Prayers for our Pope . . . present and future . . .

 Pope Benedict XVI bid us all goodbye today as he left the residence to the new pope. Many prayers are needed as the cardinals come together to determine and vote for the man who will be our next pope.

I remember the whirlwind of Pope John Paul II's death and the announcement of then Cardinal Ratzinger's appointment as our Holy Father eight years ago. Time goes by quickly and he had an amazing and tiring time as our Pope. Many people fear he has started a trend in leaving office when either he or the world got tiring. As I've mentioned before, I like the way our pastor put it . . . He said that when his grandmother turned 90, she was still very active and lively but decided to stop driving on her 90th birthday. Why? Because she felt herself inept? No, she wanted to stop on a high point before she crashed. Now, she wasn't planning on ever having a crash but didn't want to find herself more aged than she felt while behind the wheel of the car.

I think Pope Benedict felt the same way. The world isn't getting any better while he was getting older and less able to keep up the hectic pace. He wanted to make sure the Church was in good hands and, after much prayer and deliberation, decided he was no long the man for the job. I feel he showed more strength in this decision than he would if he had plodded along for the remainder of his life knowing his strength was no long in line with what needed to be done.

I will miss Pope Benedict. He was born and raised in the German town next to where my mother was brought up. I am, however, praying that his influence over the last eight years will help the cardinals make the best decision possible when selecting the new pope.

Politicians might consider this . . .

“Patience is power.
Patience is not an absence of action;
rather it is "timing"
it waits on the right time to act,
for the right principles
and in the right way.” ~Ven. Fulton J. Sheen

Making a difference . . .

We did our bills, today, and discovered that God has been very good to us this past month and decided it was time to share, again. About ten years ago, we were introduced to the Christian Foundation for Children and Aging. This organization  asks people to sponsor either a child, elderly person, or a seminarian in some of the poorest of poor areas of the world. We chose a folder for a little girl on the spot and never looked back since.

Sadly, after eight years of growing to love and know Lydia from Kenya, she died suddenly and we knew how to keep her memory alive - we asked for another sponsorship and were connected with Melany in Colombia, South American. When my husband was able to get some overtime, we added Juana in Guatemala to our family. Later, we could resist a picture we saw of Wilson Alfredo and his letters and antics have been a joy to read and hear about.

Today, we heard a plea from some charity we aren't quite in agreement with and the refrain was, "Can you manage $30 a month?" Immediately, I said yes to myself but decided the $30 would go for another sponsorship. We were blessed with Enock from Kenya who lives with his four siblings and parents in a one-room rental. Enock wants to go to school and study to be a good soldier. Too often these children don't get a continuous education because they can't manage the school fees. As of today, I'm humbled that we will be able to help the family in this and other ways. So many times, we get distressed because we can't afford an extra outfit, a down payment on the newest car and here is a family that can hardly feed their children much less give them a full-time chance at an education.

Thought I would share and give out the information on checking this our for yourselves. Go to the CFCA site and look at the pictures. We fell in love with all of them and had to write down their names and draw one at random to decide! If anyone gets a sponsorship, it would be great to have you check in here and share who, where in the world, and why!

Christian Foundation for Children and Aging
1 Elmwood Avenue
Kansas City, KS 66103

www.cfcausa.org/

Electing a New Pope . . .

Although we cannot actually put in our two cents on who gets to be the next pope, we can pray for a good and holy man to be elected. A friend passed on this site to me, today, and it assigns you, randomly, a cardinal to pray for during this time of deliberation.

http://www.adoptacardinal.org/

 

You could adopt a cardinal for your private prayers or join in with your family to pray for a specific cardinal. It is also a good way to learn about a cardinal you might not be aware of and continue to keep him in your prayers even after the outcome of the papal election. I was assigned and adopted Albert Malcolm Ranjith of Sri Lanka. Cardinal Ranjith has been a cardinal since November 20, 2011.

Lent, Repent . . . But You Still Gotta Eat!

 Whether your Catholic pastor has told you or not, meatless Fridays are mandatory during Lent. Just to mix it up a bit, our family decided a long time ago to go meatless on both Wednesdays and Fridays. It doesn't seem like much but just remembering that Wednesday is meatless for us seems to be difficult. Perhaps, that is part of the sacrifice.

Sometimes, trying to think of a meatless meal takes  effort. We like fish but that is expensive in this day and age and we consider it a great treat - not the stuff of which a penitential season is made! My husband came up with meatless Mexican fare idea for today's Friday meal - Tostados. Thought I'd mention it to remind and/or inspire other mothers running out of meatless ideas.

I didn't have time to make my own refried beads for the dish but sauteed fresh garlic and onions before adding the beans and spiced them with a little extra salsa. My husband couldn't believe they were canned which leaves me wondering about my 'from scratch' recipe. . .

Corn tortillas were on sale so I spent some time frying them crisp to hold the beans, lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, and whatever else people want to put on them. I'm rather partial to a few rings of pickled jalapeno pepper on mine. This meal is tasty but not quite as filling as having some shredded beef in the mix . . . but that is the reason for the Lenten season . . . eat to nourish but not totally satisfy!

I have to smile as I set out the fixings for dinner. People still are shocked about us trying out the gluten-free diet. This meal is something we have enjoyed many times over the years . . . and it's gluten-free because that is the nature of the ingredients. My husband and I were talking about this and when we reviewed our 'normal', pre-gluten diet, there really wasn't a lot to change.

A beautiful testimony . . .

http://www.lifenews.com/2013/02/19/doctor-why-i-quit-doing-abortions-at-planned-parenthood/

My new, favorite quilting pattern!

 Well, anyway, it is my favorite this week! The second picture shows the first part of the process for using the 'disappearing nine-patch' pattern. Disappearing? Because, as you can see from the top picture, the nine patches are not exactly there now. It is a fun pattern to sew and the only place I have to be careful about matching corners is between the two, small red squares in the center.  Very simple to do. After I sew together the nine patches, I cut the nine-patch square into quarters and then resew them together. There is room for much creativity and fun. I'm already thinking about how to use different colors and patterns for the next quilt!