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Before the plane took off Monday morning from DFW Airport, my nose was buried in an advanced copy of The Grace of Yes: Eight Virtues for Generous Living . As we landed in Tampa, my new knowledge of Lisa Hendey , myself and true generosity was incredible. And one-third of the book to go! By Tuesday afternoon my mind was full of spiritual truths. My heart and soul were so reinforced with encouragement that my copious notes now fill this review and overflow into several blog ideas. Having known and grown to love Lisa long-distance for four years through CatholicMom.com and Catholic Writers Guild (CWG), I finally met her at the CWGLive conference in Chicago and took a photo with her. Her keynote speech on “Perseverance,” with many concepts from The Grace of Yes , and a one-on-one meeting when she advised me on a publishing question, created an instant connection in our spirits.   The eight virtues of the Grace of Yes continues on JOYAlive.net

Did you ever notice that the Advent season seems to come and go in the blink of an eye? All of a sudden you find yourself at Christmas Mass wondering how your time to prepare for Christ so easily slipped through your fingers. Darn! You had promised yourself that  this  Advent would be different. You wouldn’t be caught by surprise,  yet again ! You bought Advent prayer books and an Advent wreath kit. You had great intentions to make this Advent season very different from last. However, that doesn’t have to be the case. You can make the conscious choice—right here, right now—to stop in your busy tracks and embrace the coming season of Advent; and its purpose. Advent is a season of preparing. If you have ever entertained guests, or even made the slightest effort to get ready for any company, you will see how those experiences lend themselves well to your own groundwork this Advent to invite Christ to dwell within your heart—and thus truly be ready for His second coming.

Craniosynostosis – the coronal suture has prematurely fused My ten month old grandson is a happy, quick, engaging little fellow who was born with the plates of his skull fused together prematurely. As a result, he is facing major surgery to cut the plates and reshape his head which has grown lopsided. Emmett’s surgery is on   Wednesday Nov. 19 at 9am Eastern Standard Time . The surgery will take between 5-7 hours, but it could take up to 10 hours. Details of the surgery are as follows: an incision is made from ear to ear, the skull is removed from the orbital bone to the centre of the head. After the neurosurgeon removes a piece of his skull that has fused prematurely, a plastic surgeon will reshape the skull.  Then the surgeon will put it  back together using plates and screws which are made of a dissoluble substance. They use between 150-200 screws. read more

St Catherine of Siena said that patience isn't so much a virtue as the test of all true virtue. If you haven't any patience at all its ten to one you haven't any virtues either that are worth writing home about. That brings us all down to size doesn't it? It made me reflect on why I get so impatient if I have to wait for anything, whether it's for the post to come, a train or 'plane to arrive, or for my turn at the supermarket checkout. The truth of the matter is I hate waiting for anything, because I'm not in control, and who doesn't like being in control, not only of events but of other people too?  read on......

'Go ahead! Courage! In the spiritual life he who does not go forward goes backward. It is the same with a boat which must always go forward. If it stands still, the wind will blow it back.' - St. Padre Pio'                                                                (from The Cloistered Heart)

Matthew 25:14 - 30 , the parable of the talents, isn't one of those 'feel-good' stories. You know how it goes: a man gives three of his servants sizable chunks of money: five talents to one, three to another, and one to the third. The third servant ends up thrown "into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth." ( Matthew 25:30 ) The line before that is just as grim, and a bit disturbing.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I am part of a brand new published book with 30 other writers who are regular contributors to Daily Gospel Reflections on  CatholicMom .  Introducing  As Morning Breaks: Daily Gospel Reflections  .  I write the reflection for the fourth day of every month. If you do download this book, we would be thrilled if you left a short review. “ With Christ joy is constantly born anew.” Pope Francis Inspired by our prayer community at CatholicMom.com, As Morning Breaks offers 365 daily reflections on the Liturgy of the Word and the Gospels. With each daily meditation, the reader is invited into a further examination of the Gospel passage. A “ponder” question is provided for contemplation, discussion or journaling. Each meditation ends with a brief prayer. These prayers are offered as a springboard for your own quiet meditative prayer. read more

Woman Sewing , Van Gogh Rijksmuseum Kröller-Müller, Otterlo, Netherlands [ Web Gallery of Art ] She seeks wool and flax, and works with willing hands (Proverbs 31:13,  First reading ). Readings   (New American Bible: Philippines, USA) Readings   (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, England & Wales, India [optional], Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland, South Africa)  Gospel   Matthew 25:14-30 [14-15, 19-21]   ( New Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition , Canada)   Jesus spoke this parable to his disciples: “For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them;    to one he gave five talents,   to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away .   [ The one who had received the five talents went off at once and traded with them, and made five more talents.     In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents.     But the one who had received

In modern America, the push toward Christmas began before Halloween even ended. In an effort to drive up sales, we are constantly bombarded by advertisements for the next big thing, come September the focus of retailers turns to Christmas. However, what about Advent? It's a time of preparation but not in the sense of running store to store, piling high the latest gifts, and hosting party after party.  To prepare for a true Christmas, we must observe a true Advent. Here are our Advent plans in Seven Quick Takes. Read more at Veils and Vocations

