A COMPLIMENT THAT NEEDS TO BE MINED

If your pastor has not thanked you or complimented you on your ministry lately, it is probably a compliment.  

I was thinking about how, when I arrived at St. Sebastian, how wonderful it was with everybody doing their various ministries and jobs.  It was easy to remember to thank everybody for all of the good things they were up to that I was discovering on a daily basis.  Realizing that they had things well in hand, I moved on to other projects, responsibilities, and problems.  It is like cooking a meal, that which is simmering nicely on the stove can be left alone while something that need attention (the potatoes that need peeling or the grease fire that needs extinguished) can be dealt with.  

The problem is that even the simmering pot needs stirred every once in a while.  It’s easy to forget because it is doing what it is supposed to be doing and in better condition than the other tasks that need immediate attention, but left on the burner too long without some kind of recognition, even the best simmering pot can turn into an emergency.

So at my last holy hour it occurred to me to try to treat a day as though it was one of my first days at the parish and to be appreciative of all the wonderful things that people are doing around here - all of the simmering pots - let the potatoes and grease fires take care of themselves for a moment and give the pot one good stir.

But man!  Is it difficult to remember to do!  Grease fires seem steal attention so easily!  (The squeaky wheel syndrome.)  To see everything for the first time!  And remember to say “Thanks for all you do!”  I challenge you to give it a try with your family, work mates, neighbors, friends . . . all the wonderful things they do for you that you have come to rely on.

And so I thank you for reading this blog and giving me this opportunity to share some of the ways it seems to be God is acting.  Sending out a prayer to you today.

WHY TRULY BEING THANKFUL IS TOO DIFFICULT AND TIME CONSUMING

Happy Thanksgiving!

So what happens when you have nothing really to say and you decide just to sit down and start typing something for Thanksgiving?

Well, this.

Although school is closed and for the next two days (TWO DAYS!) the offices are closed, the rectory is a hopping place.  The place is teaming with priests and seminarians today - mostly for food, cards, and prayer.  Tomorrow it will be teaming with family.  And then Friday, blessed peace (and catching up on all the stuff I didn't get done today and tomorrow.)

Thanksgiving Day Mass is always one of my favorites.  Nobody has to be there and those that do show up are extra eager to participate.  There is so much to do at home - cook - prepare - sleep in - a million things, but this stalwart gathering of Catholics take the meaning of this day to its height and begin with this most privileged form of giving thanks to God from Whom all of our blessing come.

If you have a couple of extra minutes to spare over these next two days, try to become creative in coming up with what you are grateful for really, everything is so closely knit together that the most mundane things are essential for our life and joy.

Do you realize how many people it takes to make your Thanksgiving Day possible?  Consider the humble pumpkin pie that one can so mindlessly shovel into his mouth even after saying, "I couldn't possibly eat another bite."  Forget that, it's too much to think about.  Just think about the plate in which it was baked.  Even that is too much!!!  You will be amazed at how interconnected we all are.  

Let's say its an aluminum pie tin.  Forget about all the people it took to discover aluminum (based on thousands of discoveries by thousands of others) and those who discovered, improved, manipulated, tested, experimented, and formed it into the shape that it has today.  That would take too much.  Forget about the people who had to mine the materials for it because that would lead us to a discussion about the people who had to make the machinery for it to be mined, refined the fuel on which the machines would operate, transported it, regulated it, sold it, bought it, stored it . . . 

TOO MUCH!

Okay, so take for granted that it was mined.  Now that I think of it - let's skip the part that it was made.  Then we have to get in to the people who own the company that thought of making the pie tin, those who were sent out to buy the materials, the banks involved in the transaction, the designers of the tin, those who make the machinery to make the tin, the people in the country that work in the factories where it was made including the janitors who keep the place clean and safe . . .

SKIP ALL THAT!  That alone would take a month.  So, it's made and makes it's way from, say, China to your store.  Of course there are all the people involved with figuring out where it needs to go so that you can get it.  Stores are contracted to sell them.  Accountants figure out how much it can be sold for.  Marketing people design packages, a ship is enlisted for the trip from China, along with truck drivers, warehouses, and space on trains possibly.  Lawyers are involved at every step of the way to make sure things and contracts are on the up and up.  The government is there to make sure that the tins are safe for food consumption, that taxes are paid (to help pay for the roads on which the travel and pay the people who inspect them to make sure that they are safe and that when the package says that there are three of the them that there actually is three of them. . .

Arg!  TOO MUCH AGAIN and we only scratched the surface.

Then in the store - the stock boy, the cashier, the janitors, the security guy that stands by the door, the bagger, the manager, and the owner, his accountants and staff . . .  those who design the layout of the store, the government who regulates the safety of the place, the police, fire, and first responders who are on call should anything go wrong, all the people responsible for the electricity making it safely and reliably into the store so you can read the price tag - Oh man!  Do you realized how many people are involved in just making that stupid price tag . . .

