Friday, November 28, 2008
Facebook intrigues
I think I was removed as a friend from a couple of high school acquaintances... I would think it was a fluke, but they are sisters... The only thing I can figure is that they saw the link to this blog, read my post An Open Letter to Catholics who Supported Obama and were offended, having both been raised Catholic and one still openly practicing it, and having Obama's page linked to their own facebook pages. My intent was certainly not to offend, but I knew it was possible that letter would. What surprises me is that rather than (1) tell me they respectfully disagree with me or (2) tolerating my opinion and moving on, they choose instead to cut me off without a word. I seem to run into more and more intolerant liberals these days. Which, golly, I thought I was supposed to be the intolerant one! I mean, aren't liberals the open-minded sort? The ones that are tolerant of ALL viewpoints? I am beginning to believe they tolerate only their views, and have no patience for those who disagree with them. I knew for sometime I disagreed with these ladies in the political realm, and have been offended by various remarks, etc., that I have seen on their facebook pages but rather than cut them off I choose to ignore the offenses because I respect them, and their views, even if I believe they are not in line with the teachings of the Catholic Church. I considered them friends, and quite frankly I think friends deserve better than that. I suppose they think they did the right thing, I mean they could have told me that they disagreed with me. Oh wait, that would have open up a dialogue. And you have to be open-minded to want that. Needless to say I am disappointed in them both, but won't cry over spilt milk. And I could be wrong, there may have been a glitch that removed them both from my list of friends. A huge coincidence, but possible...
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
My Christmas letter...
‘Twas the night before Thanksgiving, as I sat down to write
A Christmas letter for all those far far from sight.
To send to the friends and family of we lucky Mews
To tell all the exciting, and not so exciting, ‘08 news.
Despite outsourcing, relocations, & because we have not won the lotto, Al is still happily and gainfully employed at Advance Auto.
He loves to compute with his trusty friend Trey
Whom Susan named in a fit of dismay,
Howard Albert Mew the Third,
Having to make room on the couch for him, how absurd!
Susan stays busy cooking and cleaning,
Not to mention the two boys who need preening.
Her newest quests being digital scrapbooking,
Creative leftover remaking & getting ready for homeschooling.
Al and Susan made a journey alone
To be reunited with Al’s high school friends, now all grown,
It having been twenty years since their last meeting,
It was obvious their youth was a-fleeting.
John-Paul is now four, potty-trained and whiles no fool,
Still digs for pirate treasure on the playground at preschool.
Benjamin soon will turn two,
Loves cooking, singing and music class too.
He loves most of all, his brother John-Paul,
And doing everything and whatever and all
His brother does, the good and the bad,
Which sometimes makes his mother quite mad.
Al’s parents remains in good health and form
Spoiling their grandsons is to them the norm.
Delaine had some heart problems at the first of the year,
But she has improved and left all of good cheer.
Susan’s mom often enjoys the boys
For a morning or afternoon, her wee bitty joys.
Though at times Betty is quite sad
For she lost her best friend, and it does make her mad.
And after being properly diagnosed bipolar
We have all thankfully gotten off the roller
Coaster of Susan’s sister Ann’s illness,
No more do we distress.
And there is nothing Ann dreads
Now that she is on the right meds.
She lives in the County of Isle of Wight
And her recovery and future look bright.
Susan’s brother-in-law Alfredo and his boys are well,
Despite having to wish Ann farewell.
Alfredo even has two guys who work for him
And his work calendar stays quite full to the brim.
Mauricio is 13 and a football player,
While Daniel is 12 and a violin player.
Both boys enjoy scouting
And by the looks of them are sprouting.
That’s about all to report on our year,
So, Merry Christmas to all and to all a good year!
Thanksgiving
Somehow Thanksgiving has become my responsibility. My mother passed the baton onto my sister, who gave it to me. Last year I did it because Ann had just gotten out of the hospital, after a year or so of battling mental illness and addiction. She's better, but she also does not live here anymore, so I am not the official Thanksgiving host, not to mention other holidays. If that doesn't make you feel old I am not sure what does! Now I should mention my brother-in-law will cook the turkey, he always does, on the grill, so that is one thing I do not have to worry about. Thank you, Alfredo!