A spacecraft landed on a comet, 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, this week: an historic 'first.' Back on Earth, scientists at the ALMA radio telescope got the clearest picture yet of planets about to take shape.... ...I'm looking forward to what we'll learn from the Rosetta mission's lander and orbiter: how closely its water matches Earth's, and what other substances it carried from the Solar System's borderlands.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I wrote this last year.  My worst fears have come true!  Many stores are opening Thanksgiving Day. Why would you  want  to shop on Thanksgiving Day? I have never been a fan of shopping on Black Friday so I can't imagine shopping on Thanksgiving Day.  I've only gone once and that cured me forever.  I consider myself the Queen of Shopping, but I will not fight crowds in the stores or in the parking lot to score a deal.  Can you say internet? You can read the entire article at Being Catholic ... Really .

Last night I had the privilege of giving a talk at my church on hearing the voice of God in our lives. This is a topic I am very passionate about! When I was eighteen, I actually stopped believing in God because I figured if there was a God then he should be able to speak to me and since I didn't hear him speaking, he must not exist. At the age of nineteen, the Lord revealed himself to me in a powerful way! I discovered that he does know and care about us on a personal level and he does speak to his people. He saved me from a life of sin and despair and I couldn't wait to show him how grateful I was! I got involved in every ministry I possibly could and became VERY busy. Looking back, I was actually running way ahead of him and there were times he was trying to get my attention but I wasn't listening.           Continue Reading @ Beautifulthorns>

  ....As the Philosopher said to the Archbishop!..... “You’re all guilt-ridden hypocrites!”   For the early Christians, the spiritual journey to which the faithful had committed themselves, was not directed to entering into exotic transcendental experiences, but to entering into Jesus Christ, who was alive and present to all of them every day of their lives. They were quite adamant that his sublime moral teaching, that they all aspired to imitate, could only be put into practice if they allowed him to enter into them, make his home in them, and make his love present through them, to the world that they had been called to serve. Many years ago there used to be a panel programme on the radio called the ‘ Brains Trust’.   read on

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Last week a workman was explaining a new carbon monoxide detector to me. When I said, “I don’t know where there’s another outlet,” he said, “You’re not listening. I said it doesn’t need one.” This made me wonder how many other times I wasn’t listening and what I was missing because of it. Usually when I’m listening with only one ear it’s because I’m planning the next thing I’m going to say. I don’t like it when people don’t listen when I’m speaking. click to continue

Jesus said that there is no greater gift than to lay down ones life for a friend.  Imagine laying down your life for someone you have never met, for someone who has opposing views, for those who stand against all you stand for?  There is a saying that there are no atheists in foxhole. However, that isn't solely because when faced with the terror of impending death, so many seak God and pray for deliverance. To be in a foxhole voluntarily, a solider is living the greatest teachings of Christ. Love your neighbor as yourself and serve without seeking to be served.  Everyday thousands of Americans willingly and proudly don the uniform that not only brings them honor but makes them lay down their lives for neighbors, friends, family, strangers, countrymen. Read more at Veils and Vocations.

Joseph Dreaming Michael O’Brien is a Canadian Catholic, a writer, successful novelist and most of all a painter, expressing himself in both the tradition of icons and in more modern styles.  I love his rich, deep colours and the sense of deep spirituality which radiates from each work; I KNOW he paints in a spirit of prayer.These images were found on Studio OStudio O and on Pinterest at studiobrien.com continue Joseph the Worker

My article written  for Catholic365.com was just published.  It's called:: "Say a Hail Mary and Clean Those Beans." To read the story, click HERE . This post comes from:: His Unending Love  

El Alcazar, Segovia, Spain. Photo illustration  by Connie Rossini. All rights reserved. Teresa of Avila wrote Interior Castle in obedience to her superiors in 1577. She had written extensively about prayer and her experience of it in her autobiography ( Life) several years before, but that book was now in the hands of the Inquisition. She had no desire to write another book. She was busy with the monasteries she had founded, in the midst of what could be an official quashing of her reform, and she had terrible tinnitus that made her head ring with noise. But she obeyed, having no idea what she was going to say. She prayed for the Holy Spirit’s guidance. The result was one of the most iconic images of the soul ever created. I began to think of the soul as if it were a castle made of a single diamond or of very clear crystal, in which there are many rooms, just as in Heaven there are many mansions.” (First Mansions, Chapter 1) The King (Jesus) dwells in the center

I'm at work. The phone rings. The caller ID tells me it's school calling. "Hello?" "Hi, Mrs. Urbanski. This is the school nurse." The upshot: my daughter Rose is sick, and won't I please come pick her up? Absolutely. I finish up the task I was working on, say goodbye to my coworkers, and head out the door. It takes me longer than I expect to reach school; by the time I arrive, Rose is miserable. See what happens next at Praying with Grace . . . .

