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Patroness of Our Country

Today was the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary. My parents and I searched the internet for a Mass and came across the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. They had a recorded Mass, so we celebrated there. It was beautiful. The church was decorated with royal blue, as were the vestments. The music consisted of the large pipe organ and only a few choir members – also wearing royal blue – standing socially distanced in a half circle. The lector had an amazing voice and way of telling the story, rather than just reading the words. The celebrant was the Apostolic Nuncio to the United States. He had a thick accent, but a wonderful homily and message. He talked about how in our current world, people don’t seem to even believe in a true right or wrong and scoff at the word sin. He said that we are afraid of everything except sin, which is what we should fear the most due to its’s eternal consequences. During the celebration, the camera highlighted specific works of art throughout the church, all depicting Our Lady. We were reminded that the Immaculate Mary is the Patroness of Our Country and later we said a specific prayer for our nation. When Mass was over, my dad exclaimed, “Well, you certainly know you’ve been to church!” Even though we weren’t physically there and were unable to receive Communion, his statement was very true.

I Found God today in the Immaculate Conception.

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Walk and Talk

It was another beautiful day here, so after my parents and I went for a short walk, I thought it would be great to go for a long walk. I met my neighbor outside who said she was going to go for a walk, so we went together. She and her husband are also hunkered down due to the pandemic, so we lamented together for a while, then chatted about happier things. I really enjoyed walking and talking and getting to know her a little more.

I Found God today in an unexpected walk and visit.

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More Prayer This Year

We attended Mass online again this morning and listened to an additional homily. Later in the day, my dad and I drove up to the church and dropped off the presents we bought for the “giving tree”. Even though we haven’t been able to attend Mass inside the church, we have been doing our best to stay connected. At dinner, we realized it has been almost a year since we actually went to church. At the beginning of this year, my dad had a stroke. My mom and I would bring my computer to the hospital and rehab on Sundays and watch Mass online. Then, we could count on a Eucharistic minister to come to the room and bring Communion. When my dad returned home, he was still not up to going to church, so we continued to watch online and were blessed to have a weekly visit from a parish Eucharistic minister. Then the pandemic hit. We just continued on as we were, but we made our Sunday Mass time more meaningful by setting up a home altar and actively participating instead of just “watching”. My mom mentioned that it was funny, but even though we haven’t been going to church, she thought she has prayed more this year than any other. I agreed – I know that I have had more personal prayer time. My dad said the same. That was an interesting observation. I am so grateful that Our Lord gives each of us the ability to grow in our relationship with him as long as we are trying. He isn’t bound by circumstances or location. His love, grace, mercy, and peace are available to us always.

I Found God today grateful for His generous availability.

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Out on an Adventure

My parents and I have been doing some Christmas shopping – online. However, there is one place we decided to visit instead of going through the shipping process. It was in a small town not too far from us. I spoke to the owner regarding the COVID requirements and store hours. He said that they were pretty out of the way, so filling to capacity wasn’t even an issue. I set up the GPS and we headed out. On the way there, we zig-zagged through lots of open space and farm land on a route none of us had ever taken before. We even ended up on a dirt road for a bit, which was unexpected. It was good I had the GPS on, or we would have driven right by it. Once we arrived, we were greeted by the owner and found what we were looking for. The shop was a far cry from the busy big corporation stores in the city that people are crowding into. We ordered lunch from the adjoining cafe and sat outside to eat. The weather was perfect – not too hot, not too cold, and no wind. The GPS led us back home via a different route that was well traveled. The road became familiar after a while. It was certainly good to get out, visit a new place, and enjoy the beautiful day. I’m glad my parents were up for the adventure.

I Found God today out on an adventure.

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Surprise Singer

We decided to put on a Christmas CD this afternoon so my mom went through the stack that has been waiting to be played since last year. She chose a recording of her high school choir. Now – this wasn’t any ordinary choir. The director and singers were all but professional and won competitions on many levels. The CD was made a couple of years after my mom attended the high school. She followed along with the list of titles, waiting to hear something she might recognize. As a new song started, my mom suddenly exclaimed, “That’s my brother!” Sure enough, it was her younger brother singing a duet. It was quite a surprise to my mother as she didn’t realize he was on the CD. We marveled at the sound of his pure, smooth voice. After the CD had finished, my mom got out one of her scrapbooks to find his picture and she and my dad reminisced. It was another beautiful moment.

I Found God today in a happy surprise.

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Continuing On

I asked my mom how she found God today. She reminded me that she didn’t sleep very well last night, so she was already tired before we even had breakfast. Her online exercise class met this morning, but instead of going back to bed, my mom decided it would be better for her to get moving. Once again, her perseverance amazes me. After participating in the session, she promptly laid down for a nice long nap. It did seem to help. My mom was happy that she was able to continue on with her day instead of dragging and being tired.

I Found God today in my persevering mother.

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Belly Laughing

Today my mom was talking about books and writers. She mentioned one particular author who has passed away. Then she said, “I don’t know if he wrote anything after that.” It took a second, then we all laughed so long and hard that it hurt our stomach. It felt great.

I Found God today in a good belly laugh.

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New Homeowner

My son has been thinking about buying a house for about a year and has been stashing money away. He got serious about it this summer and was determined to get out of apartment living. When he started looking at houses, those he liked were getting purchased within days, or even hours. It is a crazy market. However, a couple of weeks ago, another house came back on the market after a purchase didn’t go through. It was just what he was looking for. Everything fell right into place. He closed on the house today and is now a proud homeowner. I was excited to meet him there as he crossed the threshold. He has big plans for the place and already started shopping for the things he wants and needs. I am so happy that it is all working out for him.

I Found God today sharing in my son’s joy.

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Online Class Struggles

Tonight when I connected online with my Bible class teacher, I noticed that the color was off from previous classes. Everything had a yellowish, greenish tint to it. She asked if everyone could see her and hear her. She explained that her computer crashed and she was working with a loaner. When she saw more students arriving at the session, she was unable to let them in until she got out herself and let them enter. Then it took a while for her to re-enter. When she was ready to start teaching, she was unable to mute everyone. There were glitches throughout the first hour of the two-hour class. She apologized and expressed her frustration, but she kept on teaching with vim and vigor. Her faith and love for God and His Word is always evident and tonight was no exception. Even though she struggled with unexpected set-backs, she pushed through them and was still able to deliver God’s message of comfort and love.

I Found God today in my teacher’s real faith and perseverance.

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Most Real

My parents and I listened to a very powerful and relevant homily today. The priest talked about how easily we are distracted by things that are “less real” substituting for things that are “most real”. He used our computers for example – specifically our phones. Sometimes when we are visiting with other people in real life, we are drawn to look at our phones to check email, social media, or whatever. We have less real relationships with others on our phones than with the people who are right in front of us, yet we are pulled to it. So it is with God. The things of this world – our jobs, chores, hobbies, worries, desires, even the people in our lives – are less real than God who was, is, and will be forever. He is our Creator. Yet, we can spend an entire day being so preoccupied with our daily life that we don’t even think about God. Worse yet, some may spend their entire lives looking to every avenue for fulfillment without ever acknowledging Him. The priest challenged everyone to begin to pray daily, even if only for 5 minutes. If you are already praying, try extending that time. It is the most important thing to do to tap into the reality of who God is, who we will all meet at the end of our short lives.

I Found God today realizing God is the “most real”.