FORGET IT!

Maybe just be thankful for Mom for making the pie.

MONDAY DIARY: ALMOST EXCRUCIATINGLY TRUE STORIES: NEVER BELIEVE THE "PREP TIME" IN A RECIPE BOOK - IT'S A LIE

So Thanksgiving for me for the past six years has consisted of hosting family at the rectory - mostly because St. Sebastian has the largest dining room and the most silverware.  One of the great things about this (for me anyway - and it all really is about me after all) is that all I have to do is host.  I shine the silver, iron the table clothe, bring in enough chairs, and make sure everybody has the beverage of their choice.  Everyone else cooks - some here, some at other houses.  I have the BEST sisters in the world because while I have after dinner postprandial with the guys, they do the dishes so I don't even have to do that.  Then I don't have to drive home - I go upstairs to fall asleep.  Is this the best deal in the world or what?!?

 

Unless there is a snow storm.  My family comes in from the Adirondack mountains and from the south and just guess where NOBODY was making into Akron from this year due to weather.

So our large family party turned into a very small one.  And, my local sister informed me that I would have to do my part of the cooking.  Well, I don't know turkey about cooking turkey and so it was the first thing struck from the list.  We were going to have Guinness beef - one of the few things that I make well.

My sister and I put a menu together that was rather nontraditional.  There was no stuffing, no cranberry sauce, so green bean casserole with those funions on the top.  (And don't you know THIS year people bringing food to the rectory are all saying, "Don't worry!  I'm not bringing you turkey!  I'm sure you're sick of it already!"  I haven't had turkey since last turkey day and am rather missing it.) 

 

We tried out some new recipes with varying levels of success.  I think the sweet and spicy pecans would have been good had I not burned them.  One thing of which I am rather proud are the pecan cognac crepes that we served for desert.  They actually came out looking something like the picture in the cookbook - a RARE occurrence in my life:

As you may have noticed, the two above named menu items had alcohol as an ingredient.  It wasn't until after we were all done planning the menu that I noticed most of the courses would have similar ingredients.  So I had to go to the store and pick up stuff.  Have you ever noticed the only time you really run into people at the grocery store is when you are wearing your Roman collar and have something in your cart you don't want other people to see?

The menu was also heavily laden with garlic.  (My sister and I like garlic.  Always at least double the amount of garlic called for in a recipe.  If you take a garlic, chop off the top, put some oil on it, bake it in the oven, then smear it on bread - that is not enough garlic.)  But you know what - pealing garlic is a pain in the chasuble.  But a friend of mine sent a Youtube on a quick and easy way to peal garlic and we were eager to try it.  The first step is to whack the head with the heal of your hand.  Then you are supposed to take two large bowls OF EQUAL SIZE, put the garlic in one half, then cover, and shake the bejeebers out of it.  Well, we have hundreds of bowls at the rectory and no two are the same size.  As it turns out, you can use a Revere wear pot with a lid and guess what - IT REALLY WORKS!

 

Let me tell you what doesn't work.  There is a reason they tell you to hit it with the heal of your hand.  Not wanting to get gunk on my hand I decided to WHACK it REALLY HARD with the bottom of the Revere wear pot.

 

Do not do this.  You will regret it. 

And you will have to go back to the grocery store to get more garlic.

Happy Thanksgiving.

MONDAY DIARY: ALMOST EXCRUSIATINGLY TRUE STORIES: 15 MINUTES AWAY FROM CREMATION

Thanksgiving is no longer fresh in any body's mind including the editorial staff of Adam's Ale.  But we have these cartoons left over (which lasted longer than the turkey) and now that the gist of working with blogs and pictures has been worked out, it seemed appropriate to bring the left overs out of the freezer and see if enough of the day can be remembered to make it worth while (or should we save the calories and just throw them away?)

 

For the third year I have hosted Thanksgiving at the rectory for one branch of the family anyway.  Don't get me wrong - I don't cook.  I am responsible for setting the table and keeping people's glasses full and that is about the extent of my responsibility.

 

My brother-in-law is the cook.  Normally a very accomplished cook.  He and my sister live in New York and they came down to celebrate with us and he decided that he would make the turkey which was just fine by me.  So I get a text on Wednesday:

Now I know Don.  I am sure he had every good intention to be at the rectory at 7:59AM on Thursday morning to start cooking and I did get up to make sure the doors were open and the lights were on just in case he actually showed up.  But every year he decides to do something else and as an after thought thinks to tell me.  (Not that I have a problem with this whatsoever.  The turkey eventually makes it's way to St. Sebastian and that's all that matters.)  So it is after Mass and there is still nobody in the kitchen cooking and I am not terribly surprised when eventually I get this text:

Or this one:

Or this one:

Okay.  I was surprised by this one:

My nephew Paul got his grandpa's oven working all right - but it acted like a blast oven.  It actually burned the oven mitts when they took the pan with the turkey out.  The 25lb beast was done in half an hour and I got a frantic phone call that dinner was being moved up by hours and we all needed to be at the rectory and eating ASAP.

