to calm down from the stress of wondering if only a couple members of the family would make it to visit Grandma, I suddenly realized how little time I have to get everything else done. Yikes, I was up for another couple hours thinking of how I was going to make this happen, how things could be simplified, etc.

Somehow it will work. Not everything will be done. It's OK. Preparing our hearts for the Lord, loving Him and loving each other is what it's all about, right? Yup. I'm OK.

His mercy is new every morning.

I love the color of twilight and predawn skies. This window is in my living room and I was so enjoying the hue of the sky the other morning. (The "Michigan" tapestry is over the piano. We had to get one of these when John started at U of M. And the piano did need some warmth.)

This is the view from my bedroom window. I know it's not much of a view. but I don't see the rooftops. I see the sky. Sometimes I am reminded of the Canticle of Zechariah.

In the tender compassion of our God

the dawn from on high shall break upon us,

To shine on those who dwell in darkness

and the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

His mercies are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness. (Not sure where the Scripture reference is :-)
Have a blessed day!!

Sam's Club Shopping

Yesterday, in spite of my feeling rotten, I had a pleasant trip to Sam's Club.

First, the Lord blessed me with a great parking spot right nest to the cart corral.

I did not forget my list, thanks be to God.

I found everything I was looking for. I noticed the lemon juice which I needed but did not have on the list.

John called right while I was there and so I was able to get him a few things he needed. Lots of mom satisfaction there.

And when I had emptied the car and put everything away I didn't feel a lot worse than when I started. Good day. Good shopping trip, especially considering the headache, the fatigue, etc. God is good.

The President's speech at West Point

I just finished watching the President's speech while blogging. OK. I was mostly blogging and the President was speaking in the background.

I don't understand the dog and pony show of speaking at West Point. Well, I think I do understand. He wanted to capitalize on the image of the military clapping for him, which of course they would do out of respect, regardless of what he said. Do you think?

Why didn't he speak from his desk in the Oval Office like a serious commander in chief. Instead, he wasted the taxpayers money by flying to West point for what looks like nothing more than political grandstanding. We shouldn't have to pay for that.

It's very transparent and almost embarrassing.

Thanksgiving Pix

We had a really fun Thanksgiving this year. We had 20 people for dinner (including us) and everyone was looking forward to it.

All my children were home. Doesn't get any better than that.

Below: A family game of Settlers of Catan. Fun game!!

Our kitchen/dining area could stand a little more room! It did work though. And the Cousinos and Simkins didn't mind a bit. It's so pleasant to celebrate with easy-going people.

Anne with fiance Zach whose family joined us.

Dear friend Patti came with some of her kids.

Zach's parents on the far left....I love great conversation with strong pro-life Christians.

And what was really amazing and delightful about this group was the predominance of young people. Fifteen of the twenty here were under about twenty-five. That made for lots of energy, lots of laughter, and lots of fun.
We had a wonderful Thanksgiving and I hope you all did too.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

On this eve of Thanksgiving I am thinking of all that I am grateful for.

There are, of course, the big things-- for my life and those of my loved ones, for my country, my faith, for the wonder of creation, for the EUCHARIST, for this day.....

And then there are the handful of random little things I'm thinking of right now.

I'm grateful....

that we will have a house full of people for Thanksgiving dinner-- maybe as many as 23, actually,

that all of my children will be here and Anne's fiance Zach and his family too, as well as one of my best friends and some of her children,

that I have quite a few things done already,

that my husband has a job and that we will have a nice dinner,

that my oldest son will be here pretty soon,

that I can listen to my son John playing the piano right now, and for how often I am able to hear his music,

that everyone is excited about tomorrow and that it will be so much fun,

that none of the people coming are fussy so I don't have to worry about how my house looks or if everything is perfect. They're just good company type people, you know?

that I have blogging friends who haven't given up on me, even though I've been writing rather irregularly lately,

that my bed is comfortable and warm and soon I will be in it :-)

Happy Thanksgiving!!!! God is good. Always!

