I'm Home!

I will add more later (with pictures), but I'm home!!!  Just in case anyone cared.  *snort*

So far today I have managed to clean the downstairs bathroom, pick up a framed picture I bought before I left, shopped at the commissary (uff da!), and took Christian to his orthodontist appointment.  Oh yes, and stopped by Bed Bath and Beyond for two boxes of regular coffee k-cups, because in my absence my older two children decided to become 'regular' coffee consumers.  They left me four Jamaica Me Crazy regular coffee k-cups and four Breakfast In Bed k-cups. 

I do need to cut back, though.  I was, after all, in Seattle.  Well, on Bainbridge Island (to be specific) . . . where there literally are many coffee shops (including Starbucks).  I also went into Poulsbo (Little Norway) and Kingston/Hansville . . . where there are little mum and pop coffee shops all over the place.  Wow.  Anyway, I've had one cup of regular coffee this morning and one decaf. 

Yes, I do have an headache.  But, I'm glad glad glad to be home!!!!

On my mum:  her recovery is going well.  Her shoulder did not need surgery, thank God.  If so, I would have (with my siblings) agreed she would need to recover from that in a nursing home (mentally, this would have done mum in, we all believe - she has a dreadful, irrational fear of being stuffed into one for the rest of her days; which, is tempting to say the least, at times . . . ahem ahem ahem, oh heavens!).  Okay, so that didn't need to happen.  They wanted her to recover from her heart scare/shoulder in a nursing home but she went wacko off on them and that's why I went home:  so she could go home.  She does not have congestive heart failure (although, if she does not continue to take care of herself - insert doubt on all our parts here - she will have before long).  Apparently, oxygen rich blood isn't filling her chambers up and that causes her light-headedness and chest discomfort.  Honestly, her potassium levels were so high, she had to stay in hospital longer than she wanted.  She struggled with feeling like she was tied down (in the bed; she wasn't tied down, but the rails up made her uneasy).  They let her sleep in a chair, because, quite frankly, she wasn't having the bed.  In fact, they released her the day I flew in . . . my brother, dad, and mum were on the ferry boat right behind Christian and I.  Huh.  I barely got turned around before she came in the door.

She was sooooo surprised.

I hope that in the coming days she won't start complaining I didn't do nearly enough for them while I was there, but knowing her the way I do, it's inevitable.  Personally, the more ornery she is, the healthier I know she will be.  So, it's not such a bad thing then.

God is good all of the time.  Amen.

Feast of The Visitation

O Eternal and incarnate Wisdom! O sweetest and most adorable Jesus! True God and true man, only Son of the Eternal Father, and of Mary, always virgin! I adore Thee profoundly in the bosom and splendors of Thy Father during eternity; and I adore Thee also in the virginal bosom of Mary, Thy most worthy Mother, in the time of Thine incarnation.

I give Thee thanks for that Thou hast annihilated Thyself, taking the form of a slave in order to rescue me from the cruel slavery of the devil. I praise and glorify Thee for that Thou hast been pleased to submit Thyself to Mary, Thy holy Mother, in all things, in order to make me Thy faithful slave through her. But, alas! Ungrateful and faithless as I have been, I have not kept the promises which I made so solemnly to Thee in my Baptism; I have not fulfilled my obligations; I do not deserve to be called Thy child, nor yet Thy slave; and as there is nothing in me which does not merit Thine anger and Thy repulse, I dare not come by myself before Thy most holy and august Majesty. It is on this account that I have recourse to the intercession of Thy most holy Mother, whom Thou hast given me for a mediatrix with Thee. It is through her that I hope to obtain of Thee contrition, the pardon of my sins, and the acquisition and preservation of wisdom.

Hail, then, O immaculate Mary, living tabernacle of the Divinity, where the Eternal Wisdom willed to be hidden and to be adored by angels and by men! Hail, O Queen of Heaven and earth, to whose empire everything is subject which is under God. Hail, O sure refuge of sinners, whose mercy fails no one. Hear the desires which I have of the Divine Wisdom; and for that end receive the vows and offerings which in my lowliness I present to thee.

