The Shard

One of the most amazing experiences I had while in London was visiting the View from the Shard.

The Shard is the tallest building in Western Europe at 87 stories.  800 feet all and designed by Renzo Piano, The Shard opened February 1, 2013 so it's a new London attraction.  You can see that it looks like an enormous shard of glass.  At the top there is a large viewing area-- all glass.

 It's a magnificent building.  Gorgeous, really.  But that is not what made my experience of it amazing.

As those of you who have read this blog for many years know, I have suffered from anxiety in the past.

While, for the most part, anxiety is no longer a problem in my life, there are still some areas where the feeling lingers.  One such area is my experience of heights.  I have been afraid of heights for many years.  I've been able to fly in spite of this fear, but in other areas I simply avoid the experience.  I don't need to be able to feel comfortable in high places so it's not something I've ever tried to overcome.

Well, imagine my reaction when my daughter announces that she and my husband have just purchased tickets for all of us to go up to the observation tower of this glass building-- The View from the Shard.

I said, "What?"  You bought a ticket for ME to go to the top of that thing?  Me?!??  How much were the tickets?"

Well, it turns out each ticket was about $50.00!!!!  My response:  "What!!!!???"

The Lord seems to be calling me to challenge my comfort zone.  I have done many things this summer that were very much a challenge.  So let me first acknowledge God's grace and His hand in this.

But on the surface it seemed that my desire to not waste all that money overcame my fear of the height, but not by much.  Frankly, I was terrified.

We took the elevator which felt like a rocket up to the first observation landing and got out.  It was a bright sunny day and the view was spectacular.  My entire body went cold.  Have you heard the expression that someone's blood has run cold?  Well, that's what it felt like.  Ice water running through my veins.  Then some wooziness and shortness of breath.  I reminded myself to just breathe.  Breathe.  Breathe slowly and mindfully.  That's as far as it went.  I enjoyed the views in spite of the sensations and in about ten minutes all those feelings left me.  This was a minor miracle.  I had never been to the top of a lighthouse, much less an 87 story building made of glass.  There was a bar up there selling champagne, a reminder to me that I am not the only one who has feelings like these.  Too bad I don't drink.  Champagne would have tasted great.  On the other hand, the victory was sweeter for having been unaided.

Me, with the "conquered" building in the background.

I actually enjoyed these views!!!

Looking up at the open sky here did make make me a little weak kneed, but not so much that I couldn't do it.

Tremendous views, tremendously empowering experience.

God is good.  All the time.

Trip to London!

So, yes, we did attend John's graduation in London.  And since it was his graduation, we did take our youngest two children along. (17 yo and 19 yo)  John's older brother Mike and sister Anne with her husband Zach also came to London and met us there, along with my sister and her two sons.  And since we had traveled all the way across the Atlantic, we also took four days to spend in Paris and about four days to spend in Ireland.  I'e always wanted to go to Ireland and since we were so close.....well, we just had to go.

In London we stayed at a very simple and affordable Bed & Breakfast, the Saint David's Hotel.  It was close to the tube stop as well as the bus stop.  The people running it were very helpful and kind.  And they gave me a full, hot, gluten free breakfast every morning!!  They knew about gluten.  They were careful, and I felt very confident eating their delicious breakfast.  It was a very good stay.

In London we visited the Royal Academy of Music (John's school) and attended the graduation there, of course.  The musical preludes were excellent, needless to say.  When they played "God Save the Queen" to open the ceremony my family members all looked at each other, unsure of what to do.  Do we join in?  Do we stand there rebelliously silent?  Do we sing "My Country Tis of Thee" (jk)  In the end, I think we kind of hummed along quietly.

I was quite sure that I had successfully videotaped John receiving his diploma but no such luck.  Not sure what I did wrong.

Only four of us could attend the actual graduation ceremony so Mike and I and John's two oldest siblings attended.  All the rest of the family joined us at the reception afterwards.  John's many international friends seemed impressed that he had 11 family members in London for the event.  Not sure how we even did it.

