Friday, June 28, 2013

Girl in a Chair

She meditates and she reads

Red lipstick and white hair in place.

He fingers his worn rosary beads

her ever constant companion.

On the other side of the chapel sits Don.

Pausing for a moment. . .

before carrying on with his schedule.

As a young woman concludes her silent prayer, slips on her shoes, and exits

in walks Kevin where next to the St. Patrick stained glass window he sits.

It was in this chapel 3 summers ago, where I first met him, he who would become one my most steadfast NC friends.

How different life was then compared to now; time went so fast yet so slow!

Yes, I first walked into this chapel back in July 2010

and have again been here with my brother, other friends, strangers, and nuns.

So many prayers and intentions have been offered to our God

not only by me but also by others in need of His mercy.

Sometimes it can seem as if prayers aren't ever answered but with faith, hope, and love, a girl's gotta believe!

So it's with renewed trust that I rise from this kneeler & say one last prayer as I leave this little chapel of reverent silence and open up my chair

for the next girl in

need of

prayer.




Secret Petitions (passed on to me)

A friend of mine forwarded me this email the other day.  Her cousin had sent it to her and it's a reflection from last month but I found it still provided comforting words today so thought I would share it here in case any of you might need some encouragement.

 

Friday, May 17, 2013


TODAY'S SCRIPTURE

Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He will give you the desires and secret petitions of your heart.
(Psalm 37:4, AMP)

TODAY'S WORD from Joel and Victoria

In the Psalms, it talks about the secret petitions of our heart. These are the hidden dreams that you haven't told anybody about. One way you know they're from God is that they're so big you cannot accomplish them on your own. God does this on purpose so that it will take faith. Faith is what pleases God. Faith is what allows Him to do the impossible. So God will put something big before you where you don't have all the talent, the education, the connections or the confidence. God will even allow certain obstacles that we can't overcome on our own.

Today, if you've been believing God for something that seems like it's taking a long time, don't give up! Remember, God knows exactly where you are. He knows the desires He's placed within you. He's working things together for your good. He's promised to finish what He started, and as you delight yourself in Him, He will give you the desires and secret petitions of your heart!

A PRAYER FOR TODAY

Father, I humbly come to You today, giving You all that I am. Thank You for fulfilling every desire in my heart. Mold me and shape me into Your image. Remove anything from my life that is displeasing to You so that everything I do brings glory to You in Jesus' name. Amen.

Joel & Victoria Osteen

Sunday, June 23, 2013

A ray of hope

In the hustle & bustle that comes with living with a young family (4 children under the age of 6...seriously, how did my parents do it w/ my brothers and me??!!) and coordinating various schedules with colleagues/friends/work, trying to maintain the dissertation timeline, and trying to keep my head above the research water among many other things like trying to live in the present and trying to keep from worrying about planning for the class I'm teaching this fall or wondering where/if I will land a job during that same semester for the following year and thinking about moving somewhere new (yikes!!)...it's so easy to get swept along with the tide and drown in the overwhelming waves.  But then I receive emails like this one below:

Megan,

I am at your disposal and would enjoy meeting with your group.  Of course at this point, I have no idea what our schedule would be in the early part of next year.  As a family, however, we are nothing if not flexible.  Pencil me in for any of the months and don't hesitate to move me if you have someone who lacks my flexibility.  When such things happen, I usually think that the Holy Spirit is involved and will go with the flow.

I await your directions!



How reassuring it was to receive an email of this sort as I work to coordinate the 2014 Theology on Tap series (yeah, I wasn't busy enough)!  Thank God for folks who have flexibility and are patient enough to wait on me/work with my crazy schedule.  Some day it will all get done but for now, I'm just treading and keeping my chin up...looking toward that ray of hope. 

You can't have the rainbow without the rain clouds ya know...

This awesome photo comes to you courtesy of Janet Howard Photography.  Check out the incredible caption that goes with this photo by liking her page on Facebook!

Thursday, June 20, 2013

Summer has arrived

Today is the first day of summer.  It crept up on me as I didn't realize it until I saw some posts on Facebook announcing this fact.

