Happy Thanksgiving!

Greetings,

I wish all a happy and holy day of Thanksgiving! This morning the two sister parishes (St. Eugene's & St. Monica's) held Mass together at St. Monica's. The church is beautiful and large enough to house all those gathered to say thanks this morning. Fr. Jerry's homily began by roaming up and down the church to ask parishioners to share that for which they were thankful. My favorite was this little girl's voice chirping over the mic system, "Mommies and Daddies".

I believe our Benedictine background helps us celebrate this day of national Thanksgiving. He reminds us that all we have is gift, all our goods are to be treated as vessels of the altar, and to be grateful for what we have but to not seek for more than what we need. The sense of gratefulness that is all throughout the Rule can hopefully keep my heart open to living out a thankful life every day and not just this commemoration in November. So today, I've been trying to challenge myself to think out ways to share my gratitude with others to make my thanksgiving more visible.

I have much to be Thankful for today. I have the opportunity of education at a wonderful Catholic university. Our community has given the chance to go back to school to improve my education about education; hopefully, I will have a chance to share this will a new classroom next fall. I've been blessed with a family; a loud, crazy, overwhelming crowd--but I love them. They are gathering at Mom and Dad's tonight and tomorrow. One great aunt (Aunt Marcine is going shopping with the girls tomorrow), three boys between 4 & 5, three girls between 7 & 8, one little girl who turns 1-year-old today, and four parents, plus Nana and Grampa! Maybe it's not so bad that I'm out in Milwaukee? I'm grateful for our Benedictine Community. They have helped me develop strengths and shore up weakness that I never would have been able to do alone. In vocation talks, I tell the kiddos that Community is the greatest blessing as well as the only sacrifice Benedict asked his monks to perform. Still--I couldn't imagine living any other way. I've been blessed with friends in my life who have been supportive and challenging. They have picked me up, dusted me off, and pushed me back on track...and they know I'd do it for them...God has blessed me.

Thanksgiving Blessings!

Thanksgiving Generosity

Greetings,

The students at the middle school have been gathering non-perishable foods for a couple weeks. At the start of the food drive, a speaker came from an area food bank to talk about why they need the food and the many people that come to the food bank. The school backed up the speaker with a challenge to each class (5th through 8th) to bring in 500 cans or other non-perishable items. The prize--middle school remember--for each class would be a Marquette Basketball and participation in a school wide basketball tournament!

I was present for the final can count this morning. There was a flurry of counting and recounting in the 6th grade classroom as students came in with their final additions to the cause. A cheer would come from the boys every time another classmate came in with a bag or box to add, and then they would start counting all over again. The final total for this one class?...650 items!

The teacher sent his students down to the morning assembly, but he was stopped by a 7th grade emissary in the hall. They hadn't raised enough cans to join in the school-wide basketball game, and would the 6th graders share some of their surplus? The teacher said he would have to ask the students who had gathered the goods for those in need. The assembly upped the pressure on the 6th grade boys...the 8th grade and 5th grade students had given their surplus goods to the 7th grade class, but they were still short by almost 70 items! The boys met quickly but denied the request. Their reasoning?...They were raising cans to help the food bank and not just play basketball...so no ball playing for the 7th grade boys. Unless the principal had mercy later on.

The generosity of the school was overwhelming. This school of about 80 or 90 boys gathered over 2,000 items for the area food bank! The students of this school are not privileged, they are part of the Latino neighborhood on the South Side. This generosity came not from their excess, but from their own need in some cases. The boxes of ramen noodles and slightly dented cans that were donated so willingly will be welcomed by another family in need in the same neighborhood.

Blessings,

Thankful Quote of the Day

Greetings,

I've been receiving weekly quotes from The Merton Institute. Each is from one of Thomas Merton's works and often connects with the Church seasons or events in civic society. Today's quote leads into the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. It was too good to not share with all of you.

Blessings,

"To be grateful is to recognize the Love of God in everything He has given
us --- and He has given us everything. Every breath we draw is a gift of
His love, every moment of existence is a grace, for it brings with it immense
graces from Him. Gratitude therefore takes nothing for granted, is never
unresponsive, is constantly awakening to new wonder and to praise of the
goodness of God."

Thomas Merton. Thoughts In Solitude (New York: Farrar, Straus, Giroux): 33.