Old Glory

As I began to study this morning in the computer lab here at school, I looked out the window to the bright gray-blue spring sky, cloudy but bright, up through the branches of new-budding trees...and there is the old flag pole, with Old Glory fluttering in the light breeze. Rather limp looking, sure, but glorious nevertheless, right? I immediately remember a poem from my elementery school days (acutally, I guess 6th grade isn't considered elementary or primary school anymore, eh) which I had memorized purely for my own enjoyment. It spoke so well of patriotism, that virtue which I love. So, I thought I share the poem with you.

An intesting sidenote is that my Catholic reader (published in the earlier half of the last century) did not list the second stanza. I guess you can see why ;-)

The Name of Old Glory

by James Whitcomb Riley

Old Glory! say, who,

By the ships and the crew,

And the long, blended ranks of the gray and the blue,

Who gave you, Old Glory, the name that you bear

With such pride everywhere

As you cast yourself free to the rapturous air

And leap out full-length, as we're wanting you to?

Who gave you that name, with the ring of the same,

And the honor and fame so becoming to you?

Your stripes stroked in ripples of white and of red,

With your stars at their glittering best overhead

By day or by nightTheir delightfulest light

Laughing down from their little square heaven of blue!

Who gave you the name of Old Glory? - say, who

Who gave you the name of Old Glory?

The old banner lifted, and altering then

In vague lisps and whispers fell silent again.

Old Glory,--speak out!--we are asking about

How you happened to "favor" a name, so to say,

That sounds so familiar and careless and gay

As we cheer it and shout in our wild breezy way

We-the crowd, every man of us, calling you that

We-Tom, Dick, and Harry-each swinging his hat

And hurrahing "Old Glory!" like you were our kin,

When-Lord!-we all know we're as common as sin!

And yet it just seems like you humor us all

And waft us your thanks, as we hail you and fall

Into line, with you over us, waving us on

Where our glorified, sanctified betters have gone,

And this is the reason we're wanting to know

(And we're wanting it so!

Where our own fathers went we are willing to go.)

Who gave you the name of Old Glory O-ho!

Who gave you the name of Old Glory?

The old flag unfurled with a billowy thrill

For an instant, then wistfully sighed and was still.

Old Glory: the story we're wanting to hear

Is what the plain facts of your christening were,

For your name--just to hear it.

Repeat it, and cheer it, 's a tang to the spirit

As salty as a tear;

And seeing you fly, and the boys marching by,

There's a shout in the throat and a blur in the eye

And an aching to live for you always-or die,

If, dying, we still keep you waving on high.

And so, by our love

For you, floating above,

And the scars of all wars and the sorrows thereof,

Who gave you the name of Old Glory, and why

Are we thrilled at the name of Old Glory?

Then the old banner leaped, like a sail in the blast,

And fluttered an audible answer at last.

And it spake, with a shake of the voice, and it said:

By the driven snow-white and the living blood-red

Of my bars, and their heaven of stars overhead

By the symbol conjoined of them all, skyward cast,

As I float from the steeple, or flap at the mast,

Or droop o'er the sod where the long grasses nod,

My name is as old as the glory of God....

So I came by the name of Old Glory.

http://www.newliturgicalmovement.org/#8444211410698345695

The revised translation of the Latin-English Liturgy of the Hours and the English Mass are both coming out soon! I have long desired to buy a Missal, and have decided to continue to wait until I graduate and have enough money. That is, that perhaps it would please God a bit more if I put the credit card on the shelf for a bit.

Aging well or not

Does attitude, ability, diet, and habit really affect aging and whether or not the mind deteriorates as the body ages? Or is it all determined by genetics?

The argument of nature versus nurture is as old as the hills, to use a phrase of similar age. But in reality, they most probably go hand in hand, having substantial effects on the individual. Regardless of your healthy habits, in some things you simply cannot outrun your genes. You are going to die. This study was brought up in my research class today, and I think it very interesting. The Nun Study, which is termed exactly that, was described by my professor as a researcher's dream because about 600 nuns, who have had all nurture variables removed, donated their time and brains to science. Some of them are getting alzhiemers, but most of them are not. Statistically, they are mentally sharper and much more active in their 80s and 90s than most people are in the 60s and 70s. Many of the sisters are living into their 90s and a few into their hundreds, but their quality of life is astounding. They still get up every morning, do various tasks, and exercise. Few are bedridden or confined to wheel chairs.