The Royal Academy of Music is a very beautiful school.  The graduation was at an old church across the street and the reception was in a lovely room at the Academy.  There was a stage at one end where John had played his master's recital and so I was able to picture the setting that had been the subject of so many of my prayers.  I had really wanted to be there.  On the stage was a magnificent organ, a gift from The Academy's most famous student who never graduated, Elton John.

Here are John and a few of his friends tossing their Grad caps in front of Elton John's gift!

More to come!!

Our graduation season has come to a close.  The four graduations are completed!  Here is the synopsis.

Our high school graduate....

And college graduate......

Our son with a masters.....

And our son-in-law with a doctorate....

It was quite a year.

One graduation here.  One in Dallas.  One in Atlanta.  One in London.  We HAD to go to them all, right?  I mean....they're graduations!!!!

And a high school graduation in this area means a big party for well over a hundred people, lots of year end concerts, events, etc.....

I told myself that when it was all over I was going to sleep for a week.  I haven't.  I'm just functioning in a very tired state.  Very tired.

That being said, it was a wonderful season!!  So much to be thankful for.  So much to be proud of.  So much satisfaction at seeing the results of our children's hard work.  Good stuff!!

(And BTW, those two medals around Zach's neck represent two national rugby championships.  Yes, he's quite a rugby player)

OK.  Enough bragging?  Pretty proud of these young people!!!

I'm sitting in an airport while my daughter takes her first flying lesson in the air.

Yes, flying lesson.  She wants to be a pilot.  She's already taken ground school and now she's starting the actual flight training.

I'm calmer than I thought I would be.  The instructor looked EXTREMELY young but he seemed competent and professional.  I almost asked him how old he was but thankfully realized that would not be appropriate.  The older I get, the less I care about appropriateness.  Still, glad I didn't embarrass my daughter.

When she first announced she wanted to be a pilot I was very surprised and wondered where the interest came from.  Then I remembered that my husband has always been interested in planes and my father was a private pilot, having long been interested in aviation.  I guess it's in her genes.  She was always a roller coaster girl, anxiously waiting until she was tall enough for the scariest rides at Cedar Point.  I, on the other hand, get dizzy just watching those rides from the ground.

I wonder how much longer she'll be up there.  I'm going outside to watch for her......

Well, she's back.  She's on the ground and obviously had the time of her life as you can see above.  Needless to say, the instructor was flying the plane when she took these pictures.

Oh dear, oh dear.  I have not written here in way too long.

I've been TOO busy.  Four graduations this year in our immediate family!!  One from high school, One from college, One from grad school with a master's and one from chiropractor school with a doctorate!!  It's a very happy Spring!!

Our high school graduate.  The baby has graduated!!!

And Jim has graduated from the University of Dallas!  Want to know how much I like that school?  A lot!!!!!!!!!

Daughter Mary was able to come with us to Dallas for Jim's graduation..

And, of course, there was the graduation party for Liz!  I don't know if this is a nationwide custom but around here most people have quite a large open house for the high school graduate.  (like feeding 150, 200 people!  We do it because it's pretty customary but, just between you and me, I think it's overdone.  For heaven's sakes, it's just high school.  When one of our children graduates from college the family goes out to dinner and we buy the graduate a nice gift.  Seems backwards.)

The grad party was a huge amount of work.  I was so busy I forgot to take pictures.  And that's busy for me.  I nearly always take pictures, regardless of the occasion.  It was also a LOT of fun.

So two more graduations to go, one out of state, one out of the country.

God is good.  All the time.

He is risen!!!  

We had a wonderful Easter as I hope you did too.

Easter dinner included four of my six children, and Elle, Jim's girlfriend as well.  Of course, John was not able to come home from London.  Nor could Anne and Zach make it from Atlanta.  We missed them!!  But the table was pretty full, Jim having flown in from Dallas and Mike in town from South Bend!  Not bad!