Was Major Hasan a terrorist? Someone who commits an act of terror is a terrorist.

Oh dear, it's Friday already and I haven't posted since Tuesday. OK. Here's a quick thought.

In regard to the question of whether or not the attack at Fort Hood was terrorism, I am reminded of an incident that happened many years ago. My oldest son was about 4 or 5, his brother was a toddler. I was in the other room.

Suddenly, John started crying. I ran in to the living room to see John picking himself up off the ground. Mike was standing nearby looking guilty. I turned to Mike and asked firmly, "Why is he crying?" Mike's response, "I don't know." I turned to John. "What's wrong?" John says through his tears, "Mike pushed me down." I turned back to Mike, "Why are telling me you don't know why he's crying. You know exactly why he's crying."

Mike replied without missing a beat, "I didn't know if he was crying because I pushed him, or if it was because he got hurt when he fell." He said this with a completely straight face.

I was so taken aback I burst out laughing and told him he should be a lawyer.

Now, back to the horrible tragedy at Fort Hood. Major Hasan called on the name of Allah before he started shooting. He had ties to a radical imam. And he killed thirteen people and injured many others.

Is he a terrorist? I'd say. To those who say, well, maybe he was mentally ill I would say that clearly all terrorists have broken with a normal sense of reality. He was upset about his impending deployment? Yeah? How does that explain an act of violence?

He was a terrorist!!! I don't care if he had overseas ties or not. So what?

You can take whatever angle you want. He was a radical Muslim and he was a terrorist. I don't see any other way to look at it.

Amelia Earhart in Fort Wayne, IN

My new e-friend, Susan from Fort Wayne, IN, continues to investigate Amelia Earhart's visit to Fort Wayne. Since her discovery of the 1935 letter written by my father to "Miss Earhart," I continue to be fascinated by the details of her speaking engagement in Fort Wayne and how my father must have experienced it.

I hope Susan will not mind my copying here the results of her latest research at the Fort Wayne Public Library. Susan edited these texts herself and has compiled a very interesting set of paragraphs that allows one to really visualize what this visit from the famous aviator was like. For me, it is especially intriguing because it allows me to visualize the evening when my father, no doubt with great excitement, hoped he would be able to obtain Amelia Earhart's autograph.

MARCH 20th, 1935

Published in the Fort Wayne News Sentinel and the Fort Wayne Journal AMELIA EARHART’S VISIT TO FORT WAYNE, INDIANA
Gazette…


From March 14th, 1935…

“…Arrangements for Miss Amelia Earhart’s visit to Fort Wayne on Wednesday were completed as a meeting of Pi Chapter of the Psi Iota Xi Sorority Monday evening…the world-famous aviatrix will speak at the Shrine Auditorium here Wednesday evening under the auspices of the sorority on the subject ‘Adventures in the Air’.

…Tickets may be obtained from members of the sorority today and Wednesday, and will also be on sale in downtown stores and in the offices of the three public high schools and of Central Catholic High School….the box office will be opened at 7 o’clock, and the doors to the auditorium will be opened at 7:45 o’clock. Because of the large number of persons desiring to attend Lenten services in the Lutheran and Catholic churches in the city on Wednesday evening, the lecture will not begin until 8:45 o’clock. A 10-piece orchestra under the direction of Gaston Bailhe will present an hour’s program of music preceding the talk. An amplifying system has been installed in the theatre.

