Friday, February 19, 2016

The Door


I stand at the door
In fear and trepidation
Just wanting to knock

Just wanting to knock
In fear and trepidation
Wanting an answer

So boldly I knock
LovinglyI am embraced
I should never fear

~~~^j^~~~
Thanks be to God!

Cathy

~~~~~~~

I'll be on my annual retreat this weekend at Saint Meinrad Archabbey.  Please keep me in your prayers!
~~~

Please visit Rebecca at recuerda mi corazon for Haiku My Heart. There is always more beautiful words  there to enchant and encourage!!! 



Finally, I am joining A Soulful Life for Soulfood Friday



Monday, February 15, 2016

Companions on the Journey


I'd like to introduce you to Super Pup and Buddy.  I met Buddy last summer when we were looking at photos of "his" trip to Hungary and Austria in November the previous year with his owner, my sister-in-law, Linda.  What a great idea, I thought.  What if Buddy could accompany us to Italy and then he could share his adventure with others.



Well, pretty soon, after we continued our travels to Yellowstone, I realized I'd have to be sending Buddy home and it would be so hard to part with him.  We met Old Faithful and I fell in love with him.  What better companion for Buddy than this delightful grizzly bear.  He had such a wonderful personality and he'd be a great protector for Buddy.  Well much to my chagrin, that just wasn't going to work.  There just wouldn't be enough room for this bulky friend of ours.  

So, to my delight, I was introduced to Super Pup.  Yes, this handsome fellow said he'd be glad to accompany Buddy to Italy and watch out for him.


So it was that Super Pup and Buddy journeyed with us to Italy.  They were together through thick and thin.  Whether they were confined to a purse or backpack.  They never complained.










They would chat about the days adventures or sit quietly just reflecting on the day.

  

They listened intently to the tour guide as we walked the streets of Italy's ancient towns.  The view of Florence was captivating.  On the steps of the Duomo Church in Amalfi they waited for their gelato while we took photos.  They were amazed by the ruins of Rome and awestruck by the Coliseum.  


In November Super Pup and Buddy parted ways when we traveled to New Mexico to attend a memorial for a cousin of the family.  They traveled through an ice storm and into the night, these best of friends.  And so it was that Super Pup returned home alone, resting in the back pack to which he had become so accustomed.

Smile, though!  There is good news.  I learned yesterday that Super Pup's cousin Vagabond (Vaga) will be arriving on Wednesday.  He's agreed that he and Super Pup should be traveling companions and he'd accompany him to France in March.  Super Pup is looking forward to his arrival.


I just couldn't leave today with our sharing another photo from our Italian adventure.  This is a panorama of the Bay of Naples with Mount Vesuvius in the background.


~~~^j^~~~
Thanks be to God!

Cathy


 I'm here to play and invite you to join Mersad at Through My Lens.  Should be fun!




Please visit Judith at Lavender Cottage for Mosaic Monday and share in the beauty offered there.

Mosaic Monday


I think you should take some time to visit Imagin-in-ing.  You're sure to enjoy it!

Friday, February 12, 2016




At the center of the entrance cloister at Monte Cassino stands this beautiful bronze statue by the sculptor A. Selva. The work is based on the description given by St. Gregory the Great, who wrote the biography of St. Benedict's life. He is standing, supported by monks after having received the Holy Communion. This statue was a gift from the German Chancelor K. Adenauer in 1952.

God's mercy and love
Lifts us out of the abyss
God's gift to us all

God's gift to us all
Everlasting joy and peace
The gift to all saints

~~~^j^~~~
Thanks be to God!

Cathy


Please visit Rebecca at recuerda mi corazon for Haiku My Heart. There is always more beautiful words  there to enchant and encourage!!! 



Finally, I am joining A Soulful Life for Soulfood Friday

Monday, February 08, 2016

A Weekend Pilgrimage


God's glory appears in Bardstown, Kentucky

We had a glorious weekend in Kentucky.  Sister Therese, a Sister of Charity of Nazareth, told us that this area is called the Promised Land of Kentucky.  


The Abbey of Our Lady of Gethsemani 

The Abbey of Our Lady of Gethsemani is a monastery part of the Order of the Cistercians of the Strict Order, also known as, the Trappists.  Founded in December, 1848 it was raised to Abbey in 1851.  Gethsemani is considered the mother house of all Trappists and Trappistine monasteries in the United States.  It is the oldest monastery in the United States still in operation.  It was home to Thomas Merton from 1941 until his death in 1968.

 Saint Joseph Proto-Cathedral
 Bardstown Kentucky 

The cornerstone of Saint Joseph by Bishop Benedict Joseph Flaget in 1816.  In 1775, Catholic settlers, mostly of English and Irish descent began emigrating chiefly from Maryland to Kentucky, an outpost of the crown colony of Virginia.  The first missionaries came around 1787.  In 1808 the four new Catholic diocese created at the request of Bishop Carroll of Baltimore, included Bardstown along with New York and Philadelphia.  The new diocese of Bardsowon covered almost the entire Northwest Territory, south to New Orleans and as far north as Detroit.  

The Cathedral was consecrated in 1819.  When the Episcopal See was moved forty miles away to the fast growing city of Louisville in 1841, Saint Joseph's because a parish church, hence the title "proto-cathedral."  In 1995 Bardstown was named a Titular see by the Vatican for ints contributions to the Catholic Church heritage in America.


Sisters of Charity of Nazareth

The Sisters of Charity of Nazareth were founded in 1812.  Mother Catherine Spaulding, along with Bishop John Baptist David, are honored together and remembered as co-founders of the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth.  

The New community followed the rule of Saint Vincent de Paul and their dwelling was named Nazareth.  They serve in 20 states in the United States, in India, Nepal, Botswana, and Belize.