We had the annual Easter Egg hunt, even though nearly all the kids are now adults.  I give them the choice of helping to hide the eggs or hunting for them.  So far, every year they all choose to hunt them.  The gold egg is the "Alleluia Egg" and when it's found the lucky seeker is supposed to shout, "Alleluia!"

This very sought after egg usually contains, oh, twenty dollars or so.  (Occasionally I have insanely put more in there.)  Could this be the reason my grown up children still enjoy the hunt?  Hmmmm.  Liz (the youngest) found it.

Elle found the companion silver egg, which usually contains a lesser amount of money.  (Elle might have found the "Alleluia Egg" too, but I think she was holding back, not wanting to find them both.  I told her that was unnecessary and that's it's every seeker for himself....still, I think she did not want to find them both.  Actually, that's what she said.)

Starting with the magnificent Easter Vigil at Christ the King Catholic Church in Ann Arbor, it was a very Spirit-filled and blessed Easter.

Hope yours was the same!!!

Winter's Last Gasp......We hope.

Halfway through April and we received about three more inches of snow last night, adding to what was already a record breaking amount of snow for this year.

The table below is my official measurement. :-)

It's been a brutal winter.  Very icy.  I love the snow, but I am not fond of the ice.  There's no ice today so it's all right, although I did just hear that we might get 3 MORE inches of snow before the end of the day.  Some 40,000 people have lost power in an adjacent county because of the high winds that accompanied this snowfall.

I used my remote starter this morning.  Love that device.  I start the car from inside about 10 minutes before we're going to leave, so it's warmed up when we set out.  Really helps with the defrosting of the windows.  The side door was frozen shut again.  

Yesterday the snow covered plants pictured below were blooming daffodils.  I almost took a picture of them, they were so delightful to see.  Now I wish I had so I could have posted the juxtaposition of yesterday and today.

Michigan winters are completely unpredictable, reluctant to end, and....

fearsomely, awesomely beautiful.  Spring is just around the corner.....

The End of an Era

For at least 15 years now, maybe 16, I have been a drama mom.  Five of my six children were in numerous high school plays and I think I have sold tickets and refreshments at each one.

The shows included:  Harvey, West Side Story, Diary of Ann Frank, Midsummer Night's Dream, Les Miserables, My Fair Lady, Hello Dolly, South Pacific, Guys and Dolls, The Crucible, As You Like It, Cinderella, Grease, Sound of Music, Into the Woods, The Miracle Worker, Oklahoma, West Side Story, The Drowsy Chaperone, Curtains, The Man Who Came to Dinner, and many Christmas plays, of greater and lesser merit, written by the students.  I'm sure I've also forgotten some too and a few were done more than once with different kids.

I knew this day was coming.  My youngest is now a senior in high school.  But, somehow, a part of me didn't seem to know it was coming.  Yesterday, at Liz's last high school drama performance, I suddenly realized that I would no longer be a high school drama mom.  It was a shock.

I'm able to let go.  I don't think that was what was upsetting me.  I've had five other children graduate from high school.  I know what it's like.  It's a joyous time with also a layer that is bittersweet.  Knowing that your child will be leaving home soon is the bittersweet part.  I'm always happy for what they have accomplished, excited for their futures, but also sad that I will not be seeing them so often, that we soon will no long be living in the same house.  I have never had a child who was so unpleasant as a teenager that I was happy for them to move on.  No, I like having them around.  Each of them gives me great joy.

Still, this is a little different because this is the youngest.  There is no one coming up behind her as there has always been with her older siblings.  And....I will no longer be going to her school, no longer selling tickets for the plays, no longer going to the concerts.

It truly is an end to an era in my life.  I have lots of other things I want to do.  It's not that I'll be bored.  It's just that it will be so different.  And certain people will no longer be here.

God has a plan.  It will be interesting to see how it unfolds!

Exhilaration!!

