Vita Dulce

  https://depositphotos.com/11970662/stock-illustration-sacred-heart.html Sufferings accepted well  are like the wood  which serves to kindle  the fire of love.  To the extent that you endure faithfully  and make good use  of your crosses,  you will see  the sacred fire of love  grow in your heart. *I have been reading the 'Maxims of Perfection' from Fr. Jean-Pierre Medaille - the Jesuit priest who helped the original 6 sisters form the Sisters of St. Joseph in LePuy, France. They eventually came to America and founded both Academy of Holy Angels and St. Margaret's where I have been blessed to work.   Each of us goes through various trials (some large, some small) in family, relationship, work and this maxim seems to give some purpose to the sufferings we all inevitably encounter in life.

"You provide for the Earth;      You drench its furrows,         You level it,    Soften it with Showers,        You bless it's Growth."                              - Psalm 65 Ponder today God's Grace How it gently falls upon us, How it softens us  and opens  our Nature  to its fullness.   

  New work ...  I received my  nameplate with title for this new chapter in my life as Assistant Principal.  It made me reflect on how my perception of work and being called has changed over the last few years. I have had several different types of positions that I was asked to do to meet the needs of the schools I have served and was always happy to do them: teacher, coach, substitute bus driver (!), department chair, Director of Campus Ministry, Director of Faith Formation, Director of Cultural Awareness, Athletic Director, etc.   In many of the positions, I started with a lot of stress and anxiety in the transition because I always wanted to meet the expectations of those who had trusted me to do the role or those who I was being called to serve in the role.   This were some positive benefits of this mode of operation, as I always tended to be very or even over-prepared for the tasks, duties, presentations that were asked of me.  But at th...

  Boys curious about the world ... The contrast stands out to me when I see my boys' response to focusing on a phone or screen versus when I catch them peering out the window at the natural world. It struck me how much more their souls appear to be immersed and attuned to what they are seeing when they are pondering all the beauty of God's creation. I try to have them start to recognize the difference by asking them how they feel after 20 minutes of gaming as opposed to how they feel after they have taken the time to watch rabbits chewing on the plants, squirrels digging for fallen acorns, and chipmunks peering their heads out from between the rock wall of our garden.

  Dad, Steve and I completed our annual retreat at Demontreville Jesuit Retreat House in Lake Elmo.   A beautiful setting by the lake and a chance to start the school year off right by stepping away to process all that God has done over the course of the last year and where He is leading me as I mourn leaving Holy Angels and head into the adventure of my new role as Assistant Principal at BSM. What a blessing to be together. The Retreat is based off the Ignatian 30 day silent retreat (tried to do it one time in California but only lasted 8 days!).  This is a very doable Thursday night to Sunday night and follows the same pattern each year which allows you to enter in and become more and more comfortable with the reflection each time we return. If you have any interest, shoot me an email.  There are usually men of all ages (some starting at 18 years old!).  It is especially good for those in education - a group of Holy Angels teachers and associates have bee...