On the other hand, is it really so astounding? The old saying "if you don't use it, you loose it" holds true for most skills and competencies. why not for mental capacity? My great-grandmother was 96 when she died and retained her full mental competence until her death. Is this genetics? Well, she read books incessantly and sang from morning to dusk. When she was in her 70s, she had stopped working and got board over the summer, so she memorized the Latin names of all the plants in her garden. She hardly ever engaged in passive intellectual activity, i.e. watching television. She never smoked, always ate whatever she grew in her backyard, and she worked day in and day out, always doing something.

Exercising the brain and the body together are known to help. Keeping the brain active and working it out every day can and will definitely aid in recall, memory, and intact faculty. Just how much of an influence has always been the debate. The first website listed is fairly solid and simply summarizes the facts involved int he study. Enjoy. =)

http://www.stpt.usf.edu/~jsokolov/agealzh2.htm

http://www.time.com/time/covers/1101010514/

Country Roads by John Denver

One of my favorite songs ever!!! The family got a 4 volume set of John Denver music this Christmas, and this is our universal favorite.

Almost heaven, west virginia
Blue ridge mountains
Shenandoah river
Life is old there
Older than the trees
Younger than the mountains
Growin like a breeze

Country roads, take me home
To the place I belong
West virginia, mountain momma
Take me home, country roads

All my memories gathered round her
Miners lady, stranger to blue water
Dark and dusty, painted on the sky
Misty taste of moonshine
Teardrops in my eye

Country roads, take me home
To the place I belong
West virginia, mountain momma
Take me home, country roads

I hear her voice
In the mornin hour she calls me
The radio reminds me of my home far away
drivin down the road I get a feelin
That I should have been home yesterday, yesterday

Country roads, take me home
To the place I belong
West virginia, mountain momma
Take me home, country roads

Country roads, take me home
To the place I belong
West virginia, mountain momma
Take me home, country roads
Take me home, now country roads

"The Privileged Planet"

This documentary offers a scientific look into just how small a chance it is there there should be a world like our own that can sustain complex life. It is not explicitly for or against any particular creation theory, but simply looks at the facts and the chances of our existence as a planet. I've never really thought about this aspect of my life before, and it is very moving...sort of makes one feel like their life hangs in the balance all the time, but then he remembers that he has successfully defied the odds thus far. Despite a certain number of high thinking persons, it does disprove the theory of a disordered universe in chaos making such things as the cosmos by chance. Can such a thing logically and possibly come about merely by chance? I personally think that any person who holds this view is something of an idiot, but you'll have to check it out for yourself. ;-)




Part 2



Part 3



Part 4



Part 5



Part 6

Prayers after Communion

(taken from the Red Book and Fr. Lasance's Catholic Girls Guide)

Prayer before a Crucifix
Look down upon me, good and gentle Jesus, while before Thy face I humbly kneel, and with burning soul pray and beseech Thee to fix deep in my heart lively sentiments of faith, hope, and charity, true contrition for my sins, and a firm purpose of amendment; and whilst I contemplate with great love and tender pity Thy five most precious Wounds, pondering over them in within my heart and calling to mind the words which David, thy servant, said of Thee, my Jesus: "They have pierced My hands and My feet; they have numbered all My bones."


A Prayer to Our Lady
O Mary, most holy Virgin Mother, lo, I have received thy well-beloved Son, whom thou didst conceive in thy stainless womb, didst bring forth and suckle, and enfold in thy sweet embraces. See, humbly and lovingly I give back to thee the Son Whom it was all rapture and delight for thee to look upon; I orffer Him to be clasped in thy arms, to be loved with all thy heart, and to be offered up to the Holy Trinity in the supreme homage of adoration, for thy hnor and glory, and for my needs and those of all mankind. Most loving Mother, I beg thee to obtain for me forgiveness of all my sins, grace in abundance to serve Him more faithfully from now onward, and lastly, final perseverance, so that I may praise Him with thee forever and ever. Amen.