After that it was hard to slow down and appreciate the meal.

But in the end, the results were exactly the same.

MONDAY DIARY: GOD BLESS MOM

Now I get it!

Thanksgiving always seemed so easy when Mom did it.

I hosted Thanksgiving for the first time in my life for about 20 members of my family. To be honest I did not even have to cook. I just had to provide the house and some plates. If I had to cook too you probably would have been reading my obituary at the moment.

How do you people do this?

For some reason (I blame the devil) the work load at the parish increased incredibly as Thanksgiving neared. My desk looked as though a dump truck and backed up to it and unloaded itself after gorging itself on its own version of Turkey Day. And my desk, because of lack of space in the rectory, is in the living room. So that just would not stand. Besides, where would the drinks table be then?

So as the magical hour arrived for people to start showing up I got the biggest box I could find and just shoved EVERYTHING into it and hid it in the closet. My desk looked fabulous.

But unfortunately nothing miraculous happened. Reality did not match the illusion. The box did not disappear. *sigh*

So, it was time to play vacation – a game I only play in extreme emergencies. No, that does not mean I jumped into my car and drove to Niagara Falls leaving the work behind; while fun for a day that just makes the pile that much bigger when I get back. “Vacation” is when the doors are locked, the blinds are drawn, the cell phone is left upstairs, and items are taken out of the box one by one and handled immediately and without interruption until every last scrap is gone as if tomorrow I was leaving on vacation and wanted it done before I left.

I was so happy to legitimately see the top of my desk that I brought people in to look at it. Now all I have to do is catch up on 75 Emails and a number of phone calls. (You may have noticed a distinct lack of posts last week!)

But for the rest of Sunday, I will enjoy the illusion that I am really all caught up from the looks of my desk and pretend that Monday will be a lazy day.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

ENJOY!

SO MUCH FOOLISHNESS

SUCH CLOSE QUARTERS

Bible In A Minute - barats and bereta

A PLATE FULL OF GRATEFUL

Here is a great and timely Doonsebury comic.

Giving thanks does not come naturally to humans. It is something that is learned. It is a social grace. This morning I was sitting in my room thinking of some of the things that happened the last couple of days and thinking how many times I forgot to say thank you. Now I have time to think how much I or the parish have benefited by somebody’s generosity or the well executed accomplishment of their job and so I am at least able to offer a prayer for them.

This time of year it is important to remember to be thankful for that which we often take for granted. A gentleman going in for surgery called this morning and said that his daughter actually beat him into the operating room with her own unexpected problem. So today I call to mind how grateful I am for what health I have. Every time I get a cold I think about how appreciative I am going to be when I can breathe properly again. What an absolute blessing that is. Yet after I wake up and think, “Wow, I can breathe again!” I go back to taking it as just the state of things.

Not too long ago I had some house guests. We were having dinner. Due to health problems some of the menu had to be modified. Even at that, one of the guests still needed to be excused for a few moments to attend to some personal health concerns. Again, what a gift it is (and it is ALL gift) not to have to worry too much about such things. But even if I did, we were able to enjoy a great meal together and had the means for each to eat as their body demands.

I often wish in the midst of such a meal that everyone in the world could experience such an evening at least once. That is a form of thankfulness I suppose. And it is thankfulness that truly adds to the specialness of the experience: to be aware that it is all gift, to be cognizant of the fact that it need not be this way save for the grace of God, to know how rare, considering the rest of the world and history of man, our gathering at meals actually is. It is mind blowing.

That is not to say we should be dower in enjoying our opportunities to feast as we do at Thanksgiving. In fact, I think after remembering how thankful we should be we should make effort to pay attention and truly enjoy ever moment, taste, smell, sight, every contact with our brothers and sisters so as to not waste a moment of this overwhelming grace. Don’t squander a morsel of it! “Remember the poor starving children in (insert whatever you may have been told here” is a good saying. Not in order to force you to shove down your throat more food than you could care to eat, but to remember that this meal and the safety and warmth of the place in which you eat it is a rare bird in deed and to enjoy the experience down to the very marrow of it so as to express your understanding that you are so very blessed.

HAPPY THANKS-GIVING!

Here is a short post to entertain you just a bit before the turkey sends you to sleep.

Making Fiends Thanksgiving special is here! "So much foolishness . . . and such close quarters."

This is weird video and I don't understand it, but it does make me laugh. I don't think it means anything. Warning: If you do not care for insipid mindlessness, avoid at all costs.




And Kay sends in this THANKSGIVING DAY quiz.

On this Thanksgiving Day, O Lord, I ask you to bless all the people who read this blog and inspire them with Your Holy Spirit. Give them a spirit of thankfulness and let them know that I appreciate their visits. Amen

God bless!