I, Sarah, a faithless sinner, renew and ratify today in thy hands the vows of my Baptism; I renounce forever Satan, his pomps and works; and I give myself entirely to Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Wisdom, to carry my cross after Him all the days of my life, and to be more faithful to Him than I have ever been before. In the presence of all the heavenly court I choose thee this day for my Mother and Mistress. I deliver and consecrate to thee, as thy slave, my body and soul, my goods, both interior and exterior, and even the value of all my good actions, past, present and future; leaving to thee the entire and full right of disposing of me, and all that belongs to me, without exception, according to thy good pleasure, for the greater glory of God in time and in eternity.

Receive, O benignant Virgin, this little offering of my slavery, in honor of, and in union with, that subjection which the Eternal Wisdom deigned to have to thy maternity; in homage to the power which both of you have over this poor sinner, and in thanksgiving for the privileges with which the Holy Trinity has favored thee. I declare that I wish henceforth, as thy true slave, to seek thy honor and to obey thee in all things.

O admirable Mother, present me to thy dear Son as His eternal slave, so that as He has redeemed me by thee, by thee He may receive me! O Mother of mercy, grant me the grace to obtain the true Wisdom of God; and for that end receive me among those whom thou lovest and teachest, whom thou leadest, nourishest and protectest as thy children and thy slaves.

O faithful Virgin, make me in all things so perfect a disciple, imitator and slave of the Incarnate Wisdom, Jesus Christ thy Son, that I may attain, by thine intercession and by thine example, to the fullness of His age on earth and of His glory in Heaven. Amen.

Going to Seattle

As I may have mentioned before, my mum fell and fractured her right shoulder last week.  Well, she is back in hospital as of  yesterday, because she is experiencing high potassium levels, water retention in her ankles and tightness in her chest.  She's being kept for tests and observations.  It was the word "congestive heart failure" that lit a fire under my can . . . so I'm heading back to my childhood home to see if I can help out.  I'm taking Christian with me - if anything, to keep me grounded!  He's such a good boy - and a happy person!  I'd take the other two, but they have two more weeks of school to do.

They'll be fine (Dan's here and we have excellent friends and neighbours here).  We'll be fine.  I don't think I'll update here or on FB much since my folks do not have a PC and my sister's is frequented by her daughter - I may not be able to push my niece/godchild off the stool and get a chance.  LOL!

But, I will write later and I will share pictures. 


I ask you for prayers - whatever God Wills is the perfect request.  We ask and trust.  Mahalo nui loa.

Prayer Is Always Beneficial

I'm in week two of Total Consecration.  I've been doing this since 2006.  It has changed my life from the onset.  Every year, as I spiritually travel the road to renewal, I encounter something new to work on so that I can better be a disciple of Christ.  Mary is a tremendous help in that regard.  Totus Tuus!

I am one Rosary shy of completing a promised Spiritual Bouquet for a friend's husband currently in formation to becoming a Deacon.  In saying that, I am admitting that I haven't been praying the Rosary daily . . . oops!  Even I fall off that wagon now and again.  If I hadn't gone off from the daily Rosary, I would have completed those promised ones ages ago.  But, I know in my heart that it's okay.  Good things cannot be rushed.  I prayed these Rosaries in earnest - and included many of your private/open intentions right along with them.  In no way am I sharing this to garner thanks.  It is our duty as Christians to pray for one another!  I'm so glad that God has placed this urgency on my heart!  I know so many who struggle with rote prayer let alone just openly chatting God up.  He likes both!  He likes your attention!  Just keep praying - even if you say absolutely nothing, but just BE in His Presence.  Oh, He loves that!!!

