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Embrace Your Femininity…Don’t Erase Your Femininity.
I know that we live in a world that doesn’t always appreciate the contribution that women have made to culture and to history — but frankly, that doesn’t erase the beauty and gift that women are to the world. Yes, men are a gift as well — but they are a different kind of gift — and perhaps the best way to have a more profound appreciation for both sexes is to recognize those differences and embrace them. To be a woman is to be a creature entirely different from a man, so much so, that many a philosopher has explored the beautiful differences that go all the way down…
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An Unexpected First Communion and “Becoming” Greek Orthodox — Part 2
If you haven’t read Last weeks post to understand the background and the differences between the Greek Orthodox Mass and a Roman Catholic Mass, you might want to go back and check that out. In a nutshell, we found ourselves with no Roman Catholic masses available on the Island of Santorini, but a very active Greek Orthodox church. In this scenario, a Roman Catholic is allowed and encouraged to attend the Greek Orthodox services and even to receive communion — if the Greek Orthodox priest will allow it — as we share this Sacrament in common with the Greek Orthodox. The only catch is many Greek Orthodox will not allow…
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An Unexpected First Communion and “Becoming” Greek Orthodox – Part One
Okay, I guess I should say up front, that — spoiler alert — our family is still Roman Catholic, but after having spent a week and a half in Greece and experiencing their different rite of worship, we feel a kinship with them that we hadn’t before felt. Maybe I should begin by saying that the Greek Orthodox are Catholic, but they are Eastern Catholics who split from the Roman Catholic Church in 1054 (not to be confused with Byzantine Rites that are Eastern Catholics who recognize the Pope), and there is a history of tension that still exists between them. This tension is over a few differences, including but…
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It’s Been a While and Where I’ve been
Well, hello there! It’s been a while! Truth be told, it’s been one of those summers where I was just keeping my head above water. We had graduation parties and home improvements and we were getting ready for an epic family pilgrimage adventure, following the footsteps of St. Paul in Greece. I have to admit, I lost a lot of sleep over this trip. I can’t explain it but to say that the world has gone a bit crazy and to leave the shire that is our home and step into the craziness of bureaucracies and rising covid numbers in far off lands — in the middle of this never-ending…
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A Family Hike to St. Anthony’s Chapel in Korčula
Remember when we used to be able to travel? That was fun, wasn’t it? Anywho it’s all going to be okay. Really, it will. In the meantime, there are plenty of adventures you can scrounge up wherever you are around the world. If you find yourself “stuck at home” this summer, finding a local shrine and creating your own family pilgrimage for the day is an awesome way to break up the regular routine and make some memories. Added bonus: it doesn’t have to cost you a penny — and just maybe, you will discover a fondness for family hikes you never knew you had. Extra bonus: it expends all…
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When Beauty Broke Through
“Beauty will save the world” Fyodor Dostoevsky This is a story that didn’t begin so well. It begins with a family of 8 on a bus, weaving around narrow highways to reach the top of a mountain. Don’t get me wrong. The views were fantastic, and it was the only way to get to the top of this mountain without paying an arm and a leg for a 5 minute cable car ride. But I happened to be in the front of the bus with the little guy and the rest of my family was in back — growing ever more nauseous as the bus twisted and turned around the…
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Staring at the Serpent
Through an unfortunate series of events, already enumerated in the update I shared this morning, today’s original post was irretrievably lost. The thought has occurred to me that maybe the devil didn’t want me to finish that post — which, I know, sounds strange, but I feel like this little conversation we had with a man named Stewart is crucial in taking back what has been lost in recent years. It’s hard to even describe what has been lost, but maybe you have felt it, too. It’s as if we (and by “we”, I mean “Christians”) have given up the good fight and gone into defensive mode, just trying to…
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Why We Travel With Our Kids
Summer is here and the living is easy. It’s time to start thinking about your next family adventure. Yeehaw! Don’t get me wrong. There is most definitely a time and a place for couple getaways and weekends with friends — but what if you began to see your family as the best partners in any travel adventure? Please note that I didn’t say they are the best partners in a relaxing or spa-like getaway — no, no, no — anybody who has ever traveled with a bunch of kids knows you will likely come home exhausted and ready for another vacation. So get words like “relaxation” and “spa-like” out of…
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Taking the Time to Be Renewed
That time I hiked Croagh Patrick in Ireland, looked down upon all the beauty below and had a pretty good idea why St. Patrick decided to spend 40 days in prayer and fasting here. 😍 Don’t get me wrong. It is cold and windy and the conditions on top of this mountain were quite extreme — but Patrick knew the value of sacrifice, of mortification, of taking time away from the world around him so he could be with God — and God alone. Patrick loved the pagan world around him, and wanted to bring the Light of Christ to them — only he was well aware of all of…
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Showing Our Kids The Place Their Story Began in Glendalough
“Love anything and your heart will be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact you must give it to no one. Lock it up, safe in the coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket, it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. To love is to be vulnerable.” ~C. S. Lewis~ Some would say it is a stroke of sheer madness to settle down and marry just one person — just one — when there are so many people in this vast world of ours. I like to think that John and I are a little bit mad. We were crazy enough, 19 years…
