Category: Social Awareness

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Faith family love Patience Social Action Social Awareness

Knocking on Heaven’s Door

What’s your story?        

For Mother’s Day I was given a gift by my family. Well, to be honest, I begged to be given this gift, acting like a little kid who had to have what her friend had gotten for her birthday. Storyworth is a gift of weekly questions. Each week you receive a question, sent by email and chosen by a member of your family. These questions come weekly for an entire year and at the end of it, your answers are compiled into a book for your family. The questions pertain to your life; some are fun and easy: What fads did you embrace growing up? Some really make you think: What is your favorite memory of your mother? …and some make you want to take serious stock of your life, like last week’s question: What is one of the most selfless things you have done in life?

The fact that your family members are posing the questions makes you feel, at times, as if you’re taking a test. An important grade hangs in the balance. Your answers should impart the wisdom of a life lived; and, most importantly for me – a life lived by faith. These answers pose an opportunity that we are not often given with our children and grandchildren, an opportunity to expound on those issues, beliefs and practices that have helped and guided us through our lives -.no eye-rolling, no talk-back, no walking away – they asked.

Back to last week’s question – though I did send in my response, I’m still pondering that one. I had to search long and hard for answers. Was I more selfish than selfless in my many years on this earth? Have I done enough in a selfless vein? Have I already done my most selfless thing, or is it yet to come? I don’t think we can live our lives believing we’ve accomplished our most selfless act – how do we grow, continue to care for and nurture this needy world if we’ve already been our most selfless?

Thought provoking and self-searching – I was the one who asked for this. Little did I realize where these questions would take me; searching my memory, recalling happy vignettes and not-so-pleasant experiences; much soul searching, coming up short at times, opening my eyes to more flaws than one would care to reveal. It’s a healthy practice, if you share with your family your honest look at the world and your place in it.

This is how I ended my answer to that soul-searching question: Life is made up of tiny, often going unnoticed, acts-of-love that we don’t even think twice about. Those are the best kinds of selfless acts. We should all strive for them every day!

And so we should!

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community love Prayer Social Awareness Uncategorized

Knocking on Heaven’s Door

Show Love
Every month for the last year, on the second Tuesday, I have joined a group of women (my high school graduating class) for a zoom. It’s been fascinating learning about their lives; what they have done; where they have gone; who they have become. They always have questions for me about Canada, and I love telling them about this amazing country I now call home.
This past Tuesday I could not participate in the zoom; this past Tuesday I was overcome with a deep sorrow for this country, and I knew I would not be able to articulate it to these women – this country I am so very proud to live in and call home. I still love it with all my heart, but I did not have words to defend the events that have come to light in recent days, and so, instead of chatting with my friends, my husband, our dog and I went for a long pondering walk.
Personally, I do not know anyone with racist views, but I’m not naïve enough to believe racism does not exist; is not rampant in this country. What I find particularly disturbing is that people of power and authority; medical professionals and care-givers; those who have the opportunity to show love and compassion, in some instances, are often found to demonstrate hate and brutality.
I don’t know what we can do as individuals. My go to solution is always prayer, but more is required to deal with this ongoing, ugly side of our society, I think. Love is another way to show support and solidarity – a simple smile given to someone who, for the most part, feels left out, isolated, unloved by the majority of people they encounter. Give a smile and a kind word. Do not ignore people who are not like you, who do not speak the way you do, or look the way you look. It’s a tiny step, but it’s a beginning. Show love…and pray for our country.

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Catholic coping Faith God Patience Prayer Social Awareness Stength

Go to Your Room

When I was a child and I misbehaved, I was sent to my room. With seven kids, my parents couldn’t abide a household of civil unrest – nip it in the bud, was their approach, and off to my room I would go. In those days, it was a real punishment – there was only one TV in the house and that was in the den, where the rest of the family would be – laughing and enjoying the Ed Sullivan show, or I Love Lucy. I’d be alone, just listening to the fun from afar. I was supposed to be reflecting on the reason I was in the situation I was in.

Have we been sent to our rooms? Is this our time to sit and reflect on the reason we are in the situation we are in? We’re being deprived of our freedom; we’re unable to celebrate the sacraments. We can view the Mass, but we are only bystanders, observing from a distance, unable to partake of the feast. These are difficult times and all we can do is sit… and reflect.

During Lent, I chose to read a book entitled, The Love That Keeps Us Sane – living the little way of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, by Fr. Marc Foley, a Discalced Carmelite priest. In light of our current situation, I couldn’t have picked a better focus for my Lenten journey. One chapter is called, the Sanity of Silence – the title, as you can imagine, is self-explanatory. Hard as I try to grasp the concept, though – I fail. When the only other person I see day after day is my husband…and things, from time to time can get tense, it’s important that I get that concept right, so I try and try again – there’s lots of time for practice.