I remember when summer days consisted of swimming in the pool of a childhood best friend's grandma.  And of hot sticky walks when delivering newspapers that were made better when a customer surprised me with a few dollar bills so I could get a treat from Tom's Store on the corner down the street or made doubly better when Mom would drive me as I hung out the door of the Astro van tossing the papers onto the porches.  Or of riding the Phoenix or antique cars to get a cool breeze after trying to get as many brass rings from the carousel as possible at Knoebel's.  Summer days were also opportunities to spend hours on the swings at Memorial Park and to check out armloads of books from the Frackville Library that I could hardly wait to run home the four blocks just so I could get started on that day's adventures that lay waiting for me on the pages.  Summer meant Vacation Bible School with friends from the public school, camping trips at the beach with my family, spending time with Grandma and my Aunts in Pittsburgh and Boston on "week" trips away from home, catching lightning bugs, and endless ball games at the top of town at the Little League Field as my brothers played and my Dad coached.

Since Summer 2008, summers for me have been spent babysitting my niece and nephews every other week.  From one baby to two, to three, to four as I'm experiencing this year, the weeks have kept me on my toes from trying to help out with chores around the house to attempting to keep the kids quiet (something that is definitely more of a challenge this year) so Daddy can sleep to keeping the peace.  When I first started being the summer babysitter down here, I did so as a teacher who worked my summer job of tutoring and homebound instruction during my off weeks when not in NC.  Then, a few years into being the traveling babysitter, I made the transition from independent teacher in PA to dependent PhD student in NC as my family took me into their home.  Summers switched from being a change of scenery from PA and spending time with my family to still loving spending time with my (growing) family while also trying to also meet my other responsibilities.  Many have said it couldn't be done, have expressed doubt, and advised otherwise, but....I'm not one to back down from a challenge and I do love my family and want to help in any way I can.  Who knows, maybe after my time in NC, I'll be able to help my twin and his wife with their son..ha!

Talk about multi-tasking...

Summer 2011 found me supervising student teachers when not babysitting.

Summer 2012 saw me work on a program evaluation and attempt to get a huge portion of my portfolio done by August.

Thus far in Summer 2013, I've been able to collect data for my dissertation study, and in the last several days alone, when not babysitting, I've been able to help resubmit two separate manuscripts, do three rounds of coding on a history project, start coding my dissertation study, collaborate on another manuscript, start the history manuscript, and squeeze in a few Zumba classes over in Burlington. 

Each day, I find that I need to set small goals to try to move forward with all the research projects that are up in the air but some days, I feel like I'm fighting a losing battle.  However, all I can do is keep trying and start over again the next morning.  Don't get me wrong, it can get quite intimidating...just today's goals alone are to finish coding the history project database through the 1990s and to prepare for a meeting on campus tomorrow.  As much as I would love to plan out a Nashville trip this fall, an Asheville overnight trip next week, the Women's Retreat Weekend next month, the Theology on Tap series for 2014, my post-graduation gathering, and well, the list could go on and on and on...., I simply can't think beyond the next 24 hours which means, babies, baths, bedtime, 1990s coding, possibly read an itinerant article, review and collaborate on three separate manuscripts/respond to emails that were sent today, get my special education certification forms in order for tomorrow morning, and oh yeah polish up Ch. 1 and 2 revisions by 9am tomorrow.  Oh, and code a dissertation interview for the 2nd time before bedtime tonight!

Yes, I miss the carefree days of summer.  I wish I could lay in my parents' pool in PA and stare up at the clouds floating across the sky.  I wish I could take my pup for a walk and not have to be anywhere by a certain time.  I wanna go to a Kenny Chesney concert with my best friends (it just isn't summer without a concert!!).  I would love to just hop in my car and get some ice cream from Heisler's or take in a Revs baseball game at dusk.  Sitting out on a patio deck by the Susquehanna at Duke's or walking around City Island were favorite summer activities of mine.  This past Saturday was an awesome day because, in many ways, it reminded me of my old life.  I gathered with friends at a winery for Music in the Vineyards from noon-3pm, grabbed a coffee with other friends at Starbucks before heading to mass and dinner w/ them as we concluded the fun day. Sure, I fell behind in schoolwork but it was worth every minute.  Those kind of memories are from summers of years gone by but I look forward to working hard this summer, as I have year round, so that hopefully by this time next summer, I can make new memories elsewhere!!

I just wonder where I will be!!??  Wherever I will call home, I hope there are some fun wineries near by that I can enjoy with new friends! 

Thursday, June 13, 2013

What a joyful boy & day!!

Today is the feast day of St. Anthony of Padua!  