I have to admit I am not a huge Thanksgiving dinner fan. I like the turkey and mashed potatoes, bit the rest I can leave... So it is hard to get enthused about creating a meal I really do not want to eat. I am trying to make it my own, but some folks are too darn attached to some items. I can say that I have successfully exorcised the dreaded green bean casserole from the menu. Alleluia! But I did still buy the french fried onions.
On the menu: the classics for us, turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, candied yams, stovetop stuffing. Instead of canned cranberry sauce we are trying a spirited one with port and orange liquor... A squash casserole is the green bean casserole's replacement, and in hopes of getting rid of candied yams next year I am doing a sweet potato and butternut squash bread pudding. I'll let you know how it goes...
Oh, and of course the sweet potato and pumpkin pies will be there...an eggnog pumpkin pie.
So, as far as what the holiday is really about, I have much to be thankful for. Ann is doing much better, and that, honestly, would be enough for me. But we have the resources to buy all that food I am dreading cooking. Thank you God! We have our health, and we are never without something fun and exciting to do with the boys... We have our friends and our family, and we have the ability to worship God openly.
I have to admit I am not a huge Thanksgiving dinner fan. I like the turkey and mashed potatoes, bit the rest I can leave... So it is hard to get enthused about creating a meal I really do not want to eat. I am trying to make it my own, but some folks are too darn attached to some items. I can say that I have successfully exorcised the dreaded green bean casserole from the menu. Alleluia! But I did still buy the french fried onions.
On the menu: the classics for us, turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, candied yams, stovetop stuffing. Instead of canned cranberry sauce we are trying a spirited one with port and orange liquor... A squash casserole is the green bean casserole's replacement, and in hopes of getting rid of candied yams next year I am doing a sweet potato and butternut squash bread pudding. I'll let you know how it goes...
Oh, and of course the sweet potato and pumpkin pies will be there...an eggnog pumpkin pie.
So, as far as what the holiday is really about, I have much to be thankful for. Ann is doing much better, and that, honestly, would be enough for me. But we have the resources to buy all that food I am dreading cooking. Thank you God! We have our health, and we are never without something fun and exciting to do with the boys... We have our friends and our family, and we have the ability to worship God openly.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
An Open Letter to American Catholics who supported Obama this election
An open letter to my fellow American Catholics:
It was with shock and shame that I learned that Barack Obama received a majority of the Catholic vote. I am still reeling with the news that a majority of Catholics have helped put into the White House a man who has said publicly that his first act as President of the United States would be to sign into law the Freedom of Choice Act. This act will overturned every late-term abortion law there is, allowing the barbaric partial birth abortion procedure to once again be practiced. It will overturn parental consent laws, which means your teenage daughter, who has to have your permission to get an aspirin from the school nurse, can abort your grandchild without your knowledge or consent. And it will allow our government to use our money to pay for abortions in this country and overseas. Obama, additionally, has voted against a bill four times that would require medical attention be given to babies that survived a late-term abortion. He would prefer these babies be left in a closet to die. Obama will set the fight against abortion back years, if not decades.
I am not saying they needed to vote for John McCain, but simply abstain for voting for a man who is so entrenched in the Culture of Death our late and great John Paul II and our current leader Benedict XVI have preached against. The next president will have the opportunity to appoint probably two Supreme Court justices. Rather than electing a man who will appoint individuals who will view the Constitution in the way the writers of the Constitution intended it, thereby allowing Roe v. Wade to be overturned in the upcoming years, we have elected a man who will appoint people who think the Constitution is a living document that can essentially be interpreted to mean anything their political agenda dictates.
I know there are other issues, important issues, at play in today’s society. I think I can accurately say the war in Iraq, concern for the poor, the economy, the environment are probably the issues Catholics are most interested in besides abortion.
