Category: Family

A Face for Radio

bernard-hermant-665508-unsplash

I was on Relevant Radio’s Morning Air show recently. If you haven’t heard of Relevant, it’s a wonderful Catholic radio network that broadcasts all over the country. You can download the Relevant app and listen LIVE in case you don’t get it in your neck of the woods. I’m still trying to figure out why they’re interested in talking to me. I’m no theologian, nor psychologist. I’m just a wife and mom who loves her Catholic faith. Nonetheless, I’m so honored to be able to talk about what the Holy Spirit has put on my heart.

My interview was set to begin at 6:30am Denver time, 8:30 on the East coast. So I said my prayers, injected some black coffee into my veins, fired up the old laptop, and quietly tiptoed to our basement. It was my hope to not wake up the rest of the house. I prefer to have serious talks about the faith when my kids aren’t screaming and horseplaying in the background. Maybe it’s just me, but I feel like I lose serious credibility when I can be heard shouting, “You kids are killing me! STOP doing cartwheels off the coffee table NOW!!!” As I sat nestled on our downstairs couch in the beautiful silence of our basement playroom, my phone decided it wasn’t going to cooperate. Mere moments before I was slated to be on, as I was attentively listening to the interview preceding mine,  my phone reception started breaking up. This is a sample of what I heard:

Next, we’ll be talki—KSSHHHHHTTT—She’ll tell us abou—KRRRRRRRRSSSSHHHT—and join us fo—SSSSHHHHPLEK!

Oh no! A panicked perusal of my phone showed ONE measly bar.  Now, with mere minutes to spare, I darted upstairs with the energy of a five-year-old who has consumed a gallon of kool-aid and a pound of double-stuff Oreos. I barged into the bedroom looking wild-eyed and gave my husband the “I’m in big trouble” eyes. He wisely vacated his spot on the bed to make way for the hot mess express. He gave me a concerned nod and quickly plodded out of the room, closing the door behind him. Within an instance, I was being introduced. Phew! Nothing like a little adrenaline rush to get things going.  It was the first time I was on LIVE which was a bit nerve-racking, but the conscientious host, John Harper, who is a consummate pro, managed to put me at ease pretty quickly. Within no time, we were in the groove. The topic covered one of my recent blog posts: Things I wish I could go back in time to tell my young self about the faith. It’s a topic most of us cradle Catholics can relate to. I felt like the conversation flowed, although I think I resorted to some nervous babbling a couple times. It was super fun to have callers phone in to add their own commentary. Thank you to the handful of listeners who offered insightful input. Molte Grazie to Rocco from New Jersey! Overall, I’m happy with the performance. You can judge for yourself below.

Regardless, I put my best radio face forward! A big thank you to all of you prayed for me ahead of time. I wouldn’t have even started this blog if it weren’t for the love and support from some of my dear sisters in Christ. You know who you are.

Feel free to let me know what you think, but please be gentle.

MY RECENT RELEVANT MORNING AIR INTERVIEW

 

Happy Mother’s Day: Lessons My Mom Never Taught Me

simon-rae-320817

I think about my mom almost daily since her death 26 years ago. While it’s been too long since I’ve heard her laugh, she has left me with a bounty of wisdom that sustains me. In fact, there are simply too many lessons to enumerate. She was a Catholic school teacher by profession, so it was in her nature to instruct and impart knowledge. But there were also things she most certainly did not pass down. There are some worldly teachings she decidedly left by the wayside. And for that, I am even more grateful and bolstered.

Continue reading “Happy Mother’s Day: Lessons My Mom Never Taught Me”

Where, O, Death is your Victory?

fernanda-marin-1358779-unsplash.jpg

For those of you who mourn the death of a loved one, this is the time when we joyfully (yet often with tears in our eyes) anticipate our eventual reunion in heaven. May the powerful hope of seeing our dear ones again, that is made possible by our Lord’s victorious Resurrection, be with you this Easter season and always. Oh, what a glorious day!

Continue reading “Where, O, Death is your Victory?”

