Things I like, in no particular order:

1. thick, fuzzy, warm new socks
2. hot chocolate
3. cold Coke
4. snuggling
5. sleeping under a mountain of comforters and pillows
6.the symphony
7. chick flicks
8. Marvin the Martian
9. the crash of waves on the beach
10. the stars

I get the feeling that I should have a blog or something to share my adventures in.

Oh. I do. Only, I suppose I don’t do that enough.

Until today. In the middle of all the other responsibilites I have, I had to go to HAZMAT training. Because I need it, don’t you know. I mean, some of those essays can really get toxic.

On second thought, I am in the mood to get really toxic. Excuse me a moment…

…ah, yes, that is just the refreshment that I needed. Okay, so back to the training. Yes, my day was interupted so that I can tell the difference between caution and warning. There is nothing to study about DANGER! Evidently, that one doesn’t need clarification.

I’m just disappointed I didn’t get the yellow suit.

For every perceived betrayal that my body delivers to me as I age, I am consoled by the graces that come with aging – the most important and appreciated is wisdom. I’m still nowhere near that place where the patience to be quiet and wait comes naturally, but I’m working on it. At least on an intellectual level I understand it. That knowledge, however, doesn’t make the exercise any easier.

It seems that impatience and wanting it now is a condition of the times in which we live. If we can’t access that website in a click, we get frustrated. If there are two cars ahead of us at the drive-thru, we feel put out.

If God doesn’t answer our prayers on the spot, we are quick to accuse Him of not listening.

Once, I fervently asked God to give me patience. He accommodated me rather nicely. By providing seemingly endless opportunities to practice being patient! I’m not bitter; I got what I asked for. I learned that I cannot control the clock – but I can use it.

It wasn’t an easy lesson to grasp, but once I understood it, the peace that came to me was almost overwhelming. Letting go of that need for control (and by the way, a control I never had) was not just liberating, but empowering.

I’d love to say that I have a singular purpose in my faith that allows me to live my life in perfect concert with what God wants for me. Unfortunately, I regularly fall short of my potential. The human propensity to sin, whether through commission or omission, is alive and well in my heart. The thought would ordinarily depress me except that I have finally understood that God has given us a powerful gift in the sacraments of Holy Communion and Reconciliation. One nourishes our spirit, and the other heals it.

 Advent, as a time for preparation, capitalizes on the graces of those two sacraments in such a profound way, that the effect is to slow us down rather than agitate us. If only we’d stop and see it.

I have wasted innumerable opportunities for peace over the years because of my impatience and failure to see the opportunity in the Advent Season. As a child, Advent didn’t even exist for me! There was Thanksgiving, and then a countdown to Christmas morning. Oh, and there was Baby Jesus in there somewhere. Sort of.

That attitude continued as I became an adult, only the problem was in reverse. I was counting the days because I had so much to do that the days would not be enough. I had gifts to buy. Food to cook. Parties to attend (obligations, not fun). A house to decorate. Oh. And Jesus was in there somewhere. Sort of. Maybe at the Christmas pageant where I had to dress up a kid as a shepherd.

I forgot – or perhaps better stated – I failed to realize the gift of Advent. Christmas morning was coming, whether or not I had picked out the right tinsel. In the end, the only thing that mattered was whether or not I was ready for the real Christmas, not just the celebration of the birth of Our Lord, but ready for his return.

The Catechism states, “When the Church celebrates the liturgy of Advent each year, she makes present this ancient expectancy of the Messiah, for by sharing in the long preparation for the Savior’s first coming, the faithful renew their ardent desire for his second coming. By celebrating the precursor’s birth and martyrdom, the Church unites herself to his desire: ‘He must increase, but I must decrease’ “ (524).

 Advent is a time for quiet prayer and public prayer. That’s why traditions such as a family Advent wreath are powerful. We pray and reflect and get ready for Our Lord.

That’s why parish missions are popular at this time of year. We gather as a community, united in our powerful need to seek the Lord, just as the Magi did.

And that’s why we are shrouded in purple – a majestic color often misunderstood as a symbol of kingly splendor, but also used as a symbol for penance. Most of us are quick to clean the house and make it presentable for the celebration…let’s also clean house in our souls and embrace the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

I urge you to slow down during this Season of Advent, and embrace the opportunity for preparation. We can still prepare for Christmas with our shopping sprees and decorating sessions, but we should also keep in mind that these physical acts of preparation for Christmas day are not enough. We must also seek the greater spiritual preparation for the coming of Our Lord.

Get ready. You have time.

This blog posts appears as part of the Catholic New Media Advent Calendar. Follow the link to see what else is going on over at CatholicRoundup.com

Blogger Sarah Reinhard manages to turn the mundane and boring into a delightful study of the profound in simplicity.

In other words, I like what she writes, and you will, too, so run, don’t walk, to her blog and be Amazed. Surprised. Pleased. Moved. Amused.

And Catechized.

Her latest adventures brought on by 4 year olds holding the nativities hostage has resulted in an idea so profoundly simple that I had to launch it immediately. Free the Nativities! I dare you to put yours out in public. I know I will.

a little tip o’ the hat to my friend at It’s All Straw. Funny piece, even if it does make me think of Ned Beatty. 

I love this time of year. It makes me combative, in not a good way. Anyway, kudos to my friend Nancy, who sent this cartoon along through her brother, Greg. By the way, you should go here and support the wonderful work we do at Rosary Army, which is completely unrelated to the combative attitude I get this time of year.  Come to think of it, the more I pray, the less combative I get. Maybe it’ll work for you. While you’re at Rosary Army contemplating the kind gift to help us continue with our ministry, you can go here and request a FREE rosary! I know! We’re wacky like that, but it’s what we do.

It’s December 1 and once again I don’t have a novel. I have figured out that evidently it takes me three tries. That means next year! Grand total? 17k.

My good friend Darth says it well:

By way of explanation, I am diligently working on NaNoWriMo, which means, of course, that I have run out of words for here. And to add insult to injury, I am nowhere near the necessary 50,000 words to win. I lose again. I have discovered that it takes three consecutive nanowrimo years to finish a book, so maybe if I compile all the words from the previous two FAILS, I’ll have one. It’s cheating, I know, but I won’t get the “I’m a Winner” button. I do have some integrity.

Anyway, Nancy wanted some reading material, so here ya go dear! Enjoy!

Click here to read about my favorite television show of all time.

Click here for some background information.

Click here if you like what you read and want to do something good.