It's My Birthday

Today I am 68.  Yes, I claim it.  It is mine.  I just retired after nursing for 46 years in different environments.  I have been privileged to serve many beautiful, wonderful people.  I have a wonderful husband, five remarkable children and children-in-law (is that a word?) and 12 delightful grandchildren.  

Life is good!!! Revel in it!!!  

And so this I pray.

"My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going.  I do not see the road ahead of me.  I cannot know for certain where it will end.  Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so.  But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you.  And I hope I have the desire in all that I am doing.  Hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.  And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it.  Therefore, I will trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death.  I will not fear, for  you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone."  Thomas Merton

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!!

Cathy

Haiku My Heart

Friday happiness

Happy anticipation

Birthday party fun!!

Ainsley turns 9 years old and we will be off to INDY, not for the Super Bowl, to celebrate her birthday.  Mom and Dad plan an ice skating party.  will have camera in tow!!!  No I won't be putting on the ice skates though I did love to skate when younger.  A broken hip has no appeal to me!  Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!!!!

~~~^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!!! 

I Made It!

I reached another milestone!!!  Today I'm 65!
Joy in the gift of birth and the years past and
those to come!

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

Cathy

Please join Ruth at Tea Talk today.

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Today I also join Meri for Share the Joy Thursday.   For I believe we need to find it in my life every day no matter the realities in which we live.  God is Good in so many ways even in times of trial.

~~Bad Haiku Friday and Haiku My Heart~~

 

A birthday it is

With celebration and gifts

Daniel will be one!

It's hard to believe that the wee one is no longer wee but growing by leaps and bounds...My goodness it's already been a year.  

Well done, Daniel!!!

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

Please visit Laura at Catholic Teacher Musings the sponsor of Bad Haiku Friday.  Visit also Rebecca at recuerda mi corazon for Haiku My Heart.  And then just have the most wonderful Fall weekend wherever you are!

Birthday Reflection

In the City of Denver, sixty-three years ago today, was born a baby who would grow to become wife, mother and nurse to the family, Keller. As a child I can remember being excited knowing that my birthday was just before that of Baby Jesus. Today I reflect on that time and say, "Thanks be to God" for the privilege of celebrating the day chosen for me before the beginning of time as the day I would begin my journey home to the Father. I also say, "Thanks be to God," for David, my oldest son, with whom I am privileged to share this day. David was born on my 24th birthday and such a joy it is to celebrate this day with him, though he is several hundred miles away!!!

And so it is that I offer this genuinely thankful reflection from Advent and Christmas, Wisdom from G. K. Chesterton.

***

GRATEFUL

The test of all happiness is gratitude; and I felt grateful, though I hardly know to whom.

Children are grateful when Santa Clause puts in their stoic kings gifts of toys or sweets. Could I not be grateful to Santa Clause when he put in my stockings the gift of two miraculous legs? We thank people for birthday presents of cigars and slippers.

Can I thank no one for the birthday present of birth? ORTHODOXY

GRATITUDE FOR SHEER EXISTENCE

O Lord, how manifold are your works!
In wisdom you have made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.

These all look to you
to give them their food in due season;
when you vie to them, they gaiter it up;
when you open your hand, they are fill with
good things

When you hide your face, they are dismayed;
when you take away their breath, they die
and return to the dust.

When you send forth your spirit, they are created;
and you renew the face of the ground.

Psalm 104:24, 27-30

PRAYER

Lord, perhaps we are not happier right now because we live life without gratitude. We fret frenetically about what we do not have, thus poisoning our appreciation for what we do not have. If we were more attentive to the miracles of legs, hands, eyes, ears, and breath--more alert to our very life--perhaps then we could begin to fathom the gifts of sweets and slippers and give proper thanks. Thank you God for everything. [Amen! Amen!!]

ADVENT ACTION

If you keep a journal, list the chief four or five thing for which you are grateful today. Now imagine that this day were the only day you wee granted to live; what would you most appreciate? Demonstrate your gratitude through some creative act offered to God. Sculpt, draw, or paint a picture; write a poem or story; dance or sing a song. As you allow this act of worship to flower, remember, it is not the quality of the finished product that counts, but your expression of love from a sincere heart. God receives our gifts as we would from our own wide-eyed children. If appropriate, display your work somewhere prominently in your home where you can reflect on it as a grateful offering to God.

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So today on this day, 63 years after it began, I say,

Thanks be to God!!!
and
Wishing all a day of Gratitude!!

A Victorian Birthday Tea

A wonderful time was had by all.

There was dancing, singing, gifts and the special
birthday cake.

Before the cake we had tea. Constant Comment,
fruit punch and Lemonade. There were chicken salad
and egg salad sandwiches with the all time favorite
peanut butter and jelly sandwich, all courtesy of
Aunt Ruthie's Tea Room

A wonderful way to spend your 5th birthday.

Happy Birthday, Lindsey.