…Miss Earhart will be the honored guest at a banquet to be given at the Town House preceding the lecture, at which 50 members of the sorority will be guests…”



***************************************************************



From the Journal-Gazette, March 20, 1935—morning edition—

“ ‘The stratosphere is the new frontier in aviation”, Amelia Earhart, world-famous aviatrix, declared here today in an interview in which she talked modestly, intelligently and cleverly on subjects ranging from the Far North to hot dogs, and from books to rocket planes.
Miss Earhart will speak at the Shrine Auditorium tonight at 8:45 o’clock under the auspices of Pi Chapter of Psi Iota Xi Sorority on ‘Adventures in the Air’.
‘Yes, I’ve read all the books husband (George Palmer Putnam, of the famous publishing family in New York) has written, but I wouldn’t admit it to him,’ she said, laughing. ‘I’m fond of books, and he’s an aviation fan, and we have lots of plans for our future together.’
Miss Earhart, tall and lanky, even as Lindbergh, but trimly attired in a three-piece tailored brown suit, with dark brown and white polka-dot blouse, and brown strap slippers, ran her fingers through her slightly-tousled, short-cut hair as she answered—rapid-fire—the questions put to her.
‘Have I ever thought of interstellar and interplanetary flying?’ she repeated. ‘Well, I do know there is a group of persons now working on a rocket-type plane, and I feel sure that something will be accomplished in that direction, too.
Miss Earhart’s eyes sparkled when it was mentioned that her husband has proved an excellent expeditionist of no small importance, and has written numerous articles and books on his trips into Greenland and to Baffin Island.
‘He went in a whaleboat, and he charted an island that had not been known to be in existence before,’ she declared proudly. A soft smile emerged. ‘Do you know something we still hope to do together sometime? We have it down on our calendar for something very pleasant in the future. We would like to take an expedition North together and take a plane along.’
When something was mentioned about her attending a supper party at a downtown night club tonight after the lecture, she asked, ‘Would there be spotlights and all that sort of thing? Then, instead, let’s go to a hot dog stand or someplace where we can get a soda or hot chocolate. I’ll treat you all to hot dogs.’
Miss Earhart believes in woman’s rights. ‘I don’t believe in saying that women can’t do a certain thing or take up a certain line of work, until they have tried it,’ Miss Earhart said. ‘On the other hand, I wouldn’t say that women could do everything until experiments have been made and results studied. In another hundred years, I think we’ll know whether a woman is able to carry on the same pursuits as a man, for she will have tried and the results will have been studied.’
‘And, by the way, she called, as we left her room in the hotel. ‘Please refer to me as Amelia Earhart, not as Mrs. Putnam. I don’t believe even my husband ever introduced me as Mrs. Putnam.’


**********************************************************


From the News-Sentinel, March 21st, 1935:


(headline) AIRPLANES SAFER THAN MOTORCARS, SAYS MISS EARHART
IN LECTURE HERE

…With the disarming simplicity which is great art, Miss Amelia Earhart, America’s first lady of the air, spoke at the Shrine Auditorium Wednesday night. Her talk, a detailed and fascinating description of her recent solo flight across the Pacific, was sponsored by Pi chapter of the Psi Iota Xi sorority.
First, Miss Earhart made friends with her audience. Then she took them with her on what is the most spectacular flight ever made by a woman. With her, they set clocks at zero, drank tomato juice from a tin can, watched the instrument board through the long night hours, and touched stars.


Gamin-like, Miss Earhart good-naturedly poked fun at over-anxious counselors, emotional radio announcers and picnic lunches. But she never poked fun at flying.

…the two-thirds of a transoceanic flight which is preparation, according to Miss Earhart, developed into a novel, often humorous narrative….during the talk, the speaker quieted some of the rumors which had arisen concerning her Pacific flights. She was never off course, she was never lost in the fog, and she did not say she was growing tired. These reports she attributed to bad reception of her broadcasts and an emotional radio announcer.
‘I did not make the flight because I was bored with my husband, as some news stories reported. I cannot feel that 18 hours alone over the Pacific would be a remedy in such a case but I give you the suggestion for what it is worth.’
‘I have been asked what I thought about, what my reactions were, as I made the take-off on my last flight,’ she continued. ‘No pilot sits and takes his pulse. He has too much work to do to bother much about his ‘insides’—mental or physical.’
Movingly the flyer described the beauty of the moonlit clouds, the stars seemingly hung outside the cockpit window, and the terrible brilliance of sunrise from a high altitude. ‘The lure of flying is the lure of beauty,’ she said.
In the give-and-take of an informal question –and-answer period following her talk, Miss Earhart delighted her hearers with her ready and witty answers. The large audience which attended the talk gave her a heartwarming ovation at the close.