Mother Teresa said that abortion was a war against the unborn. If we are going to be against war, which one should take precedence? The one that was begun over 35 years ago and has cost, on average, almost 1.5 millions lives a YEAR? Or the one that was begun five years ago and has cost almost 13,000 lives, total. If the idea of some of these causalities being civilians, and worse yet, children, makes the Obama supporter particularly hate this war, and want it to end, should not the fact that every fatality of our war against the unborn has been an innocent and defenseless baby be even more loathsome? Why vote for a man who promises to end one war yet also promises to escalate the other, the far more extensive and horrible one? If war is so horrendous to you, you should not have voted for McCain, but neither should Obama have earned your vote. And if you are willing to vote for the lesser of two evils, in the arena of war, McCain would certainly have fit that description.
If poverty was the motivating factor of yours in voting for Obama, the desire to see our government do more the protect and assist the poor, and that is why typically you vote for Democrats, I can only wonder if you honestly believe the lie that abortion helps cure poverty. Of course no one wants to see a child go to bed hungry at night, but if we as a nation and we as the body of Christ cannot find a better cure than exterminating the victims of poverty we are not trying hard enough and have settled for the easy answer. Most Planned Parenthood clinics are in poorer neighborhoods. How about we try to truly help these women care for their children instead of encouraging them to kill them? How about reducing the tax burden on individuals AND businesses so that people can be more generous to the local organizations that help the poor, the ones that have been found to be more effective and efficient that the government at serving the needy, and that businesses can grow their businesses, hire more people, provide training and better benefits to their employees, and give more generously to their communities?
Obviously, the state of the economy is a huge issue these days, with the unemployment rate “soaring” to six percent and the possibility of a recession around the corner. If fear of a worsening economy lead you to vote for Obama, I have two points to make. One, a lot of our economic crisis stems from the housing market crisis. Which was because too many subprime loans were given to folks that the banks knew would have a difficult time paying them back. It was the Democrats that pushed for these, and Republicans and the Bush Administration that wanted more oversight to prevent this sort of thing from happening. So, by electing Obama, you have put into the White House a man partly to blame for the very economic crisis you elected him because of. Getting past the sad irony of that point, here is my second. At what point are we as Catholics allowed to put our own economic well-being ahead of the lives of millions of unborn babies? Assuming Obama can fix the economy, which I sincerely doubt, is that justification enough for electing a man who has made it one of his goals of expanding abortion in this nation and abroad? Who can say that their personal economic health is more important than the lives of those babies to be killed by abortion?
Finally, the environment is a big issue as well. We as Catholics believe we need to care for this earth, and our current pontiff has even been called the Green Pope because of his environmental awareness. But again, are the lives of whales, owls, and other threatened creatures more important to you than the lives of the over 4,000 unborn babies slaughtered every day in this country? Can we not strive to reach a balance, one that allows us to respect both the environment and human life? Some may maintain McCain did not propose enough measures to meet the environmental crisis as aggressively as needed. Fine, then do not vote for him. But it is hypocrisy to vote for the man who has shown absolutely no concern for the vulnerable baby in his or hers mother’s womb and even made it clear he plans on making sure even more are killed.
The Catholic Church’s position on abortion is clear and concise. It is morally reprehensible. There is not grey area in the taking of an innocent human life. It’s teachings on war and the death penalty are not as clear. Have Catholics forgotten the clear teaching on abortion? Maybe it is not being preached enough from the pulpit, I know I have heard few homilies that expounded on the evil of abortion and the need to work tirelessly to end abortion on demand in this country. But there was no lack of letters, statements, and the like before the election from a few Bishops and other Church leaders reminding is that when we vote we need to make sure we keep the teachings of the Church in mind, especially in regards to abortion.
The blood of innocent babies is and will be on the hands of Barack Obama. But we need to really think and pray about whether that culpability also extends to some degree on those who helped put him in a position to escalate the war we have been waging on the unborn in this country. Finally, we ALL need to pray for him and all the leaders of our nation, that they may realize the responsibility they have to protect those they lead, even the unborn, the elderly, the physically and mentally challenged, as well as those convicted of horrendous crimes and are condemned to die for their crimes. Lord, have mercy on us all.
