Leave a comment

Retaining Sins

Posted by eph21920 on May 27, 2020 in Answer, Bible, Connected, Faith, Forgiveness, Friends

I met with my prayer group tonight via Zoom. We read the Gospel for the upcoming Sunday which is Pentecost. It included the famous words from Jesus, “Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them and whose sins you retain are retained.” We had a lively and spirit led discussion about those words. First of all, Jesus gives the disciples the gift of the Holy Spirit – His Spirit. They were filled with all they needed to accomplish the mission God had for them. Being Catholic, we had heard these words before as the institution of the Sacrament of Confession. But what about retaining sins? From the conversations we have had with different priests, we discussed that when the priest is listening to Confessions and acting in persona Christi – as the person of Jesus Christ – he would not be able to purposefully “retain” someone’s sins as in not forgive them. When a person came to Jesus asking for forgiveness, it was always granted to them. So it would be for a person in the Confessional. On another level, the priest does have the ability to “retain” the sins he has heard sharing the burden with the person. He may offer additional penance for that person. And then on a personal level, if someone has deeply hurt me, I need the help of the Holy Spirit to forgive them. But, if I “retain” those sins and not forgive, I am easily filled with anger, frustration, and perhaps even the desire for revenge. I am hurting myself more and not living in God’s will. So, perhaps Jesus’ words are a warning to us as well. It was an animated and enlightening discussion. Everyone walked away thinking about things just a little differently than before.

I Found God today discussing the deeper meaning of His words.

Permalink
Leave a comment

First Field Day

Posted by eph21920 on May 26, 2020 in Children, Family, Fun, Happiness, Opportunity

My daughter-in-law hosted a field day today for her daughter going into Kindergarten (hopefully) in the Fall. I saw videos and photos of her doing jumping jacks, weight lifting with water bottles, stretches and planks. There was sprinkler fun to round out the event. Later she had a celebratory milk shake for the first time. It was fun to see her having fun. My daughter-in-law was so creative and enthusiastic.

I Found God today seeing my daughter-in-law providing a fun day for her daughter.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Virtual Memorial Day

Posted by eph21920 on May 25, 2020 in Family, Food, Home, Sacrifice

As with everything else these days, Memorial Day was different. We heard that bugler’s were encouraged to play Taps at 3:00 in the afternoon. There was also a flyover to honor the fallen heroes and the current heroes such as first responders and medical workers. Of course many people went out and about and had the traditional BBQ. My son usually has a get together and my other son has made it a practice to fly out and visit. That didn’t happen, but my son was able to enjoy social distancing time with his wife’s family and have most of the usual activities. Here, we had a pretend BBQ as we don’t own an outdoor grill. I made shish-kabobs on the electric grill, faux-tato salad made with cauliflower, a beautiful salad with fresh veggies from my sister’s garden, and s’mores made in the microwave. We did our best to celebrate yet another virtual holiday.

I Found God today still celebrating Memorial Day.

Permalink
Leave a comment

New Normal Sunday

Posted by eph21920 on May 24, 2020 in Faith, Family, Home, Hope, Joy, Life, Present

My sister and son came over this morning and we all visited on the front porch with coffee and treats while social distancing. The weather was perfect before the rainstorm moved in – not too hot or too cold. It was nice to see them face to face. In the afternoon, we went to Mass – downstairs in front of the TV. We watched the priest that I know from the east coast. He is our go-to at this point as we all can hear and understand him and we always appreciate his message. Today one of the things he talked about is our place in the liturgical year. We have been celebrating the Easter season and now the Ascension of Jesus into Heaven. Now we look forward to Pentecost next weekend. Even though we may have already been Confirmed in the Catholic faith, Pentecost is an opportunity to be open to receive a much needed “boost” from the Holy Spirit. I liked that there is always hope for me, always a way I can become closer to God. In the evening, my brother called Facetime from Yellowstone. He arrived there today and is excited about starting his job there for the summer. We basically had a “new normal” Sunday – visiting on the porch and via Facetime and going to church downstairs. And it was all good.