Prayer of Saint Thomas Aquinas

I give thee thanks, O Holy Lord, Father Almighty, eternal God, who has vouchsafed not for any merits of mine but solely out of the condescension of Thy mercy, to satisfy me a sinner, Thine unworthy servant, with the precious Body and Blood of Thy Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ.

I pray that this holy Communion be not to be a condemnation unto punishment, but a saving plea unto forgiveness. May it be unto me the armor of faith and the shield of good will. May it be the emptying out of my vices, the extinction of all concupiscence and lust, the increae of charity and patience, of humility and obedience, and all of the virtues; a strong defense against the snares of all enemies, visible and invisible; the perfect quieting fo alll my evil impulses, both fleshly and ghostly; a firm cleaving unto Thee, the one true God; and a pledge of a blessed destiny.

And I beseech Thee, that Thou would vouchsafe to bring me, a sinner, to that ineffable banquet whereThou, with Thy Son and the Holy Ghost, art to Thy saints true light, fullness of content, eternal joy, gladness without alloy and perfect bliss. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.

Prayer before Mass

(taken from the Red Latin Mass book)

Eternal Father, I unite myself with the intentions and affections of our Lady of Sorrows on Calvary, and I offer to Thee the Sacrifice which Thy beloved Son made of Himself on the Cross, and which He now renews on this holy Altar. I offer it in the name of all mankind, with the Masses which are now being offered, and all those which will be offered throughout the world this day:
To adore thee and give Thee the honor which is due to Thee, confessing Thy supreme dominion over all things, and the absolute dependence of everything upon Thee, who art our one and last End;
To thank Thee for the innumberable benefits we have received;
To appease Thy justice, aroused against us by so many sins, and to make satisfaction for them;
To implore grace and mercy for myself, for Thy Church, for all afflicted and sorrowing, for poor sinners, for those whom I have promised prayers, for all the world, and for the holy souls in Purgatory. Amen.

Imitation of Christ

Taken from Preparation for Total Consecration according to Saint Louis Marie de Montfort. These speak of the littleness of man (in the sense of "homo" not "viri" for those of you who choose to take offense) and where his worth is from.

Lord, what is man that Thou art mindful of him; or the son of man, that Thou visit him? What has man deserved that Thou should give him grace? Lord, what cause have I to complain, if Thou forsakest me, or what can I justly allege, if what I petition Thou shalt not grant? I am nothing, I can do nothing of myself that is good, but I am in all things defective and ever tend to nothing. And unless I am assisted and instructed by Thee, I become wholly tepid and relaxed, but Thou, O Lord, art always the same and endure unto eternity, ever good, just and holy...

But I who am more inclined to go back than to go forward continue not always in one state for I am changed seven different times. But it quickly becomes better when it pleases Thee, and Thou stretchest out Thy helping hand: for Thou alone can change me that my heart be convereted and find its rest in Thee alone.

He who would be too secure in time of peace will often be found too much dejeced in time of war If you could continue to be humble and little in your own eyes, and keep your spirit in due order and subjection, you would not fall so easily into danger and offense. It is good counsel that, when you have conceived the spirit of fervor, you should meditate how it will be when the light shall be withdrawn.
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Wherefore, but I did know well how to cast from me all human comfort, either for the sake of devotion or thorugh the necessity by which I am compelled to seek Thee, because there is no man that can comfort me. Then might I deservedly hope in Thy favor, and rejoice in the gifl of a new consolation. Thanks be to Thee from Whom all things proceed, as often as it happenes to me, I, indeede, am but vanity and nothing in Thy sight, an inconstant and weak man. Where, therefore, can I glory, or for what do I desire to be thought of highly?