It was with shock and shame that I learned that Barack Obama received a majority of the Catholic vote. I am still reeling with the news that a majority of Catholics have helped put into the White House a man who has said publicly that his first act as President of the United States would be to sign into law the Freedom of Choice Act. This act will overturned every late-term abortion law there is, allowing the barbaric partial birth abortion procedure to once again be practiced. It will overturn parental consent laws, which means your teenage daughter, who has to have your permission to get an aspirin from the school nurse, can abort your grandchild without your knowledge or consent. And it will allow our government to use our money to pay for abortions in this country and overseas. Obama, additionally, has voted against a bill four times that would require medical attention be given to babies that survived a late-term abortion. He would prefer these babies be left in a closet to die. Obama will set the fight against abortion back years, if not decades.
I am not saying they needed to vote for John McCain, but simply abstain for voting for a man who is so entrenched in the Culture of Death our late and great John Paul II and our current leader Benedict XVI have preached against. The next president will have the opportunity to appoint probably two Supreme Court justices. Rather than electing a man who will appoint individuals who will view the Constitution in the way the writers of the Constitution intended it, thereby allowing Roe v. Wade to be overturned in the upcoming years, we have elected a man who will appoint people who think the Constitution is a living document that can essentially be interpreted to mean anything their political agenda dictates.
I know there are other issues, important issues, at play in today’s society. I think I can accurately say the war in Iraq, concern for the poor, the economy, the environment are probably the issues Catholics are most interested in besides abortion.
Mother Teresa said that abortion was a war against the unborn. If we are going to be against war, which one should take precedence? The one that was begun over 35 years ago and has cost, on average, almost 1.5 millions lives a YEAR? Or the one that was begun five years ago and has cost almost 13,000 lives, total. If the idea of some of these causalities being civilians, and worse yet, children, makes the Obama supporter particularly hate this war, and want it to end, should not the fact that every fatality of our war against the unborn has been an innocent and defenseless baby be even more loathsome? Why vote for a man who promises to end one war yet also promises to escalate the other, the far more extensive and horrible one? If war is so horrendous to you, you should not have voted for McCain, but neither should Obama have earned your vote. And if you are willing to vote for the lesser of two evils, in the arena of war, McCain would certainly have fit that description.
If poverty was the motivating factor of yours in voting for Obama, the desire to see our government do more the protect and assist the poor, and that is why typically you vote for Democrats, I can only wonder if you honestly believe the lie that abortion helps cure poverty. Of course no one wants to see a child go to bed hungry at night, but if we as a nation and we as the body of Christ cannot find a better cure than exterminating the victims of poverty we are not trying hard enough and have settled for the easy answer. Most Planned Parenthood clinics are in poorer neighborhoods. How about we try to truly help these women care for their children instead of encouraging them to kill them? How about reducing the tax burden on individuals AND businesses so that people can be more generous to the local organizations that help the poor, the ones that have been found to be more effective and efficient that the government at serving the needy, and that businesses can grow their businesses, hire more people, provide training and better benefits to their employees, and give more generously to their communities?
Obviously, the state of the economy is a huge issue these days, with the unemployment rate “soaring” to six percent and the possibility of a recession around the corner. If fear of a worsening economy lead you to vote for Obama, I have two points to make. One, a lot of our economic crisis stems from the housing market crisis. Which was because too many subprime loans were given to folks that the banks knew would have a difficult time paying them back. It was the Democrats that pushed for these, and Republicans and the Bush Administration that wanted more oversight to prevent this sort of thing from happening. So, by electing Obama, you have put into the White House a man partly to blame for the very economic crisis you elected him because of. Getting past the sad irony of that point, here is my second. At what point are we as Catholics allowed to put our own economic well-being ahead of the lives of millions of unborn babies? Assuming Obama can fix the economy, which I sincerely doubt, is that justification enough for electing a man who has made it one of his goals of expanding abortion in this nation and abroad? Who can say that their personal economic health is more important than the lives of those babies to be killed by abortion?
Finally, the environment is a big issue as well. We as Catholics believe we need to care for this earth, and our current pontiff has even been called the Green Pope because of his environmental awareness. But again, are the lives of whales, owls, and other threatened creatures more important to you than the lives of the over 4,000 unborn babies slaughtered every day in this country? Can we not strive to reach a balance, one that allows us to respect both the environment and human life? Some may maintain McCain did not propose enough measures to meet the environmental crisis as aggressively as needed. Fine, then do not vote for him. But it is hypocrisy to vote for the man who has shown absolutely no concern for the vulnerable baby in his or hers mother’s womb and even made it clear he plans on making sure even more are killed.
