Association Of Catholic Bloggers

In  A Love Such as Heaven Intended , the third in a Civil War series, Amanda Lauer shows us that even during times of war, love wins. In this enchanting book, we meet Josephine Katherine Bigelow, a social elite, of the Washington D.C. circuit. As a recent graduate from the Georgetown Academy for Young Ladies, Josephine has grand plans to become a writer. Thinking she needs no further education, she readies herself to conquer the world with her pen. Yet, her father, on the other hand, Brigadier General Matthias Bigelow, has different designs. Although the country is at war, and the General is one of President Abraham Lincoln’s right-hand men, he wants to see his daughter receive more education. But, Josephine knows well how to get what she wants. By wrapping her father around her little finger, Josephine sets out on an adventure that proves to us all that living life fully means finding a love such as Heaven intended. Josephine Bigelow sets out on a course only God could design.

Schools in Sierra Leone reopened today, having been closed since the Ebola outbreak in July. According to an  NPR report , "more than one-third of the 10,000+ deaths have been in Sierra Leone." When this year's harsh winter closed schools for several days in a row, some parents joked about how grueling it was to be trapped at home with stir-crazy children. Very few of us reading this blog can imagine what it's like to experience nine months of closed schools, especially amid a health crisis claiming thousands of lives. Not that long ago, in 1991, Sierra Leone faced another horrifying crisis: civil war. A month ago, I had the opportunity to listen to a survivor of that war. Ishmael Beah, author of  A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier , was forced to become a soldier in Sierra Leone at the age of thirteen. Photo courtesy of Brookfield Academy Ishmael visited my children's school, where his book is required reading for the ninth graders. Students, t