Forsooth of my very nothingness; and htis is most vain. Truly vainglory is an evil blague, because it draws away from true glory and robs us of heavenly grace. For while a man takes complacency in himself, he displeases Thee; while he looks for human applause, he is depreived of true virtues. But true glory and holy exultation is to flory in Thee and not in one's self. To find pleasure in no creature, save only for Thy sake. Let Name be praised, not mine; let Thy work be magnified, not ine; let Thy Holy Name be blessed, but let nothing be attributed to me of the praise of men. Thou art my glory; Thou art the exultation of my heart; in Thee will I glory and rejoice all the day; ut for myself, I will glory in nothing but in my infirmities.

The Fool's Prayer

Recently, life has taken a turn for the more confusing, and I remembered this poem from my high school days. It touched me then, but even moreso now, when I seek humility and simplicity adult wise. I hope you may enjoy it as well. It helps to envision oneself as the fool...for we are only humble if we think we are proud, and we are proud if we think ourselves humble.

THE FOOL'S PRAYER

by: Edward Rowland Sill (1841-1887)

HE royal feast was done; the King
Sought some new sport to banish care,
And to his jester cried: "Sir Fool,
Kneel now, and make for us a prayer!"

The jester doffed his cap and bells,
And stood the mocking court before;
They could not see the bitter smile
Behind the painted grin he wore.

He bowed his head, and bent his knee
Upon the Monarch's silken stool;
His pleading voice arose: "O Lord,
Be merciful to me, a fool!

"No pity, Lord, could change the heart
From red with wrong to white as wool;
The rod must heal the sin: but Lord,
Be merciful to me, a fool!

"'Tis not by guilt the onward sweep
Of truth and right, O Lord, we stay;
'T is by our follies that so long
We hold the earth from heaven away.

"These clumsy feet, still in the mire,
Go crushing blossoms without end;
These hard, well-meaning hands we thrust
Among the heart-strings of a friend.

"The ill-timed truth we might have kept--
Who knows how sharp it pierced and stung?
The word we had not sense to say--
Who knows how grandly it had rung!

"Our faults no tenderness should ask.
The chastening stripes must cleanse them all;
But for our blunders -- oh, in shame
Before the eyes of heaven we fall.

"Earth bears no balsam for mistakes;
Men crown the knave, and scourge the tool
That did his will; but Thou, O Lord,
Be merciful to me, a fool!"

The room was hushed; in silence rose
The King, and sought his gardens cool,
And walked apart, and murmured low,
"Be merciful to me, a fool!"

Litany of Humilty

O Jesus! meek and humble of heart, Hear me.
From the desire of being esteemed,
Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being loved...
From the desire of being extolled ...
From the desire of being honored ...
From the desire of being praised ...
From the desire of being preferred to others...
From the desire of being consulted ...
From the desire of being approved ...
From the fear of being humiliated ...
From the fear of being despised...
From the fear of suffering rebukes ...
From the fear of being calumniated ...
From the fear of being forgotten ...
From the fear of being ridiculed ...
From the fear of being wronged ...
From the fear of being suspected ...

That others may be loved more than I,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be esteemed more than I ...
That, in the opinion of the world,
others may increase and I may decrease ...
That others may be chosen and I set aside ...
That others may be praised and I unnoticed ...
That others may be preferred to me in everything...
That others may become holier than I, provided that I may become as holy as I should…

An 80s child remembers when...

I saw this and just had to post it, it is such a riot! Acapella is a great art form, and these students from the University of Wisconsin Madison Campus have done an excellent job. If you were an 80s kid, you might actually remember this and get a kick out of it. Ah, memories.

My school...

Dr. Bergsma on the Inversion of Norms

When you are looking for a place that is going to change the world, you expect to find it in a huge institution with $12 billion in grants to their division A football team, countless resources, and new state of the art buildings going up all the time. You don't expect to find it in the middle of the rust belt, where 2500 student struggle to survive the polluted air and water, with professors who are raising multiple child families in a ghetto a mile away. It just doesn't seem like it should work like that.

You have to be very humble to come from Steubenville.