I Found God today living a “normal” Sunday.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Back to Bartering

Posted by eph21920 on May 23, 2020 in Answer, Family, Food, Generosity, Humor, Opportunity, Problem

The other day I ordered groceries and went to pick them up in lieu of shopping in a crowded store, likely with people not respecting boundaries – particularly in preparation for the long weekend. I had planned on trying a new recipe for a cauliflower salad. However, in my groceries, there were 2 ingredients omitted – cucumber and mint. I asked my son if he would be going to the store in the next couple of days. He said he was debating as he would be in need of bananas. We carried on about how awful it is to be so stressed trying to decide whether or not to go to the grocery store for a couple of items and agreed to let each other know if we would venture out. Today I decided to look up other recipes to see if I could find an alternative. I did find one that sounded good and I had everything I needed – except bacon. I thought my son might have some and he did. I told him I would trade him some bananas that I had for some bacon. It was a deal. Our burden had been lifted, decision had been made. We both got what we needed through creative problem solving and had a good laugh.

I Found God today creatively and somewhat humorously solving a problem.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Joyful Innocence

Posted by eph21920 on May 22, 2020 in Children, Joy

I saw the sweetest video today of a friend’s toddler. She was simply singing and playing. That’s all. But I thought it was the most joyful thing I had seen. The little girl didn’t have a care in the world. She was secure and safe and uninhibited. It was a welcome change from the worries and concerns of the adult world.

I Found God today in an innocent, joyful child.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Final Send Off

Posted by eph21920 on May 21, 2020 in Creation, Family, Opportunity

My amazing friend who makes wonderful face masks got some new material with wolves on it. She figured that my brother really should have a wolf face mask for Yellowstone, so she whipped one up for him. My brother went up to the cabin a couple days ago to finish his preparations and is leaving tomorrow. I knew he was heading into one of the towns for supplies today, and thought that delivering his mask was a great excuse for taking a drive into the mountains. My parents agreed. We headed west and in only about half an hour, were well away from the now bustling city. We met my brother at the park in the quiet town located between the house and the cabin. We delivered his mask, had lunch, gave his dog a few final pets, and headed home. It felt so good to get out of the house, take a nice relaxing drive, and enjoy the short visit with my brother.

I Found God today enjoying a drive to the mountains.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Good Talk

Posted by eph21920 on May 20, 2020 in Baby, Connected, Friends, Grateful, Relationship

I have been missing the caregiver meetings that I used to attend. One of the organizations was able to coordinate an online session that I plugged into this afternoon. It was uplifting as always even with the challenges of a web meeting. Tonight I met with my prayer group on Zoom. It was so nice to be able to talk with both of these groups of people. It helps me not to feel so isolated.

I Found God today talking with others.

Permalink
Leave a comment

Won’t Miss Out

Posted by eph21920 on May 19, 2020 in Answer, Connected, Family, Grateful, Home, Opportunity

My mom’s Parkinson’s exercise class has been available online for quite a few weeks now. They started with one video conferencing system that worked well for us, then switched to a different one. After that, we had nothing but troubles. We tried different pads and speakers and were about to give up on the whole thing. Then, we tried my dad’s “Big Mac”. It worked so much better. I was able to get my mom set up this morning and she was able to see, hear, and follow along with the session. Those running the class do a great job at the physical and cognitive exercises. And they offer much needed social interaction besides. They will be offering classes this way all summer. I am so happy we got this to work. I would hate for my mom to miss out on this necessary activity for so long.

I Found God today being able to get my mom set up with her class.

Permalink
Leave a comment

And He’s Off

Posted by eph21920 on May 18, 2020 in Begin, Family, Generosity, Grateful, Home, Life, Opportunity, Travel

I woke up today, and he was gone – my brother that is. I told him I would be in denial until the day I woke up and he was gone. That was today. He was offered a job in Yellowstone at one of the gift shops that will be opening soon. He has been looking forward to it for months now. But, the coronavirus has changed everything. His job will look much different than what he initially anticipated and several facilities will not be open at all. Luckily, he has just about everything he needs in his trailer, being almost completely self-sufficient. Still, he had second thoughts. He arrived here a few weeks after my dad had the stroke to help out and has been here for months. During that time, he had plans for a trip along the coast of Mexico that he cancelled. He has been a tremendous help, not just with household chores, but as a friend and companion. And his dog added another source of entertainment. He knew that leaving, especially during the pandemic, would make things a little more challenging for me. We all talked about it and I appreciated his thoughtfulness. But no one wanted him to miss out on the opportunity if that’s what he wanted to do. He was still looking forward to the adventure. So, he decided to give it a go. He packed up his trailer yesterday and he and his dog went up to the cabin. After making his final preparations, he should be heading to Yellowstone in the next couple of days. We will miss him and pray for his safety. And I’m sure he’ll be back at some point.

I Found God today being grateful for my brother.

Permalink