***************************************************************

From a pre-lecture interview at the Keenan Hotel:

‘Preparatory to going to a formal dinner preceding her talk at the Shrine Auditorium Wednesday night, she wore a formal gown of dark brown net, with a …flare below the knees and a long sheath-like skirt. Her dinner jacket was of matching brown taffeta, and with an…ascot of beige silk.
…Her graciousness included autograph seekers, photographers and two young men who wished to interview her for high school papers. She answered her telephone herself, made her own appointments. She replied to oft-asked questions patiently and fully and with a sense of humor.
She will…accept the invitation of the Mexican government to fly to Mexico, and will probably make the flight solo. She enjoys the present series of speaking engagements because, in spite of her reputation of going it alone, she likes people. She much prefers traveling by plane and would have flown her ship here had it not been kept in the east for installation of a compass.
She poses for photographs easily and well, and when complimented, replies that she comes from those parts where leaning seems easier than standing. Those parts, it seems, are Kansas.

Thank you, Susan, for sharing your work with me and the readers of this blog. I love it.

I am too tired to write. Still here. Everything's OK. I just need some sleep. I'll write tomorrow.

The Earhart Letter

In reference to Wednesday's post....

Susan, from Fort Wayne Indiana, has discovered that Amelia Earhart did visit Fort Wayne on March 20, 1935, the very day my father wrote to "Miss Earhart" asking for her autograph. If you want to see the original letter you can find it here.

My father was fascinated with aviation. I remember he had an old photograph, framed mind you, of the first plane he had ever flown in. And the tone of his voice when he would tell us that this was his first airplane ride made it very clear that this was an earthshaking event in his life. He absolutely loved to fly!!

When he was about to turn 50 he told our family that he wanted to do something new and adventurous. He was trying to decide if he should buy a motorcycle or take flying lessons. We told him to take flying lessons!!! (Although the motorcycle idea sounded fun too.) He did take the flying lessons. He earned his private pilot's license and was an excellent pilot. (Soon I will write about my first experience in a plane with my dad as the pilot.)

OK. Back to Amelia Earhart. Here is the text of my father's letter, dated March 20, 1935, and hand written.

Dear Miss Aerhart,

I hope you will sign the page of my autograph book that I am enclosing in this letter, for you did not the night I met you. I have red hair, glasses, a tan suit, and black shoes. I hope you will remember me with this
description.

Yours truly,

Richard Bailhe

Did you notice he misspelled Earhart? Clearly he wrote this on his own.

Susan has told me that when Amelia Earhart visited Fort Wayne on March 20, 1935, my grandfather, who was a violinist and a conductor, gave a concert with a 10 piece orchestra. I'm wondering if it was because of my grandfather's involvement in the event that my father had hoped he could obtain Amelia Earhart's autograph. He does say in his letter that he met her. Maybe he asked for her autograph and she was too busy talking to people to notice? Can you see the little redhead, all dressed up in his tan suit and eyes sparkling with excitement, reaching up to her with his autograph book?

Maybe this little boy, already fascinating with airplanes, was utterly crushed that he had not gotten her autograph the one time in his life when he would have had the opportunity. Had he been looking forward to the day of her visit with eager anticipation, knowing he might be able to get her autograph? Did he even assume, as innocent children do, that he would get her autograph? Was the letter written in tears of disappointment? It was pretty direct and to the point. (Is there even a very mild and veiled tone of chastisement that she didn't sign it the night he asked? teehee)

Since he wrote the letter the day of her visit and he says he met her, he must have at least shaken her hand. My dad had flaming red hair. I bet she remembered that little red-headed boy. Maybe she even remembered the autograph request. Maybe she felt bad that with all the people, etc. she had not been able to stop and sign his book. She did save the letter. It was with her things donated to Purdue University and now in their archives. Or....she might have had lots of piles of papers and this letter just happened to be in the pile.