There’s also time for prayer. Many of us feel frustrated being cooped up at home, but think of our health care workers, think of the grocery store clerks, think of all those who put themselves (and their families) at risk every day. Pray for them. Think of those who are sick with the virus; those who have died from it. Pray for them. Complain less and pray more.

Some see this tragic time as a sign of God’s anger. In my opinion, God is not an angry vengeful God. As Pope Francis says, “It is not the time of God’s judgment, but of our own…” I do not believe God causes these things to happen, but he certainly uses them as teaching moments for his children. He has sent us to our room. What can we learn from this epic time in our lives, and will we hold on to the things we have learned, to those things God wishes to teach us, once this is over?

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community Faith Lent love Social Action Social Awareness

Let Your Voice be Heard

When I was a student in university, in the States, back in the 70s, there were rallies and protests everywhere, against the Viet Nam war. I went to a lot of them, we all did. I haven’t joined many protests since then (any, I have not joined any since then). But I think it’s time to become a feisty senior citizen and get politically involved once again.

I like words, I like playing around with them, but lately I see words being played around with in a deceptively misleading manner. Point of fact – the abortion issue – when did the phraseology change from pro-life and abortionists to pro-choice and anti-abortionists? Did you catch it when it happened? It was a long time ago, and, because it was not met with much opposition, it stuck. The positive connotation of PRO carries a lot of weight.

Last week, while listening to the news I heard the term doctor assisted death, and I wondered when that had changed from doctor assisted suicide. Words can imperceptibly change our opinions in cunning ways. Are we just not paying attention? Are we not listening? Do we no longer care?

I think it’s time we made our voices heard. One need not stand on a picket line to be heard, though it is a good way to get a point across. Letter writing is another way – put the power of words to good use; get involved with organizations that support your beliefs, help them get their message out. Whether you’re vehemently opposed to doctor assisted suicide; whether you’re in support of gun control or pro-life organizations; maybe you’re passionate about saving the planet…do something to aid a good cause. Our right to vote is a privilege that gives us a voice and so many disregard this very powerful tool. When we sit around and lament the state of the world, yet take no responsibility; take no action to change things; when we remain silent, we are a part of the problem. Be part of the solution.

pebble 3Lent is coming. Let’s make a commitment to get involved in one of the many ways we can help to change the world in a positive, faith-filled way. A pebble dropped into a pond ripples outward and onward – be that pebble.

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Catholic family Joy love Social Awareness

The Gift is in the Giving

Last Saturday, when our family gathered to celebrate the American Thanksgiving, I sat down with three of my four grandchildren to look through the Chalice Christmas Gift Catalogue. This is not like the old Sears Christmas Wish Catalogues of the past. Since my grandchildren were very small, I have given gifts to third world countries through Chalice, in their names. Chalice is a wonderful Canadian Catholic Organization through which many in our parish have sponsored children, to help with their education, with food and clothing. Each year they send out a catalogue with everything inside from animals, crop seeds, farm tools, and school supplies, to blankets and mattresses.

When the grandkids were little, it was important to instill in them the notion that not every child had what they had; not every child had enough food to eat, proper clothing to wear; not every family had the means with which to provide these things.

I thought of this on Saturday as the three, aged 11, 10 and 8, had a lively discussion as to what gifts would provide the greatest means of support for a family. In the past, I did most of the talking and they would nod their heads in agreement. This time they looked through the catalogue and gave their own opinions. They all agreed that animals were the best choice – a pair of goats over a donkey, because a pair would give you baby goats to sell, they would give you milk and cheese, providing food for the family, as well as a livelihood. We also looked at other options – helping an orphanage, they loved that idea too, and crop seeds were an inexpensive gift that we could add to the list.

My heart was bursting when we wrapped up our discussions, circled our choices and concluded our session. They truly understood what we were doing, how we were making a difference and I could see in their faces the joy of giving from the heart and giving with love.

The things we do with our little ones – children and grandchildren – makes an impact; it leaves an impression and plants a seed in the heart. I look forward to next year when these three will help their little cousin to make equally good choices. He’s two and wouldn’t sit still this time, but next year we will till the soil and plant the seed.

Love in Action Margery Frisch

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Easter Faith God Humor love Mercy Patience Social Awareness Trust

Easter Hope

Again this Easter, our family gathered to celebrate, not only the glory of Easter Sunday, but four birthdays. It was a joyous day. As I cleaned, and baked, and prepared the house for guests…I grew weary. Wouldn’t it be nice, I thought, if one of my daughters-in-law offered to host Easter one time. But then, I told myself, when would you take such care with your spring cleaning? Would you look after these corners, these nooks and crannies where the spiders leave their webs? This is good for you, I told myself. Stop complaining.

