Why are we so hard on the French?

(from my in-house cartoonist, Magnus. Frenchie is decked out complete with hairy legs and a poodle gagging on stinky cheese.)

For heaven’s sake, they turned out the likes of St. Joan of Arc! She is another personal favorite of mine. I was first introduced to her in high school while I was preparing for Confirmation. Unfortunately, I remember very little about that process except for what I was wearing, an off-white skirt and jacket with black pin-stripes from Montgomery Wards, and that I had a crush on one of the older teen volunteers. Very sad. Fortunately, in the process of choosing a patron saint, I discovered a world of people who lived a life of faith and virtue, with seemingly no concern for the torture and death that ensued them. My mother gave me a copy of the Lives of the Saints as part of my Confirmation gift. I can see it on the shelf from where I am sitting as I write. That book has served me and my family well.

I was a typical teenager in many ways. On all outward appearances, I was a polite and good student. I had an affinity for music and would spend many hours practicing the things I wanted to master and not so much time on the material I was supposed to learn. I, as an only child (not really, but that’s much too complicated to explain right now) was like most children, adversely affected by my parent’s divorce when I was 12. My very well-intentioned mother did her best to make sure that I stayed emotionally healthy, but I internalized most of the hurt and disappointment and made a tremendous effort to shut the whole thing out of my mind and make normalcy out of what was left. Everyone says that high school should be the best time of your life. For me, that wasn’t the case. My anger and resentment was slowly sucking me into despair. When I was younger, I would walk the two short blocks to Church and sit in the quiet, dark, peaceful, beautiful presence of our Lord. I had always found solace and comfort there. I frequently “escaped” to the Church. By the time I reached the age for Confirmation, I had unknowingly allowed Satan to distract me and drag me down with his cunning ways. This is where St. Joan of Arc comes in to save the day.

St. Joan of Arc represented many attractive qualities to me at the age of 15, or however old I was. I can’t even remember that. She was one bad ass chick. She disguised herself as a man, put on her heavy suit of armor, headed out onto the battlefield with the big boys, and was subsequently burned at the stake. While this is certainly a misguided notion of real feminism, I was, nonetheless, impressed with her tenacity and wanted to be just like her. This was a very superficial view of the situation, but God knew what I needed and how it would help me later, so with the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and my own shallow perception, I chose St. Joan of Arc as my patron saint.

(A signed print from artist Matthew Alderman, that graces our dining room. This is my all time favorite depiction of St. Joan. She is flanked by St. Michael, St. Margaret and St. Katherine.)

As I matured in my faith, let go of my teenage angst, and began looking at the life of this saint more in depth, I realized how many aspects of her life deserved emulation. She heard the voice of God calling her to something very difficult. Like our Blessed Mother, she said yes to His request despite the heartache and consequence that followed. While on first appearances, her actions look as if they are commanding and assertive, she is actually a model of submission to God’s will. I also realized that courage was more than having the guts to go to war. Genuine courage means that you stand up for what is right, but you also have to have the necessary humility to admit your faults and failures. I ask St. Joan to pray for me every time I am standing in line for Confession. I ask God to give me the same graces he gave her so that I can face my sins and shortcomings while I am asking for His mercy and forgiveness. He never ceases in His generosity

St. Joan of Arc, model of courageous virtue, pray for us!

I Don't Have Enough To Do!

Idle hands are the devil's handiwork!

Well, if that's the case, that sorry b@$!@#d doesn't stand a chance with me. If only it were that simple. That loser is tossing temptations my way every few seconds. I shouldn't be so flippant about it. It's a very serious thing. It's called a battle for a reason. The fight is on. I get a lot of inspiration from the image of St. Michael stomping on Satan's head. I want to be just like him. I say his prayer everyday -- sometimes several times!

I've been getting up at 5am to get a jump on the day. I have a dozen subjects to correct each day for my two older students. How does a full time teacher with a classroom of 30 students do it? I am pretty sure that I am busier than I have ever been, but it's the most satisfying feeling I have felt in a long time. Teaching, cleaning, cooking, taxi, my professional job. It doesn't seem burdensome. It's lovely and natural, way more than it used to be.

One of my major weaknesses is impatience. I have a short fuse. I want things done right and I want them done now! My main concern when we decided to home school was whether or not my temperament would be conducive to the success of this project. Patience has been at the top of my prayer request list since we started. God, in His infinite goodness, has not disappointed. Don't get me wrong, I certainly struggle with the same temptation to fly off the handle. Unfortunately, Satan knows my weaknesses and feeds on them. But my awareness seems to have become so keen, that I am able to keep it toned down. I wonder if my kids would agree? My mother wouldn't, bless her heart. (I'm workin' on it, Ma!) My eldest, much like his father, has a knack for always giving the "right" answer to those types of questions. When I dig deeper and ask if he's trying to not hurt my feelings, his eyes will twinkle and he'll smile and keep quiet. He loves his mama. His silence in answering is a good indication I'm not doing as well as I think I am. Aha! Another snare of the devil -- pride. My list could go on and on.