Prayer to Saint Gabriel for a Marraige Partner

This prayer is a little on the childish side in my judgmental opinion, but brings forth some good points nevertheless. Every person who either knows they are called to the married state or who does not yet know their calling should pray for their spouse and their children. Praying for him/her now helps immensely in your future happiness...not to mention their own as well. Also, when choosing a marriage partner, you are choosing the mother/father for your children as well as your own help mate. Saint Raphael has been invoked as a matchmaker for may years, and is pretty much awesome. If you don't believe me, read the book of Tobias.

Glorious Saint Raphael, Patron and lover of the young, I feel the need of calling to you and of pleading for you help. In all confidence I open my heart to you to beg your guidance and assistance in the important task of planning my future. Obtain for me through your intercession the light of God's grace so that I may decide wisely concerning the person who is to be my partner through life. Angel of happy meetings, lead us by the hand to find each other. May all our movements be guided by your light and transfigured by your joy. As you led the young Tobias to Sara and opened up a new life of happiness with her in holy marriage, lead me to such a one whom in your angelic wisdom you judge best suited to be united with me in marriage.

Saint Raphael, loving Patron of those seeking a marriage partner, help me in this supreme decision of my life. Find for me as a help mate in life the person whose character may reflect some of the traits of Jesus and Mary. May he(she) be upright, loyal, pure, sincere, and noble, so that with united efforts and with chaste and unselfish love we both may strive to perfect ourselves in soul and body, as well as the children it may please God to entrust to our care.

Saint Raphael, Angel of chaste courtship, bless our friendship and our love that sin may have no part in it. May our mutual love bind us so closely that our future home may ever be most like the home of the Holy Family of Nazareth. Offer your prayers to God for the both of us and obtain the blessing of God upon our marriage, as you were the herald of blessing for the marriage of Tobias and Sara.

Saint Raphael, friend of the young, be my friend, for I shall always be yours. I desire ever to invoke you in my needs. To your special care I entrust the decision I am to make as to my future husband (wife). Direct me to the person with whom I can best cooperate in doing God's holy will, with whom I can live in peace, love, and harmony in this life, and attain to eternal joy in the next. Amen.

In honor of Saint Raphael: Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be.

Where have all the Good Skirts gone?

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So, many young ladies have asked me "why are there no modest skirts that are NICE, not frumpy!!!!" and my small amount of research has yielded these. You do have to be picky, and some are pretty pricey, but most of these are guaranteed to be good quality, not flimsy, rippy, or otherwise worn out quickly. Personally, I intend to dress myself very nicely someday...that day when I am independently wealthy. ;-)

But, until then, I have taken a vow of poverty to dress myself in 2nd/3rd/4th/5th hand stuff and try to make the results look something like this. It can be done if you've got talent and a good eye. Don't forget to check the clearance racks, as you can often find things for 50-80% less than the original price!

Funky Frum https://www.funkyfrum.com/SearchResults.asp?Cat=13 has nice colors and styles...very streamlined puckered type things.

Hannah Lise is rather conservative, you've got to pick through it to find the good stuff, which may not work out for you anyhow. Beware of frump and loose fittingness.

Modest Clothing is just that, and very Amish. (not literally, but almost)

Shade has more tops than anything, but they modest while still fashionable and in good taste. Overall, very nice styles, simple, elegant, pretty and practical. They also have really cute maternity clothing.

J.Jill is one of my favorite clothing lines ever! Natural styles, elegant, fashionable, and great variety. You do have to pick through the funky stuff, and their boots look really silly.

Soft surroundings has lots of really long skirts, sometimes rather bizarre, but always colorful and pretty.

Christa-Taylor Modern, simple, and elegant, though a wee bit pricy. If you buy something from them, they will send some money or blankets or something to widows and orphans in Cambodia.

Eshet Chayil is a definite mix, moderate pricing, some sheik and antique styles. Kinda weird on the whole.

Next Tag is basically a search engine for literally thousands of items from different suppliers and allows you to search by style, brand, price, fabric, etc. You have to sort through for the nice things, but there are alot mixed in to hundreds of different skirts.