In any event, my family is left with the question of whether or not she sent back the autograph. If she did, do any of us have it? Is it in a book somewhere? Could such a treasured signature have been lost over the years? Sure. Anything can get lost. If we should find it, you will certainly hear about it.

Letter to Amelia Aerhart?

I have been having the most fascinating correspondence with a woman from Fort Wayne Indiana, Susan. Susan contacted me because she was doing some research on Amelia Earhart and happened to discover in the Purdue University Archives a letter from a little boy asking "Miss Earhart" for her autograph. The little boy's name was Richard Bailhe.

Curious about this child, Susan googled his name and my blog came up. Those of you who have been friends with me for a while will remember that I wrote quite a bit about my father as he was dying almost three years ago now. So Susan emailed me to ask if the little boy was my father.

Well, he is!! I had never heard about this letter and I don't believe my father ever mentioned it. Course, he was only ten at the time. Maybe he didn't remember having written it either. I want to write more about this later. It's like a piece of history just jumped out of time for me to see. Many thanks to Susan for contacting me.

The letter is here. More on this later....

Everybody OK, so far...

OK. We're all better, even Liz. She was sick 3-4 days, starting with a fever and a little bit of a cough with some congestion. A friend of mine who is a doctor said that they're calling those symptoms swine flu because every time they culture for it it's coming back positive.

So. We were lucky. I'm assuming everyone in the the family has been exposed now to a touch of it. May be we'll have some immunity now? Dr. Lisa says not necessarily. Still, I'm hoping.

I'm keeping Coldeeze in a dish on the table like dinner mints. No one eats them like candy. They're not that good. But I do feel like I've warded off a number of sore throats by sucking on those babies when my throat first gets a little scratchy. The kids do it too. Actually I think it's been documented that the zinc in Coldeeze can prevent microorganisms from reproducing in your throat. Isn't that it? Anyway, a few disappear a day and we're doing OK.

Our grade school opened again yesterday. I'm so glad everyone had a chance to go home and get well. After all, their health is a lot more important than the academics. I think it was a good call.

Hope you're all well!! Thank you all so much for the prayers.

Well, my children's school is shut down for the week because of "widespread flu-like symptoms." Thirty percent of the school was out. Some classes only had 50 % attendance. Looked like Liz was going to have a fun week until, the very next day, she came down with the symptoms too. So far so good, though. We're taking Airborne (including Liz). Fever is down this morning and so far no one else is sick, although I feel like I might be fighting it. Go immune system go.

I'm glad the school made this decision, even though it's the last week of the quarter. For heaven's sakes, the health of the kids is more important than keeping to the schedule. I applaud their priorities.

My oldest two children (adults) are in France!! My grandfather was a French immigrant and they have long wanted to visit France. I'm so excited for them. We have distant relatives there and they hope to visit them along with Lourdes, Paris, and a number of other places. Ten days in France!

Well, hope you all are healthy or trying to stay so. Winter approaches here. We could get snow today. It's the beginning of the sniffles (and worse) season. Take care.

All Souls' Day

May the souls of all the faithful departed rest in peace.

And may we never presume that our departed loved ones are no longer in need of prayer.

Best Costume

One of my adult children's friends has a Halloween party every year. All good Catholic adult kids (if you know what I mean), they all loved this costume of Mike's pictured below.

Do you know what he is? A Confessional. It's a box covered with brown fabric. The square opening is covered with several layers of regular window screen. On the side he had wired a red and green light. When he was talking to someone he would turn on the red light. If he was free "to talk" he'd turn on the green light. When he was dancing he'd alternate the red and green lights to the rhythm of the music.

He won first prize. I thought it was hilarious. LOL

Happy All Saints' Day!!!!