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God~

Just a Mom

Again the wise have entered my world. I'm as sure as I can be that there are those of you who have already seen this Bit of Wit-n-Wisdom. But for me it is new. Offered to me by a friend I now offer it to you.

JUST A MOM

A woman, renewing her driver's license at the County Clerk's office,
was asked by the woman recorder to state her occupation. She hesitated, uncertain how to classify herself.

'What I mean is, ' explained the recorder, 'do you have a job or are you just a ..?'

'Of course I have a job,' snapped the woman. 'I'm a Mom.'

'We don't list 'Mum' as an occupation, 'housewife' covers it,’ said the recorder emphatically.

I forgot all about her story until one day I found myself in the same situation, this time at our own Town Hall. The Clerk was obviously a career woman, poised, efficient, and possessed of a high sounding title like, 'Official Interrogator' or 'Town Registrar.'

'What is your occupation?' she probed.

What made me say it? I do not know. The words simply popped out. 'I'm a Research Associate in the field of Child Development and Human Relations.'

The clerk paused, ball-point pen frozen in m midair and Looked up as though she had not heard right.

I repeated the title slowly emphasizing the most significant words. Then I stared with wonder as my pronouncement was written, in bold, black ink on the official questionnaire.

'Might I ask,' said the clerk with new interest, 'just what you do in your field?'

Coolly, without any trace of fluster in my voice, I heard myself reply, 'I have a continuing program of research, (what mother doesn't) in the laboratory and in the field, (normally I would have said indoors and out). I'm working for my Masters, (first the Lord and then the whole family) and already have four credits (all daughters).
Of course, the job is one of the most demanding in the humanities, (any mother care to disagree?)
And I often work 14 hours a day, (24 is more like it). But the job is more challenging than most run-of-the-mill careers and the rewards are more of a satisfaction rather than just money.'

There was an increasing note of respect in the clerk's voice as she completed the form, stood up, and personally ushered me to the door.

As I drove into our driveway, buoyed up by my glamorous new career, I was greeted by my lab assistants -- ages 13, 7, and 3. Upstairs I could hear our new experimental model, a 6 month old baby) in the child development program, Testing out a new vocal pattern. I felt I had scored a beat on bureaucracy!
And I had gone on the official records as someone more distinguished and indispensable to mankind than 'just another Mum.' Motherhood! What a glorious career specially when there's a title on the door.

Does this make grandmothers 'Senior Research Associates in the field of Child Development and Human Relations?' and great grandmothers ‘Executive Senior Research Associates?' I think so!!! I also think it makes Aunts' Associate Research Assistants

Anonymous

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So by way of sharing some of the research I have been part of the last week I offer you all an opportunity to do the "Hokie Pokie" with Lindsey and all at her Birthday Tea last Saturday. Being the 'Senior Research Associate' I must commend Annie, Lindsey's Research Associate, for having planned a most successful "project.!"

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

The Rose Garden

The Rose Garden

For some time I have said the rosary. And to my friends they understand it is a matter of making sure my children are prayed for, if not an obsession. They are patient with me and even keep me on an even keel by showing me the humor in this magnificent obsession.

When I started I was saying one decade for each of my five children. Then each of the children got their individual rosary so that each day is said on their rosary with each decade said for the children. Next came the boxes. That way they weren't getting tangled (reduced the sibling rivalry). A friend makes beautiful porcelain figurines and so I got the stature of the Virgin Mary. Finally, to add to the wonder of my prayers, last Mother's Day my daughter-in-law helped my grandsons make the tray with their beautiful flowers on it. And so came to pass my Rose Garden.

I also have found that saying the scriptural rosary is so much more beneficial for me. I not only pray for each child but I am able to meditate on the life of Christ as well. I also have a large library of scriptural rosary texts so that I don't get bogged down in one. You see it is complicated and most people would be happy just to say the rosary. Not me, I have to have ritual. So there you have it!

This being the month of the rosary and also the month of Marianne's birth I want to wish her Happy Birthday today. Today she is 30 and on Saturday she will be a beautiful bride entering into a new and challenging phase of her life. Pray for her!

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

Announcing a NEW ARRIVAL

Madeleine Hope Keller joined the family this morning at about 2:00 a.m. EDT. We cannot tell you how pleased we are that she has arrived. Probably no more so than Kelly, her lovely mother who gave birth and Daddy, Dave. She joins a family in which there are already 4 handsome and talented brothers.

Madeline, Grandpa and I want to wish you love, joy, and happiness as you begin this journey. You are and will be loved by so many!

Congratulations David and Kelly! We know how happy you must be at the arrival of your new little treasure. How dazzling must be the light you see Madeline's eyes.

Cameron, Benjamin, Andrew and Jonathan how proud and pleased you must be today as you meet you little sister. Our wish for you is that you alway love and cherish her as she will you.

Let us adore the Lord
maker of marvelous things,
heaven bright with angels,
on earth, white waved seas.
~Anonymous: 9th century~

A Book of Old Irish Monastic Prayer Poems
translated by Malachi McCormick