Exhilarate-- to gladden, to make cheerful, to enliven (Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary)

Bike riding exhilarates me.  It does.  Yesterday was a sunny day in Michigan.  And the temperature was in the forties.....that's pretty warm for us.  So I got my bike out, put on a fleece and leather gloves, and took off riding.

The day had started out great even before that.  I got up promptly at 5:30.  (That was not the great part. I am not a morning person.  But I did it!!)  Made it early to the 6:45 Mass at my parish.  I have to get there early to ask the sacristan for my low-gluten host.  Then, when Mass was over, I had a wonderful prayer time and a chance to say the rosary before heading over to Domino's chapel for confession.  What a way to start the day.

When I got home I knew I just had to take my first bike ride of the Spring.  It occurred to me that maybe I shouldn't take my favorite ride of about 7 miles to beautiful Gallop Park, around the pond, and home again.  After all, I haven't ridden in several months.  But I got on my bike and would hear none of it.  Had to go there.

It was wonderful.  All the grace of the sacraments had gladdened my soul and I carried that over with an appreciation of the joy of riding and the incredible beauty of the ride.  Here is what I see as I ride to Gallop Park.  Those of you who have read my blog for a while have seen these pictures before.  I apologize.   I just can't get over how scenic this ride is and how I lived where I do for several decades before realizing that I could indeed ride my bike here.

The glory of God all over everything.

 Makes my heart sing.  God is so good.

 All the time.

Happy Spring!!!

Winter is hanging on...

I have lived in Michigan for over 45 years and this has been the most brutal winter I can remember.  The ice just never melted.  We always have ice.  We always have snow.  But this winter we never had enough sunny days where the temperature crept up just a little to let the sun, together with the rock salt, do its work and give us a dry pavement again.

Even now, after the first week of April, the morning and evening temperatures are usually below freezing, although it is warming up a little during the day.

Here is the last of the ice in my driveway which did finish melting just a few days ago.  For most of the winter this was a wide and treacherous swath of ice, three or four inches thick.  We just could not get it melted.

And lo and behold! Life returns to Michigan.  I was so excited to see these.  There are even some crocuses blooming.  Today, if we're lucky the temperature could head into the sixties, the warmest yet.

I may just have to get my bike out and go for a ride!

Mammograms-- What's the Deal?

I have a confession to make.  I haven't had a mammogram in years.  Why?  Because over the years a number of studies have questioned their effectiveness.  I have also wondered about the wisdom of radiating a part of the body prone to cancer.  We know that radiation exposure over time increases the likelihood of cells becoming cancerous.  I also thought that it was nearly impossible to protect my liver from radiation from a mammogram and, because of my medical history, my liver was vulnerable to cancer.

I also found that, because of breast density, I nearly always was told to come back sooner than a year so they could double check something-- very stressful.  I always escaped having to have a biopsy.  And I  thought it odd that medical people would say that a biopsy increases your chance of later having cancer but that the reason would be because of the original condition, not because of the biopsy.  Really?  How could it be possible to tell which was the reason?

Let me tell you, I don't take breast cancer lightly.  My dear sister-in-law died of it way too young.

I'm relieved that more and more studies are questioning the efficacy of mammograms.

Here is a link to Reuters, Feb. 12, 21014, describing some of these newer results in a piece called "New study adds to evidence that mammograms do not save lives."

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-mammograms-idUSBREA1B1RJ20140212

Instead, the study "found no reduction in breast cancer mortality from mammography screening," the scientists wrote, "neither in women aged 40-49 at study entry nor in women aged 50-59."

No reduction in mortality?  Then why would I have a mammogram?  It gets worse.

In addition to not reducing mortality from breast cancer, the study found, mammograms are leading to an epidemic of what the researchers call "over-diagnosis." Nearly 22 percent of the invasive cancers detected by mammography were harmless, meaning they would not cause symptoms or death during a woman's lifetime.    

In other words, not only did this study find that mortality is not reduced by mammograms, but that 22 percent of the women being treated for breast cancer would have been just fine without treatment.  So mammograms do not reduce mortality and also create a risk for unnecessary treatment.  I have been though chemo., for something else.  You DON'T want unnecessary treatment.  It's not a little thing.