How will I counteract this barrage of challenges to my concupiscence (my tendency toward sin) without despairing? I will look to Jesus Christ Himself, and come at those challenges with faith, hope, and love (1 Corinthians 13). Satan can't defeat you when those are your "weapons" of choice -- and arm yourself with a shield of faith (Ephesians 6:10-17). Always be on your guard. There's a spiritual combat going on around every corner. Don't worry, with the help of St. Michael, we'll get it done.

St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle.

Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil.

May God rebuke him, we humble pray; and do thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host, by the power of God, cast into Hell Satan and all the evil spirits who wander about the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen!

I love it when a good plan comes together!

My A-team doesn't look as rough around the edges as the fellas in the photo, but they have certainly risen to the occasion. (Man, I used to love that show!) Our first week of homeschooling was better than I could have imagined. Yes, there were a few tears. Thankfully, no one cried at the same time. They took turns having meltdowns, which kept it from being overwhelming to me. It will be an adjustment, but I can already see them taking advantage of working at their own pace. They are motivated to get the work done and all of the quizzes and tests at the end of the week proved that they are doing well. When they finished their studies, they had plenty to do. Evie started some sewing projects and Magnus did some painting. Justus is learning that he can't be the center of attention forever and will play quietly at our feet while we work. Friday, we took a spontaneous field trip to the Gifford Pinchot National Forest and picked enough wild blueberries for a pie. We just up and left at 11:30 am!

 I have a tremendous sense of freedom and peace that I haven't felt to this degree before. Today is Saturday and I spent most of the day cleaning and organizing. I noticed that even as I did a small bit of yard work, the simple sights of flourishing plants and the lovely speckled chickens roaming freely in the backyard made my heart even more at rest. I know, I know. I must be "part of this world, but not at home in it." That is one of my favorite quotes from the Vatican II document, Sacrosanctum Concilium. (That is the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy and a must read if you want to know what Vatican II really says.) It is a constant reminder to me that no matter how much I am enjoying life, I must always remember that my sights should be focused on getting myself and my family into heaven. The temptation of loving this life on earth is so great at times. I will try to savor these moments, but never forget that what our heavenly Father has in store for us, is beyond what I can ever experience here. I will admit, that truth is far beyond my frail comprehension, but then my unfaltering faith must take over and lead me on. Yes, Lord, I want to be like your humble servant, our Blessed Mother, Mary. I accept what You have in store for my family and I. I will treasure each day and strive for holiness. Let Your will be done and please help me to always recognize Your voice and Your call as I work through each day. Please give comfort to those who are sick and suffering and finding life difficult and burdensome. Help them recognize the love and mercy that You are trying to pour into their hearts. And, of course, thank You, from the bottom of mine.

Am I Smarter Than a 5th Grader?

The jury is still out. St. Pius X Academy (a.k.a. the Yoshimura's home schooling experiment) begins tomorrow morning at 7:30am sharp. I am very nervous. I actually had difficulty sleeping last night. While putting together the first week's lesson plans, I discovered that my 5th grader would be spending over a week learning the rules of comma usage during English. Where, does, the, comma, go,? Well, at least at the end of this I should be as smart as my 5th grader, right?! Someone please reassure me that this will be the case. Who doesn't need review? I know I sure do! God will give me the grace I need to see this through and my husband will be home the first two days to intervene if necessary. At the end of the day, we will be rewarding ourselves as a family with a good old fashioned Pickle Ball tournament. Please try not to be jealous. As you can see, we do live a very exciting and fast paced lifestyle.

St. Pius X, pray for us!

But Everyone Is Doing It!

Well, that might be an exaggeration, but it seems like there are a lot of blogs out there. Blogs about religion, cooking, workouts, etc. What do I have to offer that hasn't already been done? I'm not sure. Someone else just posted that keeping a blog is therapeutic. Since I'm not interested in forking over the dough for some probably much need therapy with a professional, I thought I'd try this first and see if I can get any relief. "Relief from what?" you ask. I'm not really sure. I live a pretty charmed life. I have supportive parents, including my in-laws, a wonderful husband and three really great kids. I work part time (insert hysterical laughter here) as a choir director for my parish. I am a grad student working on an MA in music. AND, as if that weren't enough, I am homeschooling my children this year. I think this is where the needing therapy comes in, and now I'm afraid I may be setting my children up to need it as well. All joking aside, I am very excited to begin homeschooling my kids. I foresee lots of fun and lots of time to just be. Hopefully, I won't end up looking or acting like the teacher in the photo. I hate to be selfish and pray for myself, but in the best interest of the children, I will be asking God for lots of patience and understanding.

The title of this blog reflects our mission in life: heaven. It is a difficult journey that requires faith and stamina. Have you ever done a cardio workout on the stair-mill? It's like trying to go up the down escalator. It really takes a lot of effort to get to the top, but it's worth it. Your body is healthier for it. The same can be said as we make our way to the top of the stairwell to heaven. It's a long and arduous trek, but our soul is better for it.