It really is good for us to make that extra effort – to serve. Ever mindful of Lazarus’ sisters, I tried my hardest (this time) to be Mary and not Martha when everyone gathered. I wanted to be attentive to my guests, not worrying about the cooking and the smaller details. I think I’m getting better at it in my old age, I truly did enjoy this Easter celebration.

The grandchildren discovered the gold finches flocking to the bird feeders and suddenly, I found the three oldest ones standing in the yard, under the feeders, their arms outstretched, motionless as statues, birdseed in each hand. “For the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these…” I thought as I stood and watched them. I saw trust, hope, faith and love being demonstrated by their patient waiting, their outstretched arms. One gold finch did alight to snatch a seed from my granddaughter’s open hand, and that made the others ever hopeful.

After dinner, sitting at the table with our sons and daughters-in-law, we talked of world issues; I mentioned a book I had been reading throughout Lent, which urged the need to follow Jesus’ teaching on the Beatitudes. My one daughter-in-law, who had no religious upbringing, asked me what I was talking about. I quoted a bit from the Sermon on the Mount – blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God. We talked about the need to help the poor. “But why?” she said. “Why can’t they help themselves?”

My husband explained to her how many people have grown up without love, without direction, in an ongoing cycle of abuse and neglect – alcoholism and drugs…it’s difficult to pull one’s self out of that without help, he said. She had not looked at it in that way before. Her eyes were opened a bit on Easter Sunday. Her oldest child, her 11 year old son, sat quietly, listening and absorbing all that was being said. We are sowing seeds, I thought to myself.

I’ve mentioned before that our kids are not practicing Catholics, but they take part in these discussions. We just speak of real issues that call for compassion and love and we go on sowing the seeds.

Like the little children, we must continue to grow in trust, hope, faith and love – with much patience, and arms outstretched. Hoping 2

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community Faith family Social Awareness

We are Family

The daily news brings us tragedies from around the world. Sometimes we’re grief stricken by these events, other times we shake our heads and give a sad shrug. But how often do we pray? How often do we take the time to think about the people, the human beings struggling to survive in the aftermath of these disasters?

Our world is shrinking – when news events come to us within seconds; when we travel farther, more extensively than ever before – our world becomes smaller, and those effected by terrorism or natural disaster are our brothers and sisters.

Fr. Kuzma arranged a special event to mark the feast of Our Lady of the Assumption – gathering in the hall after mass for an amazing lunch prepared by several families in our faith community. My husband and I sat at a table that was occupied by three Georgian college students; three guys my husband had chatted with after Mass before. All three are from India and my husband immediately asked if their families were affected by the devastating flooding happening in southern India.

“How do you know about this?” one of the young men asked. My husband explained that we had heard about it in the news and he remembered these young men saying they were from the southern part of India. A torrent of words came forth – they shared what they knew, they talked about their fears for their families, for Kerala, and the hundreds of thousands forced to flee their homes – the lack of food and clean water…

News stories become more than just stories when you are face to face with people suffering worry for their families. Do you ever pray for these victims of tragedy? It’s time that we did. It’s time to realize we are all one family on this planet and we must care for, pray for and love one another.

Right now, at this difficult time, let us pray for Kenis, Joju, Albin, their families and the thousands of displaced people in India, struggling to survive.

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community Faith love Mercy Patience Social Action Social Awareness Stength Uncategorized

Called to be Saints

I know a guy who is quite involved with a drop-in centre in downtown Owen Sound. Recently he found himself embroiled in an argument with a neighbour of the centre. The neighbour, a Torontonian, having purchased the property next door and possibly unhappy with the neighbouring clientele, was not in a good mood. This guy I know kept calm and cool (on the outside), despite the berating he received.

“You are nobody,”the man shouted. “you have nothing, you own nothing, you are a loser!” He clearly hoped to incite a violent response, but my friend would not fall into his trap. It was, in fact, an opportunity to demonstrate to those who attend the centre, a non-violent response to conflict. When he told me about this incident later, he nearly shook with the memory of it, but I know he felt proud too – not for how he handled the situation, but for an entirely different reason.

When this guy goes down to the drop-in centre, he does not stand out, not in his attire, nor in his speech. He becomes as those he serves and they love that about him. Actually, more than half the people he meets there haven’t a clue he’s the chairman of the board of directors – he’s just one of the guys, which is obviously what the angry new neighbour thought…and that pleased my friend to no end.

We read in the gospel that we should not draw attention to ourselves…when we fast, when we pray…and how about when we serve others? I marvel at this man and how he lives his faith. He does it far better than I, but the good news is – with open eyes, minds and hearts, we can learn from each other, growing closer to God in the process.

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Social Action Social Awareness Uncategorized

Knock and the Door Shall be Opened…

safe n soundPoverty surrounds us, and many who hold down jobs, manage to pay their bills, and put food on the table, don’t have a clear understanding of how poverty happens and why people can’t simply pull themselves out of it.

