Little Things

So, I'll admit it. I'm LOUSY at updating. But, heck, I gave up trying to be consistent with this. Update time.

1. I managed to pull off one of two baby showers. Baby shower 1, for my co-worker Ro', was cancelled when baby Emmanuel decided to make his appearance early. Baby shower 2, for my good friend Sarah, was just in time as little Alexandra came a week later. Both babies were three weeks early!

2. I had a LOVELY time in Illinois/Iowa, despite flooding disrupting the wedding. The wedding was held at an alternate location. It's incredibly awesome to be with my college friends, again. We had a GREAT time. Before that, I had an equally great time with my BFF Laurel and her daughter. I even got to see her bro and sil and their girls. It was a great joy to see so many people who fill such a big place in my life.

3. Then, this passed weekend, I drove to Jersey to see my good friends Jeanna and Jeff from grad school, and their son (my godson, Gabriel). He's just so amazing, and I love hearing his little excited voice shout "Lo!" when he sees me (that "Lo" for Auntie Lola). I think I caught a "Tie Lo!" once. He gives great hugs, too.

4. Work is CRAZY. Nuff said.

In other news--I've seen three newborns in the past month, locally, visited friends with children, watched those online pregnancy tickers move on, and found out that I'll be the god-mother of another god-daughter this fall. I've also read as spiritual sisters of mine have endured heart-breaking miscarriages and of another family who lost a newborn. So much joy and so much sorrow, wrapped around little people. I'm not really going anywhere with this in particular, except that in all that joy and all that sorrow, there is such tremendous love and faith. Love for children, living on earth and living in eternity, and faith in God, who gives and takes a way. It's so rare to see such love or to see Love reflected back at us. Pray for these women, all mothers--mothers of new babies, mothers of growing families, mothers of babies-on-the-inside, and mothers of children that rejoice in Heaven. They need your prayers, all in their own way.

I also had an opportunity to witness love like that at Mass this Sunday. In visit St. Alphonsius in Hopewell, NJ, there was an older priest who clearly had a neurological disorder (pray for him, and all priests). Despite shaking hands, he lovingly cleaned the chalice, paten, and the altar. It was clearly difficult to lift the chalice with his shaking hands, and I'm sure he must have noticed the shifting crowd, but he painstakingly drank from the chalice and wiped it clean. That's an amazing act of love in service of Love.

That's all for today, just a quick snapshot of my life! Pax!