I'm sorry that I haven't been able to post my regular "meditations" on the daily readings lately. I usually sit at the computer and the Holy Spirit does the rest. He's just been letting me take a rest for some reason, so I'll just ramble on with my day's activities and hope I don't bore you while I am waiting for His inspiration again.
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When my daughter Sarah sent out a question on Facebook the other day on who would want to particpate in this year's "Donut Dash" in Sacramento, I saw the word "donut" and decided I was in. Actually, that's not entirely true. What I really saw was a good way to make up some of the time I haven't spent in recent years with my family doing something they really like to do. So my response was, "I'm in for the donuts if you're in for the dash!" All tongue-in-cheek, of course. A lot of the final decision would depend on the weather, which has not been very good this week. It rained most of yesterday and the forecast was for lots of rain "on and off" throughout today. I had already made up my mind to at least donate to this worthy cause, but again, I wanted to see Sarah and Tony and spend the time with my family, so I hoped for good weather today.
I woke up at 5am to use the bathroom and it was pouring rain! I went back to bed thinking we would probably not be dashing for any donuts today. About 6:30 the rain stopped and Marilyn and Alicia decided we could at least drive to Sacramento and hopefully the weather would stay dry for a few hours. So off we drove to Sarah's place. She lives right across the street (maybe a 1/4 mile) from the start/finish line for the run.
Most of these charity 'runs' have a lot of people who just walk. Because Lily was with us and in a stroller (yeah, that's a good excuse!), I wouldn't have to run. I really have not walked 4 miles at one time in at least a couple of years, and I was feeling it rather quickly after the start. The good news is that I did finish! And I wasn't last! It's probably a good thing we didn't linger on at the donut shop, though, or things might have been different. In fact, I only ate one of the 4 donuts they gave me today. The other 3 I brought home for someone else to eat throughout the week. They were glazed. Glazed donuts and me just don't get along. They are way too sticky. Good, but sticky. I hate sticky. Always have. Always will.
And while it was cold, it was not raining. It did not start raining again until just after we crossed the finish line and got to Starbuck's, where the girls could get some coffee to warm up. While we were sitting in the coffee shop, it started to pour. It hasn't let up. The wind has even gotten into the picture now. It's really howling out there. The timing of the rain today (stopping just long enough for us to complete the race) and other recent events in my life have really brought to mind the story of Joseph, the son of Jacob (Israel). He was so blessed, simply because he never gave up his faith in God. Regardless of the envy (and even hatred) of him by his brothers, his bondage, and even his imprisonment in Egypt he flourished by the Grace of God. And through it all, he was simply a humble servant of God who never lost sight of God's love and providence. He didn't do anything great on his own, he simply believed and was blessed for it. I sometimes feel the same way. I'm not worthy of all the graces God has given me, but I'm very grateful for them. Even the simple favors He grants me, like a break in the weather, that allows me time to spend with my family.
Another blessing I receive is subtle "messages" from Him that I may be on the right track in my plans for myself and my family. Some may call these things coincidence, but the older I get (some may say "wiser", those who are closest to me may disagree (lol)) I realize that coincidences are often nudges to look for opportnities to grow closer to Him. I have also learned to listen to things with my faith always in mind.
During our walk, Marilyn asked Alicia if she thought Lily knew why we were walking and what we were headed for. Alicia replied that all Lily knew was that when we got there, she knew there would be something "round and sweet". I couldn't resist. I said, "You mean BESIDES Oompah?" That got me my gratuitous laugh from my loving daughter. But it made me realize that if I really want to get to Rome and see the Vatican someday, I'll need to be in better shape than I am right now. I didn't know why I thought of Rome or the Vatican, it just popped in my head.
Sarah and Tony had elected to run to the donut shop (they are marathoners, after all) and back to the finish line, then turn around and run back to meet us whereever we might be at that point and walk the rest of the way with us. We still had about a mile left to go when they got back to us. I was really dragging at this point. God bless Tony, he didn't have to, but he slowed way down from his usual pace to stay right with me and create some conversation to make me forget about my pain as we made our way back to the finish line. I mentioned that I had better get in shape if I ever planned to visit the Vatican. He said he had been there! I didn't know that! He told me that he spent a semester in Spain as part of a class he took in college. On one weekend, he and a friend had taken a trip to Rome. That in itself would have been a good story for me. Then he told me it was on Palm Sunday! The story kept getting better. He attended Mass with his friend (Tony is not Catholic) that was celebrated by Pope John Paul II, and they later were in the front row of a crowd as he drove by in his "popemobile". He also asked me if I knew about the trail in Spain that pilgrims make in honor of Saint John. I said I knew of the "via de Santiago" in honor of St. James and he replied that that is what he meant. He said that he and his friend also made that trip. I was really glad I was able to learn this about the man my daughter is very serious about. He is a very good man and from what I can see he really cares for her.
But at the end of the day, all I can seem to think about is the message that I need to get to Italy. A lot of conversations and a lot of my thoughts lately have been about making that trip. There has to be something there that I am meant to learn. There have just been too many remarks and inferences to Rome and the
Vatican lately made by people I know and people I don't really know to ignore them as conincidence. Stay tuned.
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