Style J has modern, long denim skirts, with options for petite and tall and extra-tall too! Moderately priced and will match many different tops and go with several styles.

Aimcraft.com

contains scores of skirts, shawls, tunic type shirts, and home décor strait from India. Very colorful and moderately priced.

Shopstyle.com : yet another wonderful source for comparing things from several sites. Prices vary, but it alows the freedom to sift through a lot of different styles, prices, etc.

Babel Extended

Being a nursing student tends to get a bit bogged up in the technical aspect of things, so I decided to audit a Theology course not only to spice up my schedule a bit but also to learn more about my faith just so that my theology center of my brain did not dry up and go completely sour, especially in lieu of the fact that I have recently been having difficulty recalling logic and doctrine for moral and theological issues. That, by the way, is simply a compound sentence with several dependent clauses attached to it and is not a run on. If anyone feels compelled to correct me on this point, please do so as I would rather know that I've messed up instead of continuing in my error.

Anyhow, Babel. Dr. John Bergsma is an assistant professor at Franciscan University of Steubenville, and specializes in Biblical theology. His class it totally awesome! Among many things cover in the first 16 chapters of Genesis (which I am unable to expound upon at this time due to time contstraints and general inability to keep thoughts flowing logically on more than one topic at this time), one of the things that struck me the most was the bit about Babel. God has already destroyed the earth through water, causing a "re-creation" and once again bringing the land out of the sea as at the creation, and once more setting up a covenant with the man, which is just as quickly by Noah and his sons as was the original covenant broken by Adam. The Lord God swears that he will never again destroy the earth through water, but we can see just how quickly that man becomes depraved and shrinks back into sin. To take a step back, Genesis 10 contains the names of all the peoples of the earth, all the ethnic backgrounds of the world: Chinese, Slovak, Italian, Egyptian, African nations, Aztecs, Asian and European nations, every nation and ethnic people is here represented. The names given by this text are very ancient and are not in common usage anymore, but they are the names representing the entirety of the race of men. Anyhow, Genesis 11 contains the account of Babel:

Then they said, "come let us build ourselves a city, and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth." And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower...And the Lord said, "Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language; and this is only the beginning of what they will do; and nothing that they propose to do will now beimpossible for them. Come, let us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another's speech." So the Lord scattered them abroad...and they left off building the city. Therefore its name was called Babel.

After the tower of Babel, the Lord makes a covenant with Abraham in 12:2-3 (actually a promise which is later extended and ratified as a covenant). In it he promises 3 things:
1. I will make you a great Nation.
2. I will give you a great name. (implies royalty)
3. in you all the families of he earth shall be blessed--> a universal blessing extended unto all the nations (families) of the world that will be given through you.
Therefore, Abraham, whom St. Paul and the Church refer to as "Our father in Faith," is the channel through which the blessing (grace? eternal life?) is to come to the nations, to all the people of the earth.

So, back to Babel. All of these nations are descended from Adam first, and then from Noah, so we are all related: Germans, Dutch, Italians, Moroccans, Arabians, Chinese, Russians, etc. That is a pretty cool gene pool if you think about it. Anyhow, at Babel you have the confusion of language, they can no longer understand each other. Now, God fulfills his promise to Abraham in God becoming Man in the person of Jesus Christ. In Acts 2:5 we see again men "from every nation under heaven," and they are later listed, giving names more modern than those in Genesis 10, but nevertheless taking in all the nations of the world. Here, all of these men listen to the preaching of Apostles, and are confused in their ability to understand! "They were bewildered because each onn heard them speaking in his own language. And they were amazed and wondered, saying, "Are not these men who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language?" Each is able to understand the words of the apostles in his own language, and we thus have a reversal of Babel: a common language. The common language is the language of the Holy Spirit.

Interesting to note that this is like Latin, the common language of the Universal Church. That the tangible language of the Holy Spirit is Latin, for the faithful from Israel, Germany, United States, Vietnam, Russia, South Africa, all communicate in this common langage...but that is a thought for another time as well.

If I've left anything out here, please tell me.