This morning the Rosary was intense.  I cannot explain it other than it was effortless to recall each person . . . as I prayed their/your faces were clear as day in my mind's eye and what they/you needed, too!  This has never ever happened to me.  Ever.  It was also one of the most un-rushed, peaceful prayer times I've had in a long time.  I love it when He allows me to "feel" (and this is so unreliable and feeble in many cases) that I'm doing His Will.  Not pridefully boasting that I know exactly what He wants and that I'm doing it, but that inner knowledge only He can impart that He is nudging me to know I am doing just as He Wills.  Does that make sense?  Anyway, when I would force a recall on a particular person, the "sense" wasn't as strong, but when I allowed the Holy Spirit free reign, the prayer would deepen in a way I cannot put adequate words to.  The difference, I think, is that between the two, I got the sense that those the Holy Spirit invoked needed prayer more so (I felt almost like I was outside of myself seeing these people).  Whereas, for example, I asked God to help Rachel (who is home w/ a stomach bug today) it was more of a request, like, "here is the need" and immediately the Holy Spirit would move me on to a person in real need (if that can honestly make any sense), like, a few of my friends mother's who are ailing something fierce (hospitalizations and surgeries kind of stuff).  I have a friend who's mother is having a very hard time of it right now and when I saw her face, I could see all her troubles (even some I'm sure was never shared with me by her daughter) . . . and this mom, in particular, held through at least two Hail Mary's; very deep and I felt warm all over.

Does anyone else experience prayer like this?  Please let me know.  It is so hard to explain it.  But I wanted to share with you how wonderful and good it is to pray - and allow the Holy Spirit to lead you.

"Let go and let God" has a new meaning to me today.  I pray this for each of you.

Mother's Day Weekend

Here's what I've begun:

I borrowed the book from my friend.  I'm reading it and applying a few principles for the time being (as I make my way through the text):  daily 30 minute walk and stretching three times a day.  Each week (of the six) I will incorporate a new routine (dietary and/or exercise), which is part of the plan - slow integration.  In theory it should work for me.  I like how she carefully and frequently reminds the reader that building muscle you may remain the same weight, but you will drop "sizes".  I love that!!!  I'm more focused on health and endurance.  I don't care if I don't drop a single pound, but if I'm exchanging fat for muscle, this program is worth it.  I also know in the process, losing a few clothing sizes will be rewarding!  I did DA's 'walk' dvd yesterday.  I made it 13 out of 15 minutes.  My hips were fried . . . that's not walking (the label says "easy" - sure, for those who walk like maniacs).  I'm swinging my arms all over the place (not gracefully either) and marching right then left.  I must kick now this leg then the other.  Did I mention I am not a fan of aerobics?  It's because I am not coordinated.  I easily become part of the floor because I quickly bump into furniture or trip on the dog who likely thinks I'm in distress.  Well, I am in distress, damn it!  It is very distressing to coordinate with the video when you're an uncoordinated person.  I did get an excellent workout - and I laughed at my efforts the whole time.  However at minute 13 I could not move my hips any more.  The burning was unbelievable.  It's going to be a brilliant work out!

The weather in HI is really wet.  The forecast is for chances of rain all weekend.  I wanted to go to the Falls, but we may have to put that off for another day when it will be sunny!  That's alright.  We'll still go down to Puka Dog and eat.

My plans are to dig out the laundry room.  Apparently we have some of these birds building a nest in our dryer vent.

It's a common myna bird.  They are scavengers really, kind of like mainland crows.  They do have beautiful song, though.  They are everywhere so I don't need them in my dryer vent.  Anyway, the maintenance folks will have to come out on Wednesday to chase them out and place a screen over the vent so they can't come back.  I'm pretty certain they'll need to come in and into my laundry room to clear the vent going out of the house.  In fact, I'll insist upon their doing so.  Can you imagine if they just place the screen and accidentally trap the things in there?  I'd be smelling something foul shortly.

Wishing you all a beautiful and blessed Mother's Day!

Divine Mercy Sunday & Blessed John Paul II

Celebrating the very goodness of God!

Well done, good and faithful servant! 

Jesus, I trust in You!

We live in a confused world where there are more distractions than ever in history.  However, every age has had its distractions and many are more distracted from God than others.  I think what makes it more distracting today is the family - the true definition of family and marriage - is being torn asunder.  Here is Christ, the Lord, Who gave us the way to follow; the path of Truth.  It's always been challenged.  Christ keeps giving us His Merciful gifts through the Church and Her leaders.  One of them is Blessed Pope John Paul II.  In a world so undeserving, Our Lord keeps showing us He loves us.  Let us love Him above all things, worshiping Him in Spirit and Truth, as we are called to do.

All days are to be counted a blessing.  Let us thank God for the Church and Her Blessed and Sainted servants.

Blessed John Paul II, ora pro nobis