~~~~~~~

My sincerest,
Thanks be to God!

Kellie is Fourteen

Kellie, May 17, 1994

Today Kellie is 14. She was our first grandchild and God only knows where the last 14 years have gone. Today she is a beautiful young lady who is graceful and filled with the love of music and dance. She volunteers helping with Children's Sunday School at St Joseph Church and sings in the choir. It has been a blessing for us to watch her grow and mature into the person she has become. Her birthday also happens to coincide with an appropriate reflection by Amy Welborn in A Catholic Woman's Book of Days.

Then he appeared to more than five hundred
brothers and sisters at one time, most of
whom are still alive, tough some have died.
~1 Corinthians 15:6~

When I was about thirteen years old, my previously clean-shaven father grew a handlebar mustache and took to wearing striped, bell-bottom pants (it was 1973).

I was distressed and actually a little angry. I remember thinking--although I don't know if I ever said it out loud--that he just didn't look like a Dad anymore.

The Gospels and Paul tell us that after the Resurrection, Jesus appeared to many. All who saw him had some difficulty recognizing or accepting him. Their faith had to take them a step or two beyond their previous experience and expectations in order to really see Jesus.

When I look, is there something preventing me from seeing Jesus for who he is?

Lord Jesus, bring me close to you in faith.

I would also offer for reflection this verse.

Jesus said to her," Woman why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?" She thought it was a gardener and said to him, "Sir, if you carried him away, tell me where you laid him, and I will take him." Jesus said to her, "Mary!" [And she recognized Jesus.]
John 20:15-16

You see there are times when I look back at the pictures of Kellie and my other grandchildren and remember with delight how they were. And because I don't get to see most of them as often as I would like, the next time I do see them they have changed in stature and maturity. I don't recognize the child as they were before and a part of me doesn't want them to change. I want them to stay a wee child and...I guess it makes me sad. Yes, indeed they must grow, change and mature. And when I see their success, I cheer and thank God (with a tear in my eye!) heartily! That's when I know I must rely the Spirit and his good judgment and once again understand who is in control.

I think the illustration above is much like that. Jesus enters our live in many ways. But am I open to his presence? I hope so, too! For he does not always appear to be the same. Well, (sigh) to be honest...I know I miss the presence more than I care to admit. The reality is, it is up to me to GROW and MATURE (though I am still mostly young) so that I can be in His presence and know it. Yep, that's it!!! And in reflecting on Kellie's birthday today and her beautiful life I too have grown-up just a little more, I hope.

SOOOO...

Happy Birthday, Kellie!
and
Thanks be to God!!

Imagine...

The Duke

Belle, Wally and Duchess.

Yes, just imagine 4 dogs and 3 adults. I realized this weekend that having that many dogs in one space at the same time, well...leaves me speechless. You might say, "Why do you have that many dogs?" This weekend was Ron's birthday, and though three of the kids and their families had some distance to come, Marianne came from INDY.

Let me explain. We have two dogs, The Duke and Duchess of Keller. Duke the patriarch, being 15 years old, really is not interested in play and the antics of his young friend, Duchess. Marianne has Wally, the Earl of Keller and his friend, Belle, and were coming for the weekend to celebrate Dad's birthday. Well, if you can imagine the barking, posturing, and rivalry of three of the dogs with the Master simply looking on. (Oh! and Sam, the Secretary of State--the cat, who is the epitome of diplomacy, merely avoiding the entire group.)

This was a tremendous learning experience for us and in all honesty, except for the first 30 minutes after their arrival, Duchess and Belle got on pretty well. Except when Belle, woke up in the middle of the night lost and frightened in a new environment with a blood-curdling howl. The girls especially liked running in the muddy backyard together. (Yuck!!!)

Blackberry Pie Birthday Desert

The party was grand and after dinner we played party games. We played Rummiekub and Clue and it was late enough that the decision-making during Clue became laughable at best. We had so much fun and really hated to see it end.

All in all it was a grand weekend.

~~~+~~~

Thanks be to God!