Imagine yourself a young man who has grown up in the system, finally deciding to break the cycle. You get yourself a job interview, but it’s not here in town. You don’t have a vehicle, the buses don’t travel there either, but you do manage to get to the interview. You get the job, a construction job. Your life is finally going to turn around, you are ready to do this. It’s summer, and it’s hot, working  in the blazing sun; working from 6:00 in the morning till 6:00 at night. After two long days, you quit. ‘Lazy,’ people say; ‘afraid of a little hard work,’ they say. They don’t know, and you don’t tell them that you have no money for food. You work a 12 hour day in the hot sun, with only water to drink. OSHaRE, the local soup kitchen, is closed by the time you get home and you go to bed hungry. You work another 12 hour day, in the hot sun, with no food, and you can’t take any more.

Poverty is complicated. There’s no one-size fits all image and consequently no one solution to alleviate it. The complexity of it all has created a plethora of government agencies and departments, as well as various organizations all aimed at ridding our society of poverty. Are they working? Do they help? Government workers have become weighted down filing reports that take up more of their time than the people they supposedly serve. And still, out in the real world, the general opinion is, “They’re lazy…they don’t want to work…”

Safe ‘N Sound, as the name implies, offers a safe place to come in out of the cold (in summer – out of the heat); a place to gather with others for a noon meal – a community within a community. It’s a place where everyone is welcome, accepted and respected. For the homeless, it’s a place to take a shower, do laundry, replace old, worn clothing with gently used; a place for those with uncertain futures to receive direction and guidance, and nothing is charged for the services provided. Overall, it is a community of hope.

This is the vision for The Space, at 310 8th St East, in Owen Sound, the center operated by Safe ‘N Sound, its staff and its board.  This is the work being done by day, Monday to Friday. By night they operate an after hours phone line, providing emergency shelter seven days a week.

Safe ‘N Sound needs to be recognized for what it does and what it provides. It is not government run and operates on meager funds. Consequently, Safe ‘N Sound is always in need of donations – clothing (especially men’s), towels, bedding (as they are always aiding those needing to furnish new living quarters). Donations of food and coffee, laundry detergent, body wash, shampoo and toothpaste. Things that so many people take for granted, become luxuries when one is homeless, or in danger of becoming homeless. Can you help – serving on the Board, contributing financially or with needed donations?  Drop in around noon one week day and see for yourself, the work that is being done there. Find it in your heart to make a difference, no matter how small, because one way or another, we all pay for the tragedy of homelessness.

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Catholic Lent Social Awareness

Lenten Journey

Lenten Journey

Prayer, fasting and almsgiving can seem daunting to us as we begin our 40 days of Lent.  And how does it feel right about now?  Have you lost sight of your original intentions?  Last year, a priest friend suggested we ‘give things up mindfully, not mindlessly.’  Those words continue to guide my Lenten journey and I’ve attempted to change things up a bit from my usual routine of ‘giving things up.’.

   Prayer, for me, is the easy part.  “Pray without ceasing,” St. Paul instructs us in 1 Thessalonians.  Perhaps it is because I love solitude that I find this an easy practice.  While driving my lengthy commute, walking, running even, I pray…rejoicing always and giving thanks.  It is an enjoyable practice that can easily become a habit.

   I read somewhere recently, that we must be careful of doing the right thing for the wrong reason.  Fasting immediately came to mind.  If I fast – is it to save money on food that can then be given to the local food bank, or am I depriving myself of food and secretly hoping to lose those pounds that have hung on since Christmas?  There are numerous ways I can think of to fast, with no ulterior motive lurking in the shadows.  We can fast from judging others; fast from anger, from complaining, and fast from thoughts of illness, trusting instead in the healing power of God.

   Almsgiving is not necessarily a monetary thing.  We all have too much stuff in our possession.  We can purge those things we hoard, and give them to those who can make good use of them.  I dropped in to Safe ‘N Sound recently – this is a local homelessness initiative – just to see what they’re all about.  I was impressed with what I saw.  They help the homeless, and those in danger of becoming homeless.  They provide a comfortable spot to come in out of the cold, they provide a bit of lunch; a place to do laundry, take a shower and replace old and worn clothes with gently used clothing.  There are computers available to search online for work and other resources, and overall the environment is warm and friendly.  They are in constant need of towels, shampoo and conditioner, body wash, men’s and women’s deodorant.  Gently used clothing, shoes and boots…it’s easy to help others by giving away those things we do not need; by doing without a few luxuries to purchase simple and much appreciated items of hygiene for those who can barely afford to feed themselves and their families.

Prayer, fasting and almsgiving can be accomplished in numerous ways.  When we are mindful and grateful for the gifts we have been given, and when we are mindful of others’ needs and concerns, our Lenten journey will not be mindless drudgery, but fruitful and joy-filled.