Today's Wall Street Journal has an article on a study just published Tuesday.  "More Doubt on Mammograms' Value."  For me, here is the key point.

For women in their 50s, 10 breast-cancer deaths would be averted for every 10,000 women screened annually for 10 years. For women in their 60s, 42 breast-cancer deaths would be averted. But as many as 137 women in their 50s, and 194 in their 60s would be diagnosed and treated unnecessarily.   

Let's break that down.  Since I'm in my fifties, if I were to get annual mammograms for 10 years, I might be the 1 in 1,000 women (according to the figures above) whose life would be saved from a death from breast cancer.  For younger women the number of lives saved is even smaller.   In my sixties, I might be one of the 5 women (4.2) in 1,000 whose lives would be saved.  BUT...I could also be one of the 13 or 14 who received cancer treatment unnecessarily.  Chemo, surgery, radiation.  I eliminate my one in a thousand chance of dying from breast cancer or I eliminate the 13 in a thousand chance of unnecessary treatment.  I'm willing to take my chances on not being the one in a thousand.  Seems to me that the conclusion from the Reuters article says it all:

But in countries such as those in North America and Europe ..., the scientists wrote, "our results support the views of some commentators that the rationale for screening by mammography should be urgently reassessed by policy makers," since annual mammography "does not result in a reduction in breast cancer specific mortality for women aged 40-59 beyond that of physical examination alone or usual care." 

An accompanying editorial agrees that policy makers should stop pushing mammograms but points out that this is easier said than done: "governments, research funders, scientists, and medical practitioners may have vested interests in continuing" that push, since mammography is a multi-billion-dollar industry. Annual screenings also give women the sense that they are taking active steps to reduce the chance of dying of breast cancer.

Read the whole Reuters article here.

I am in neither a medical field nor am I an expert in statistics.  Am I missing something?  Seems to me mammograms are not worth it. 

Over the weekend the Wall Street Journal weekend edition had as its headline, "Putin Calls Obama as Crisis Escalates."   Read the entire article here.

Here is an excerpt:

     Defying Western warnings, Russia has continued to reposition and augment its forces on the border of eastern Ukraine, according to U.S. officials, raising fears of a wider confrontation.
     Russia's Foreign Ministry on Friday dismissed the allegations as invented, saying that Western officials should "take a pain reliever."

Excuse me.  "Take a pain reliever?"  No one.  NO ONE!  would have ever said that to Ronald Reagan.  Ever.  Nor do I think it would have ever been said of George W. Bush.  Certainly, no one would have ever talked to Ronald Reagan like that.  Why?  Because of his personal strength, his stature as a leader, and his courage.  The world knew that Reagan would act militarily if necessary.

On the day of Reagan's inauguration, 52 Americans who had been held hostage for 444 days in Iran were released.  The left is fond of saying that this release had nothing to do with Reagan's inauguration because it was in the works under Jimmy Carter.  Some on the left are quite fond of jumping to conclusions that are not well thought out.  No one knows whether or not the Iranians went ahead with plans for the release because they were afraid of Ronald Reagan coming into office, and the Iranians would certainly never reveal such a fear.  In my mind, there was no doubt.  Ronald Reagan was an unknown commodity and he was widely recognized as a hawk.  If the Iranians were not afraid of what he might do, they certainly should have been.

I might add that Ronald Reagan also brought down the Soviet Union without firing a shot.  Bullies don't pick on the strong.  They pick on the weak.  Ronald Reagan's strength brought a gravitas to U.S. foreign policy that is sadly and conspicuously missing now.

Today's Wall Street Journal headlines..."U.S., Russia Talks Fail to Ease Crisis."  Read the entire article here.  For me, the telling paragraph was this:

     The question of Crimea's future also appeared to be largely drowned out during the diplomacy Sunday.  U.S. officials had only a few weeks ago been demanding Putin reverse his annexation of the territory and pull back his troops.  Mr. Kerry didn't mention Crimea during his remarks-- giving the impression that the U.S. has largely given up reversing the region's absorption into Russia.