The Catholic Church’s position on abortion is clear and concise. It is morally reprehensible. There is not grey area in the taking of an innocent human life. It’s teachings on war and the death penalty are not as clear. Have Catholics forgotten the clear teaching on abortion? Maybe it is not being preached enough from the pulpit, I know I have heard few homilies that expounded on the evil of abortion and the need to work tirelessly to end abortion on demand in this country. But there was no lack of letters, statements, and the like before the election from a few Bishops and other Church leaders reminding is that when we vote we need to make sure we keep the teachings of the Church in mind, especially in regards to abortion.
The blood of innocent babies is and will be on the hands of Barack Obama. But we need to really think and pray about whether that culpability also extends to some degree on those who helped put him in a position to escalate the war we have been waging on the unborn in this country. Finally, we ALL need to pray for him and all the leaders of our nation, that they may realize the responsibility they have to protect those they lead, even the unborn, the elderly, the physically and mentally challenged, as well as those convicted of horrendous crimes and are condemned to die for their crimes. Lord, have mercy on us all.
Friday, March 21, 2008
Out of the mouths of babes
OK, one of the reasons I did this blog was to record some of the hysterical things John-Paul says (and Benjamin in the hoepfully near future). So, be on the lookout for those. But here are some from the past that come to mind:
As he darted in front of my mother on the way to the kitchen "because I'm faster..."
When asked if he wanted some green beans: "No, I don't like green beans, they have too much caffeine."
If he doesn't like something I have suggested: "That's not a good option."
Upon noticing (presumably for the first time) his uncle's balding head: "You got a haircut, and they cut it all up here."
As he darted in front of my mother on the way to the kitchen "because I'm faster..."
When asked if he wanted some green beans: "No, I don't like green beans, they have too much caffeine."
If he doesn't like something I have suggested: "That's not a good option."
Upon noticing (presumably for the first time) his uncle's balding head: "You got a haircut, and they cut it all up here."
Stations of the Cross with a three-year-old
I am the first to admit that I have not been very Lenten this Lent. Come to think of it, I wasn't last Lent either. In both cases I use the lame excuse that circumstances beyond my control made my life Lenten without me even trying (last year it was the nine week premature delivery of our son Benjamin, this year turmoil with my mentally ill sister). Every year I do go to Stations on Good Friday. And I took John-Paul, the 3.5 year old, a couple weeks back on a Friday night. While it was a good experience for him, it was less than "spiritual" for me. I spent the whole time with him on my lap in the back explaining things to him. Now I am trying to figure out if I should take him with me today. Benjamin will be there, so I'll distracted enough already. So, do I take JP and hope he gets something out of it or do I leave him at his grandmother's and hope to get something from the experience myself? Of course, he'd rather be at Grandma's house.
Why does it seem you sacrifice your own spiritual attentiveness in order to properly teach your children how to behave properly? Neither have ever been left in the nursery during Mass (much to the chagrin of the one usher who every week would tell me where the nursery was when I would be walking the halls outside the Church trying to get Benjamin calmed down when he was much younger.) I am proud to say both boys can sit through Mass without too much of a problem, but when was the last time I actually was able to pay attention to the entire Mass? Ah, Palm Sunday, when I left the kids home with Daddy. And even then, not as much as I would have liked. Hm, maybe the kids are just an excuse for my own wandering mind. And as far as distractions are concerned, they are cute ones.
Oh, and I left John-Paul with Grandma. Next year I'll take him (and no doubt leave Benjamin with Mom.)
My First Blog
I recently learned that a couple of friends of mine, stay at home moms like me, have blogs. I am completely impressed. Their hands are much fuller than mine are. So I thought that maybe I ought to try my hand at it. I figure this is a good way to keep folks up to date on our lives, as well as a good way to put those funny stories of the boys down that I would otherwise not record and forget. And God knows I could use some more discipline in my life, so this may help. And it has been awhile since I have done any real writing, so maybe this will help keep me more literate. We will see. It may not do any of those things, if I don't get to it often. A blog is what you make it, so let's see what I can make of it! So here goes. Wish me luck!
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