~~~

It was a grand weekend all round.  The weather was good and we even toured Makers Mark distillery.  There are many on what's know as the Bourbon Trail.  But, that is for another day.  And you can read much more about these grand places by going to their webpages. 

~~~^j^~~~
Thanks be to God!!

Cathy


I'm here to play and invite you to join Mersad at Through My Lens.  Should be fun!




Please visit Judith at Lavender Cottage for Mosaic Monday and share in the beauty offered there.

Mosaic Monday


I think you should take some time to visit Imagin-in-ing.  You're sure to enjoy it!

Thursday, February 04, 2016

Sunset Over the Bay of Naples

Sunset on the Bay of Naples
~~~

 Sun rises and sets
It sinks lower and lower
And disappearing

Hope in the sunset
In all its wonder and awe
Tomorrow will come

~~~^j^~~~
Thanks be to God!

Cathy

It's new for me, but I have been invited to join Jutta at Natur-Donnerstag on Thursdays. Visit and Enjoy!


Please visit Rebecca at recuerda mi corazon for Haiku My Heart. There is always more beautiful words  there to enchant and encourage!!! 



Finally, I am joining A Soulful Life for Soulfood Friday

Monday, February 01, 2016

Bay of Salerno


Gulf of Salerno

My goodness how time flies. I have been away for some time now and hope I'll be able to post more often. Being retired I've had little time to sit and play at the computer. I often ask myself how I managed to post daily when I was working. This photo was taken in November, 2015 on our way to Amalfi, Italy. What a joy that journey was! Perhaps there will be more to come!


I'm here to play and invite you to join Mersad at Through My Lens.  Should be fun!

~~~~^j^~~~
Thanks be to God

Cathy
~~~


Friday, December 04, 2015

His Golden Orb





Oh, the golden orb
His majesty and glory
Proclaimed in its glow

~~~^j^~~~
Thanks be to God!

Cathy
Please visit Rebecca at recuerda mi corazon for Haiku My Heart. There is always more beautiful words  there to enchant and encourage!!! 



Finally, I am joining A Soulful Life for Soulfood Friday





Monday, November 30, 2015

Michelangelo's David



Michelangelo sculpted the statue of David at the age of 26.  It was sculpted between the years 1501 and 1506.  Originally commissioned for the Cathedral of Florence, it was decided by a committee that the 14 foot statue was too perfect to place high in a cathedral.  After much discussion is was decided to place it in the Piazza della Signoria in front of the Palazzo Vecchio.  It is truly magnificent.  It is on exhibit in the Gallerie dell'Accademia in Florence.  The information about this statue and its history is better told by the curators of the museum itself.  


David was removed form the Piazza dello Signoria in 1853 to the Gallerie dell'Accademia to prevent further weathering.  This is a reproduction of Michelangelo's David in the Piazza della Signoria, the center of the Florentine Republic in the 14th century and continues to be today.  



And from the Piazzale Michelangelo, overlooking the city of Florence you will find a bronze reproduction of David.  It was hard to leave Florence.  There is so much more to say.
.  



View of Florence from Piazzale Michelangelo

We'll have to return here later in the week.  My goodness there is so much beauty in this city! I could have stayed there forever!  And the spaghetti and meatballs, Florentine lasagna and OH! the gelato was just out of this world!
Oh, and did I mention the wine?  Oh, my goodness!  It was just delicious.  I also had my first taste of pecorino cheese (cheese made from sheep's milk).  It was wonderful.
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~~~^j^~~~
Thanks be to God!

Cathy
Please visit Judith at Lavender Cottage for Mosaic Monday and share in the beauty offered there.



Mosaic Monday



I have found a new place to play and invite you to join Mersad at Through My Lens.  Should be fun!
And as an added treat perhaps stop by NC Sue's Image-in-ing.

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

The Glow of Assisi




I offer up thanks
Gratitude of all you give
Thanks be to our God!

~~~~~~~

I have many photos I want to share from our trip to Italy, but this photo just spoke to me.  This photos is just as  you see it.  It has not been enhanced and it speaks to me of the Glory of God.

Wishing all a most blessed Thanksgiving!

~~~^j^~~~
Thanks be to God!


Please visit Rebecca at recuerda mi corazon for Haiku My Heart. There is always more beautiful words  there to enchant and encourage!!! 



Finally, I am joining A Soulful Life for Soulfood Friday





Monday, November 23, 2015

Treasures of Italy





We were in Italy for 10 days.  It was not nearly long enough to travel this beautiful country.  I'm still recuperating from jet lag.  So today, because there are literally hundreds of photos, I thought I'd show you photos of our first  introduction to Italy.  The town in called Montepulciano.  It is part of Tuscany and so we stopped here to get our first taste of Italy, no pun intended.  We had a tour of a winery.  

It was amazing!  The winery itself was once an ancient castle. And it was built over the remains of an Etruscan burial site.  It was quite an adventure.  Going down into the lower levels of the winery and seeing the artifact that have been found there. 



Largest of the wine casks


And it all begins here.


The Etruscan burial chamber


Steps to the tomb.

It was amazing to see how the remains of two thousand years of history can be maintained and continued in use at the same time.  

Oh, and did I mention the wine?  Oh, my goodness!  It was just delicious.  I also had my first taste of pecorino cheese (cheese made from sheep's milk).  It was wonderful.

When we had finished our stop in Montepulciano we were off to some serious touring. . .Florence.    I will try to share this adventure in more detail, but right now my head is still spinning!

~~~^j^~~~
Thanks be to God!!!


I have found a new place to play and invite you to join Mersad at Through My Lens.  It's inviting and fun!





And as an added treat perhaps stop by NC Sue's Image-in-ing.