It appears that our demand that Putin reverse his annexation was just talk.  A handful of Russian officials got a slap on the wrist-- some passport restrictions to the U.S. and monetary restrictions on U.S. accounts, actions that were mocked on twitter by several of the officials themselves.  Then Russia was kicked out of the G-8, an action Putin said he did not care about.  And Kerry has not not even made the annexation of Crimea part of the negotiations?  Not even part of the discussion?   The Russians are running diplomatic circles around us.  It appears that they got away with the annexation of Crimea.  If they want more territory, why should they stop there?  It's no wonder Russia's Foreign Ministry feels free to mock us.

Presidential Subterfuge?

There seems to be some discrepancy between what our president is saying was discussed in his meeting with Pope Francis and what the Vatican is saying. 

What follows is the complete text in English of the statement the Holy See press office released on Thursday, the day of the Holy Father's meeting with President Obama.

This morning, 27 March 2014, the Hon. Barack H. Obama, President of the United States of America, was received in audience by His Holiness Pope Francis, after which he met with His Eminence Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State, and Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, Secretary for Relations with States.During the cordial meetings, views were exchanged on some current international themes and it was hoped that, in areas of conflict, there would be respect for humanitarian and international law and a negotiated solution between the parties involved. In the context of bilateral relations and cooperation between Church and State, there was a discussion on questions of particular relevance for the Church in that country, such as the exercise of the rights to religious freedom, life and conscientious objection, as well as the issue of immigration reform. Finally, the common commitment to the eradication of trafficking of human persons in the world was stated.

In contrast, the White House has issued this text of President Obama answering questions about the meeting.

Mr. President, I just want to follow up on Jim’s question on your meeting with the Pope today.  Do you think some of the schisms that he referenced on social issues would stand in the way of you and Pope Francis collaborating or forming a strategic alliance to tackle income inequality? 

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  First of all, I just want to make clear -- maybe it wasn’t clear from my answer to Jim -- that we actually didn’t talk a whole lot about social schisms in my conversations with His Holiness.  In fact, that really was not a topic of conversation. 

Here is my question to the president.   Mr. President, did you not talk a whole lot about the social issues or was it not a topic of conversation at all.  If you talked a little bit, then it was a topic of conversation.  If it was not a topic at all, then why did you say you didn't talk a whole lot about it.  It seems to me that your two sentences contradict each other.  And your second sentence claiming that it was not a topic of conversation directly contradicts the Vatican's statement.

I'm betting that the Vatican statement is the accurate one.  Your words, Mr. President, seem to me to be subterfuge.

What I love about the Wall Street Journal is its well researched and well written articles.  On the opinion page today is a piece called "ObamaCare Delay Number 38."  I knew there had been delays.  I did not know there had been THIRTY-EIGHT delays!!  It starts out...

Amid one more last-minute regulatory delay, number 38 at last count, the mandate forcing nuns to sponsor birth control is more or less the only part of ObamaCare that is still intact.

 It seems that the deadline to buy insurance has been extended indefinitely, as long as the individual buying it deems the purchase a "hardship."  One is not required to prove the hardship.

Has the administration not argued repeatedly that the entire law would fall apart without the requirement that everyone have insurance?

And has not the administration repeatedly insisted that it would not extend the deadline for enrollment?

If individuals are not required to buy insurance, there is no reason to buy it until you're sick.  After all, you can't be denied insurance because of a pre-existing condition.  This system simply will not work.

Read the whole article and see what you think.  You can find it here.

It concludes:

This pattern of dishonesty and political improvisation has come to define ObamaCare, which is the law for some people, sometimes, except when it isn't.  Nothing HHS claims can be trusted, and little that the President of the United States promised about his signature law has turned out to be true.

Well. Those are tough words.  But I'm afraid they are absolutely true.