Unplanned Peace on the Sidewalk at the Abortion Clinic

sandy-millar-750251-unsplash

There are those rare, fleeting moments in family life where all is strangely calm and even peaceful. Amidst the chaos of continual spats, boundless horseplay, jockeying for position, and a whole lot of random noise, quiet contentment is like a refreshing, cool rain after a stretch of oppressively, sticky-hot weather.

I can probably count those occasions on both hands. Don’t mistake me. It is not the stillness that occurs after a trip to the library when we are all happily, individually ensconced in our reading, or the brief, eerie quiet before an epic fight erupts. It’s those extraordinary times when we are resting in each other as a family. Picture a tranquil moment between a nursing mother and her baby. I remember the hours right after my dad died, when my brothers and I, a disparate group, to say the least, sat in a Denny’s, saying very little, yet joined together so profoundly. I’m speaking of a muted, but powerful connectedness—a surrender to love and understanding. Peacefully unified as we engage with one another. No one left out. It’s what I imagine to be a mere taste of the eventual glorious coming together with the Triune God in heaven.

Continue reading “Unplanned Peace on the Sidewalk at the Abortion Clinic”

An Open Letter to the Motorcycle Man with the Obscene Message on His Jacket

motorcycle-1827482_1920

Dear Mr. Motorcycle Man,

Our family saw you a couple weeks ago en route to dinner. We planned to hit the parish fish fry and follow up with stations of the cross. The hope was for a fun, wholesome family-friendly evening. 

We actually heard you before ever laying eyes on you. Your big belching Harley snaked through the lines of cars behind us. In seconds you were within eyesight range in the lane next to us as we slowed for a red light. It appeared a typical Friday evening rush hour. Commuters were jam-packed on one of Denver’s busiest thoroughfares, all impatiently waiting for the green after miles of painstakingly slow stop and go traffic. The leather jacket you wore, however, was anything but typical.

Continue reading “An Open Letter to the Motorcycle Man with the Obscene Message on His Jacket”

Snow Day Diaries

sam-beasley-327822-unsplash

Spring is officially here! There is no wiping this jubilant smile off my face. If you recall, it was just one week ago that we were facing winter Armageddon. In fact, while writing this little piece about the joys of spending time nestled in a snug home with my family as Mother Nature wreaked winter havoc, we received word that a third consecutive snow day had been called.  The school courtyard had been ravaged by heavy winds resulting in uprooted trees. While my husband’s office was officially reopened, the kids would be spending another day home with me… Lord, have mercy! To give you insight into my rollercoaster of emotions, I faithfully transcribed my marathon snow day diaries.

Monday: A huge storm is barreling towards Denver. So. Sick. Of. Snow. The last time they predicted a monster blizzard, it was a mere dusting. I guess if perchance we are homebound for a stretch, I could do some baking. In Little House on the Prairie, Ma Ingalls would’ve baked or churned butter. I’ve already got the butter. But homemade biscuits sound amazing. Our kitchen will smell like a cozy frontier home. Bring on the snow!

Continue reading “Snow Day Diaries”

Lenten Mercy & A Ball of Yarn

kelly-sikkema-487610-unsplash

I started knitting recently. It turns out the ol’ inter-webs aren’t all bad. Via the université de Youtube, some very gracious ladies have kindly schooled me in the art of “casting on” and achieving my very first stitches. Under their expert tutelage, I will now be spending my free time connecting countless yarn chains, while hopefully breaking the bonds of slavery to my phone. That’s the plan, anyway.

I’m kind of enjoying it… I think. Progress has been slow. My kids, however, are already extremely confident in my abilities. They’ve even placed special orders which seems wildly premature since I have only a week of experience under my sans-a-belt. Against my better judgment, I have promised each of them a homemade scarf. At this rate, the scarves will make wonderful college graduation gifts. That gives me a good ten years before my oldest graces the stage of the auditorium to pick up his diploma and hopefully collect his glorious handkerchief-sized scarf.

Continue reading “Lenten Mercy & A Ball of Yarn”