Things are wrapping up...

Or winding down, however you see it, the school is coming to a close.

The kids have projects and tests galore. And we are trying to coordinate so that we can leave early for NH and still get all their finals done. We are still waiting to hear from a couple teachers.

Gabriel came in 3rd in the math competition last week and he was pretty happy. Anna is off for a retreat at the Motherhouse of the Sisters of St. Cecilia. She and the other high school girls really love those Dominican nuns and it is good to see them with positive role models.

There was an unfortunate event that happened at the middle school here, a number of kids were arrested and then expelled for both using and selling drugs during school. (In the lunch room no less!) It has been a good springboard for discussion around here.

Mothers

This is not an easy holiday for me, now that my mother has died, but it is a day to remember.

And so, I offer this poem, which has always meant a lot to me.

Praise to the Women on my Journey

To the Women on my journey
Who showed me the ways to go and not to go,
Whose strength and compassion
held up a torch of light and beckoned me to follow...

To the Women on my journey
Who showed me how to live and not to live,
Whose Grace, Success and Gratitude
lifted me into the fullness of surrender to God...

To the Women on my journey
Who showed me what I am and am not,
Whose love and encouragement and confidence
held me tenderly and nudged me gently...

To the Women I say bless you and thank you
from the depths of my heart,
for I have been healed and set free
through your joy and through your sacrifice.

Rev. Melissa M. Bowers

Events of the week

Marian won her first softball game 20-12 and played 2nd base the whole game. She had an RBI and a also hit a double. Great start!

Gabriel goes to Pellissippi State for the final Math Team competition tomorrow. He gets to miss the whole day for it and is very excited about that (mostly excited about missing English--his "favorite" subject)

Anna is engrossed in "The Great Gatsby" rehearsals and having fun. She is also starting work on her Gold Award project for Girl Scouts and will be meeting with her troop leader and project mentor about it soon.

Make-ahead meal club tomorrow, on the menu: Chicken with Orange-Pomegranate Sauce, Asian Pork with Spicy Noodles and Mexican Calzones, to name a few!

Bogdan was chosen as "Scientist in the Classroom" this week at a local elementary school. He proceeded to teach 4th graders about the workings of computers. But, he admitted that he might have gone over their heads a bit, because he noticed a few (actually a lot, he later confessed) dozing off...

Less than a month of school left!!

Divine Mercy Sunday

What is Divine Mercy?

The message of The Divine Mercy is simple. It is that God loves us — all of us. And, he wants us to recognize that His mercy is greater than our sins, so that we will call upon Him with trust, receive His mercy, and let it flow through us to others. Thus, all will come to share His joy.

The Divine Mercy message is one we can call to mind simply by remembering ABC:

A - Ask for His Mercy. God wants us to approach Him in prayer constantly, repenting of our sins and asking Him to pour His mercy out upon us and upon the whole world.

B - Be merciful. God wants us to receive His mercy and let it flow through us to others. He wants us to extend love and forgiveness to others just as He does to us.

C - Completely trust in Jesus. God wants us to know that the graces of His mercy are dependent upon our trust. The more we trust in Jesus, the more we will receive.

This message and devotion to Jesus as The Divine Mercy is based on the writings of Saint Faustina Kowalska, an uneducated Polish nun who, in obedience to her spiritual director, wrote a diary of about 600 pages recording the revelations she received about God's mercy. Even before her death in 1938, the devotion to The Divine Mercy had begun to spread.

Rain, Regatta, etc.

Rain and rain came down here, but no tornadoes. Lots of damage, very close, with egg-sized hail. But, we were spared.

The regatta was great yesterday, with beautiful weather. Gabriel rowed in an 8 and coxed a 4. He had good times, but then didn't get to row in the finals. But, overall, a fun day. He and his teammates collapsed last night. He didn't even make it to the end of his favorite show (MacGyver)