Best Come-Back

  Our kids tend to have great comebacks. Clare in particular is especially strong in this department. This week, however, it was Annie who really came out on top. 

  One of the boys in Annie's class is particularly annoying. He is often picking on her. She has long suspected that he has a crush on her, but it is hard to get firm confirmation of such hunches. Regardless, his teasing and constant pestering of her is unwelcome. 

   This week, he said to her, "Annie, why do you speak if you know no one likes you?"

   She replied, "Says the guy who likes me." 

   The class loved it, the boy blushed, and the crush was confirmed beyond a shadow of a doubt. Now THAT'S a come-back. 

Our New Life in Marino

We have moved into our dorm rooms on the campus of the University of Dallas and are grateful for the people who are making this transition a good one, including Peter Hatlie, Vasile and Alina Chiriac, and J.J. Sanford. 

Leigh and I now commute on a regional train into Rome. We love our station, Pantanella. It is clean, quaint and has free parking. Our train leaves at 7.21am at arrives at Termini at 7.55, just in time to get to our respective schools before they begin at 8.15/8.30. 

Our family now attends church in Castel Gandolfo--such a pretty town!

We are excited to embark on our new life here on the UD campus! May the summer students arrive (which they do tomorrow)!

Last Day in Frascati

Any move can be emotional. Our move away from our home of three years in Frascati was no exception. It was a cozy little nest where our family retreated and many good things happened here. 

• We decompressed from a fast-paced, hectic life in Dallas
• We learned to accept living in tiny quarters and not "need" nearly so much of anything
• We learned how to cook for 8 in a kitchen made for 2
• We learned to be together in a whole new way 

In this house:

• Our family survived an international move and got acclimated to Italian schools, civic life and culture
• I wrote my book, got it published, and began promoting it
• I started a theology program at the Angelicum
• I learned how to live peaceably with neighbors and just let go of almost everything I did not like about the arrangement

On our last night, Ron and I went on a date to one of our favorite restaurants associated with a vineyard. We celebrated all the things that have gone well, and how blessed our time in Frascati has been. These are quick photos I snapped as we returned home. Oh, how I will miss this little place!

 

A Mother's Pilgrimage

I had a wonderful day on Sunday. Ron suggested that we go to the church where St. Monica is buried as a pilgrimage. Then he realized that one of our favorite restaurants from many years ago in Rome is just around the corner. 

As a family, we journeyed into Rome (braving a city-wide shut-down of traffic) and made our way to St. Monica's tomb. I got a pile of prayer cards and wrote intentions on about 20. I unloaded my heart and placed my worries and hopes into a basket placed by the tomb. I asked Monica to pray for me and with me for each of my cares. 

Then we had a wonderful meal! 

I love my family! 

Lillian--A Life of Love

 Lillian--my amazing cousin--came to Rome with her fantastic husband and 5 gorgeous children. We spent  several days together. It has been an unusually long time since we have seen each other (pandemics definitely get in the way of good family time) and it was a balm for my soul to be with her! I cherish her so much. She is definitely one of my all-time favorite people! I think of holding her as a little baby, and I marvel at the self-possessed, compassionate, articulate person she is today. She is one of the most thoughtful, loving mothers I have ever seen. She has completely given herself to a life of love, a life of family, and a life of making the world a better place through one act of kindness at a time. The world IS a better place because of her. May more people be like Lillian Helen! 

Here is a little gift in honor of you, Lil! 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_uTrPLQfWGWnegMoHebPgGdDjtll3tye/view?usp=sharing

Eve of Annie's 12th Birthday

Annie turns 12 tomorrow--and what a day it has been! She had her first solo performance in our church choir. We belong to the Abby of Grottaferrata, a church founded by Greek Catholics (in 1004 AD) before the Schism (in 1054 AD). So for all these years, it has been a Byzantine community of liturgy and worship, in communion with Rome. We just love the union of the two traditions. While I do not completely understand it (I am neither a historian nor a liturgist), I can say that my experience is very "universal" or "Catholic." Here is Annie in her debut!

https://youtu.be/PHvRtHy4bdk

We also gave her her birthday present--a BUNNY! It is the softest, sweetest little thing. This breed is often used as therapy pets (I'm thinking, "I could use a therapy pet!"). Everyone in our family took turns holding this shaking little critter and I am confident that, within a week, s/he will be totally at home (gender yet unspecified). 

Me and MY GIRL!!!!!!!!!! 

   

St. Catherine of Siena

 Today is St. Catherine's feast day. Here is one of my favorite prayers of this great saint and Doctor of the Church: 

Holy Spirit, come into my heart; draw it to Thee by Thy power, O my God, and grant me charity with filial fear.

Preserve me, O beautiful love, from every evil thought; warm me, inflame me with Thy dear love, and every pain will seem light to me.

My Father, my sweet Lord, help me in all my actions.

Jesus, love, Jesus, love. Amen.

Italian Home Improvements

We are renting our Dallas house to tenants. We have done a big refresh to make the house and property ready for them. 

One of the things we did was repair our remote garage door opener, as well as fix our automatic gate at our driveway. The tenants can now drive up to the driveway, use one remote to open the gate, and another to open the garage. 

All this highlights just how different things are here in our dwelling in Italy. 

We have a shed where we keep our laundry machines and refrigerator. We have to run outside every time we want to access either of them (there is only a mini-fridge in our proper kitchen).  

The door to the shed has a lock that broke. We told the maintenance guy about it, and asked him if he could fix it. Look what he did! 

Mercy

 "Mercy is heartfelt sympathy for another's distress, impelling us to succor him if we can. For mercy takes its name--misericordia--from denoting a person's compassionate heart for another's unhappiness" (Thomas Aquinas). 

God's signature trait is mercy. Lord, increase our ability to be merciful. 

Inspiring Review of Motherhood Book

 I was so touched by this review! I would have written the Motherhood book for just one person if it would have made a transformative difference in their life. Here is one such person! 

Motherhood is not an ordinary vocation - RADIANT (radiantmagazine.com)

Blessed Easter

 We had an extraordinary Easter, living on campus (camping out in the salone) and being part of the Triduum liturgies.  As Religious Life =Coordinator, Ron was working full time and even organized a student to be received into the Catholic Church in the Cathedral of Frascati on Easter. Sebastian made his First Confession and received his First Holy Communion as well, and served as an altar boy for the first time. Ron threw a huge outdoor party at the forno all day Sunday after Mass. He roasted leg of lamb in the outdoor brick oven. Incredible! 

My Life of Study

As I plow through the baccalaureate degree in theology at the Angelicum, the intensity of this demanding program is mitigated by the loveliness of my circumstances. 

My study environment

My home

My study buddy

Late night study sessions in which I probe the relationship between acquired and infused virtues according to St. Thomas Aquinas while Sebastian learns "gr" words in his second grade spelling book can be magical.