Watch Your Step

 

 My family and I undertook a big project in the backyard this weekend. It was quite literally an "all hands on deck" situation. At the end of the day, I rounded the corner of my house to grab a hose. I was carrying my granddaughter when I mistakenly stepped into a hole left by a talented groundhog. I felt my knee twist as I held onto my granddaughter tight. Fortunately, I was able to keep my balance and not fall. My knee hurt, but it was not a serious injury.

 I was so mad at myself. I knew that stupid hole was there. It was on my "to-do list" to fix. I have managed to avoid it plenty of times in the past month, but this time I was distracted, and my vision was partially obstructed. I had to ask myself, "What was I so busy doing that I couldn't handle this dangerous situation?"

 Sitting on my couch, I remembered one of St. John Bosco's dreams about the boys in his oratory. In his dream, John Bosco saw a large pit in the middle of a meadow and noticed a serpent at the bottom. Its ugliness horrified John Bosco. Then he saw his students jumping over the hole. Some boys jumped over the pit quickly, but not all were so lucky. The serpent got some of them. In disbelief, John Bosco asked the boys why did they keep jumping if they saw what was happening to some of their classmates? The boys didn't think their actions were risky. They didn't perceive the danger of playing near the serpent.

 My children filled the hole for me as I rested. "Wow," my daughter said, "The hole was much deeper than it looked!" It is good that the Lord gave us each other. We need to look out for one another. I encourage everyone to look around their homes and determine if dangerous pitfalls need filling. Not everyone perceives the danger.

-Susan

Going Up?

 

 I recently had the chance to get away on vacation with my family. I love traveling and spending quality time with my children away from our busy daily obligations. After arriving at our resort, we were anxious to take the ski lifts up to the top of the mountain. I love mountain tops and the perspective it has to offer. Remembering that there is so much more to life than my typical vantage point is good. The view from the top was beautiful, and I felt very blessed to have had this moment. After some time, we headed back down. As we descended the ski lift, my blood pressure climbed higher. Halfway down the mountain, I saw a teenage boy climbing out of his seat. He stood on the unprotected chair, turned around, laughed, and waved to his friends in the seat behind him.

 I gasped. "What is that guy doing?' My daughter and I shared a look of disbelief. As his seat passed ours, I couldn't stay silent. "Do you not value your life?" I yelled. My question was met with a laugh and a sarcastic comment. It wasn't long before the ski lift operators caught sight of his foolishness and stopped the lift as they screamed for him to sit down. We were informed at the end of the ride that he would be banned from the ski lift and would be walking down the mountain.

 I couldn't get this incident out of my head. Thank God this teenager did not fall. The question I asked the boy replayed over and over in my thoughts, "Do you not value your life?" This would be a good question for all of us to meditate on this week. Most likely, none of us are blatantly taking chances with our actual lives, but what about our souls? Does God deem any of our actions reckless or careless from His point of view? Let's take some time this week to shut down the ride, look at our decisions from the top of the mountain, and reposition ourselves accordingly.

-Susan

 

Time To Go Outside

 

 I wanted to share the following quote with you.  It is a message from Mary that she gave to the missionary Marija at Medjugorje on May 25, 2023.

  "Dear children! I am calling you to go into nature and pray for the Most High to speak to your heart and that you may feel the power of the Holy Spirit so as to witness the love which God has for every creature."

    Sometimes our life gets too busy, and we forget to do the simplest of things.  Just go for a walk with God.  Look at a tree or a flower like you have never seen one before.  Ask God to open your eyes to the beauty of the world He created.

  Do you remember when you were a kid, and your Mom was tired of seeing you sit inside?  Eventually, your Mom would suggest, "Why don't you go outside and play.  It's a nice day." So let's obey our Mother.  Come on, everyone, let's go outside and play! God's waiting for us!

-Susan