Two months ago, I had the honor of spending time in San Antonio, TX, and enjoyed seeing some beautiful scenery, some of which included this image of the patron saint of the city, Saint Anthony.


It also happens to be my nephew's birthday!  He turned 1 today.  How sweet is Thomas as he goes down the slide during his birthday party last weekend?!

  

I love the way he claps when he is happy/proud of something he's done!  What a sweetheart!!



From El Santuario De Chimayo's Facebook page:  June 13 marks the Feast of St. Anthony of Padua, one of St. Francis' early followers and an exceptionally effective preacher. His ability to make Jesus come so alive for his listeners when Anthony preached on the Scriptures led to his usual portrayal holding the Christ Child on a book (the Bible).

Happy Feast Day to all those named Anthony, those members of parishes or missions named after St. Anthony and all those with a special devotion to this much-beloved saint!
 

P.S.- - - In case you haven't read it yet...here is a link that will share more about my St. Anthony twist!

Monday, June 3, 2013

Hold the presses.....!!





My hoped for graduation date is NOT on Saturday, May 9th, 2014.....it is on Friday, May 9th, 2014.  Oops!










5 + 9 = 14  

05/09/14

There, I should be able to remember this right?!

Great read!

I think this was my favorite part of the linked article below:

The relationship is life-giving. We’re called to be "equally yoked" in a spousal relationship — spiritually, emotionally, intellectually and physically. There will naturally be times when one person is stronger in a particular area or needs to lift up the other person when he or she falters. When we’re constantly dragging someone along in any of these areas, though, it can take the life out of us. Imagine that marriage is like running a race. Your spouse should be running alongside you toward the goal: heaven. When you get tired or lazy, he or she should encourage you. When he or she falls, you help him or her get back up. You wouldn’t want to marry someone who is miles behind you in the spiritual life, for instance, or who is not even running the same race. Marriage is difficult enough when you and your spouse are on the same page spiritually, intellectually, emotionally and physically. It becomes much more difficult, however, when you’re not.

Sunday, June 2, 2013

Laugh 'til it hurts

What a treasure this man must have been to his family...love the sense of humor!!

Happy Times for the Clark Girls

May has been a good month for the Clark Gals.  Especially the last half of the month...check out the blessings that have been pouring forth for them!

See below for what was published in my Aunt Maureen's order's newsletter.  How neat!!

Sister Maureen Clark receives an honorary Doctor of Laws degree during commencement ceremonies on May 19 at Fairfield University, a Jesuit university in Fairfield, CT. Sister Maureen is Catholic chaplain at Massachusetts Correctional Institute for Women in Framingham, MA. 


Four days later, my Aunt Marie became a Grandma with the arrival of Sadie Jo!  I can't wait to meet her the next time I'm in Pittsburgh!

 Then, less than a week later, my Mom's only granddaughter graduated from Pre-K!






Clark wanted a silly picture so silly we were!



"When I grow up, I want to be a doctor...but really, I want to be a babysitter!"
Kemmery Boys 2nd generation style

 

Mason wanted a picture of her "diploma" and my nails in one shot so she took this one...silly girl!

Oldest and youngest Kemmery Kiddos
 




Love her to pieces!  When I see this photo, the song, "She Doesn't Know She's Beautiful" plays in my head...

So thankful to have some extra days with my parents due to their extended stay in NC!




Unexpected Messages

I received an unexpected email tonight.  It was very much needed as I pitied myself for having to work all morning in Greensboro and then to stay in and work on transcribing interviews for my dissertation this afternoon/evening instead of going to listen to music at Blandwood Mansion and enjoying quality time with friends.  

The schoolwork has to be done and I know this but it's still irritating/depressing having to miss out on fun social/family events.  I do know it will be all worth it in the end and once I'm "Dr. Meg", I can hopefully go back to having some parts of my old life back again (aka social events without having to to feel guilty for falling behind in schoolwork for doing so) in addition to also being involved with research, teaching, etc. 

Anyhow, when taking a break from transcribing just now, I logged into Facebook to find this sweet message....I hope it brings those of you who are struggling with anything some peace and comfort as it did me!

Hope you are getting to relax at least a little today. It is beautiful in Pittsburgh today. I am sending you this picture. For some reason when I saw it I got this strange feeling that it was meant for you to see. Hopefully this makes some sense.