Yesterday was my brother T's birthday. Unfortunately, we didn't get to hear his happy voice, in spite of multiple phone call, text message and skype attempts. We did skype with him last week on my brother A's birthday, however, and with A too. It is a month full of celebrations! Dad's birthday is next week. D's namesday is today, and D's godfather's birthday is tomorrow.
Yesterday, when told that today is D's namesday, P asked me if he could wrap a present for D. I said it didn't really matter, because a namesday is not about presents. But he insisted, so he took one of D's books and wrapped it up for him! At least the present will be familiar!
Read the lives of Saint Panteleimon and Saint Blandina to M and P last night, after L and D had gone to bed. Talked to the boys about strength of character and spirit, and how that kind of strength only comes from Christ and is so much more important than physical strength. Talked about persecution and how we are blessed at this time to live in a country reasonably free of persecution. A few families at our church are refugees from Africa and we talked about the persecution they faced, that led them to flee to Canada.
It is so easy to see our lives as the common reality. We forget about people in other parts of the world who literally struggle for life every day. We forget about our Christian heritage, and the saints that literally struggled for Christ and His Church every day. Much more was required of them than is asked of me at this point, and I pray to God for mercy. The beautiful prayer of St. Ephraim the Syrian really calms me:
O Lord and Master of my life, give me not a spirit of idleness, despondency, ambition or vain talking;
But rather a spirit of purity, humility, patience and love bestow upon me Thy servant.
Yea, O Lord and King, grant me to see my own faults and not to judge my brother,
for blessed art Thou unto ages of ages. Amen.
Sunday, April 7, 2013
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
April 3
While getting our fresh air this afternoon, the kids and I found GRASS! An actual spot in the backyard where the snow melted completely into a puddle, through which we could see muddy, old, half-dead grass. The children got very excited, as this surely was a sign that spring is here!
It is hard to believe how quickly the snow is melting. I thought it would take months, but in only a few days the level in the backyard has gone down by about ten inches. Crazy. It's not even that warm, although the kids traded in winter coats for light jackets today. We have a huge puddle at the end of the driveway and part way down the sidewalk. The ice and snow in the road are still too high to let the water drain away. As we drove into the driveway this evening, M said, "Entering the lake!"
The kids have the week off of school. This afternoon I took them to a musical show at the mall, based on Richard Scarry's Busytown books. It was well done and they enjoyed it. Got smoothies from Mc D's afterwards.
A and I are going to Pre-Sanctified Liturgy tonight. D is getting better with the babysitter, although he still grabs my leg and wants to be held as soon as she comes in the door; when he sees her, he knows it means I'm going out!
Enjoyed the visit with M and J last week. The kids had a blast with J, and he quite enjoyed watching and listening to them. I took them to the airport, feeling like we had had a nice visit and that it had been long enough, and then cried half the way home. Only because I feel like I have not got any true, close friends here yet. And saying goodbye to M and J, I re-lived the leave-taking of other dear friends, who I miss so much on a daily basis. As I did once before (with an amazing result), I prayed to God to provide a friend for me - the one I need, hopefully Orthodox, who I can "click" with, trust, share pain and growth and faith. I have found that this type of friend is a rarity - literally, a needle in a haystack. Not that I am ungrateful for those people I have met and loved here and before here.
It is hard to believe how quickly the snow is melting. I thought it would take months, but in only a few days the level in the backyard has gone down by about ten inches. Crazy. It's not even that warm, although the kids traded in winter coats for light jackets today. We have a huge puddle at the end of the driveway and part way down the sidewalk. The ice and snow in the road are still too high to let the water drain away. As we drove into the driveway this evening, M said, "Entering the lake!"
The kids have the week off of school. This afternoon I took them to a musical show at the mall, based on Richard Scarry's Busytown books. It was well done and they enjoyed it. Got smoothies from Mc D's afterwards.
A and I are going to Pre-Sanctified Liturgy tonight. D is getting better with the babysitter, although he still grabs my leg and wants to be held as soon as she comes in the door; when he sees her, he knows it means I'm going out!
Enjoyed the visit with M and J last week. The kids had a blast with J, and he quite enjoyed watching and listening to them. I took them to the airport, feeling like we had had a nice visit and that it had been long enough, and then cried half the way home. Only because I feel like I have not got any true, close friends here yet. And saying goodbye to M and J, I re-lived the leave-taking of other dear friends, who I miss so much on a daily basis. As I did once before (with an amazing result), I prayed to God to provide a friend for me - the one I need, hopefully Orthodox, who I can "click" with, trust, share pain and growth and faith. I have found that this type of friend is a rarity - literally, a needle in a haystack. Not that I am ungrateful for those people I have met and loved here and before here.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)