My cousin died, very unexpectedly, last week.  She made her husband's  lunch.  She called her children, then she went to bed and sleep.  The next morning, her husband was not able to wake her.  She was pronounced dead in spite of heroic efforts of her husband to revive her. I received a text at morning Mass regarding her death.  The text came in the middle of Mass, so I shut my phone off without looking at the text.  It wasn't until later that I read the message. The name on the text was not familiar to me, but it came off of Facebook.  I checked the sender's page to discover that the sender was my second cousin who had been requested by Facebook to use his actual name, instead of the nickname he had chosen.  (No judgment, just frustration.) I was sitting at breakfast when I realized that it was my 58 year old first cousin who had died in her sleep.   Read more at:: His Unending Love

Our neighbor, Maria Magdalena, whom we know and love as Magda, died alone in the middle of the night. Her lungs collapsed from a respiratory infection after a bout with the flu. We prepared food for many of her family when they came in from Mexico.   After her husband, Adrian, drowned in the lake behind our homes almost 5 years ago she was too sad to worship at the Romanian Baptist Church where they had married 19 years ago. She was active in a nearby Bible church with others in the neighborhood. At the visitation we were a little surprised that a Hispanic deacon we know was there to say the Rosary. But of course, those from Mexico needed to say those prayers. It is part of their culture, part of who they are, and who Magda was as a child. The deacon alternated between Spanish and English decades. We were the only ones in our area of the chapel saying the decades. The row of teachers from the school where Magda taught first grade, all remained seated in front

For the past several years, the order of my planning and preparation goes like this: Thanksgiving, December festivities (all those parties, concerts, shopping trips and other things happen in December), Christmas, Advent.  See anything wrong with this picture?  I sure do. In my world, Advent has become an afterthought - something that I scramble to focus on around the time we light the pink candle. Here's a few ideas to prepare, in advance, for Advent. Click to read 7 tips here....

The sconces that hung above the fireplace were a bit medieval-looking. Sort of blackened silver and with ornate, swirly designs on the plating that was attached to the wall, they really needed to go. I’m not exactly sure what I was thinking when I bought them but since my husband wasn’t keen on them from the beginning—and I was the one who insisted they were “perfect”—well, I had to live with them. Preparing for the painting of the living room was, finally, the perfect time for them to be replaced and for me to keep my deep dark secret about the mistake of purchasing them in the first place. Cool. So while we moved furniture out of the way and into the center of the room to get covered in drop clothes, my husband also removed the sconces from the wall. He was happy to get rid of them—but probably not as happy as was I! Now, instead of ugly sconces, the living room had, as its focal point, two 5” round holes with a bit of insulation sticking out and some wires that had li

Hero: someone admired for great courage. Thus says my dictionary. Heroic saints: those in Heaven who had the courage to get there. Which is everyone who IS there. Thus says me. Yes, that second is my own definition and it's cumbersome, but I believe it's accurate. After all, it takes courage to... 1. admit I am a sinner in need of a Savior 2. put my faith in Jesus Christ, especially when the world around considers Him insignificant 3. choose to believe Scripture 4. choose to believe 2,000 years of authentic Church teaching 5. choose to live according to Scripture and Church teaching 6. choose to live according to the teachings of Christ, no matter what 7. overcome obstacles to living for Christ.... (continue reading here...)

Behind wheels, one of the most dangerous spots on the road is the blind spot. One needs to accept that one cannot see ahead and throw caution to the winds. So it is with a personal spirituality. Read on at http://silpapaul.blogspot.com/2014/06/beware-blind-spot-ahead.html

(From John Martin, via Wikimedia Commons, used w/o permission.) (Detail from John Martin's "The Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah." (1852)) By some standards, this isn't a particularly "Christian" blog. I don't rant about the unending fires of Hell, or dwell on cheerful thoughts like this: " ...The God that holds you over the pit of hell, much as one holds a spider or some loathsome insect over the fire, abhors you.... " ( Sinners in the Hand of an Angry God ," Jonathan Edwards (1741)) That's because it's not 1741 any more, and I'm Catholic. I've talked about the Great Awakening, Jonathan Edwards, and Mark Twain, before. ( December 1, 2013 ) As a Christian, I agree with Simon Peter.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

After having five girls and then a boy, you can't tell me that there's no difference between boys and girls. My son, who will be two in January, makes animals growl at each other, says "vroom vroom" every time he sees a car, makes swords out of just about everything and loves to throw things. He does these things without any promptings. None of my girls did these things. Having a son is giving me a better understanding of what Jesus must have been like as a child as well as adding to our joy.  Continue Reading @ Beautifulthorns>

My very first post: Yes I'm Catholic. Really. I go to church every week with my husband ... no matter what. I wasn't always Catholic. Heck, there was a time when I wasn't Christian, but I always believed in God. I always knew there was a higher power. You can read the rest at Being Catholic ... Really .

Today I'm celebrating 4 years with ChicagoNow!  You can read all my posts at Being Catholic ... Really .