Walking
gets me out of bed in the morning. For a good part of the summer, I have been walking with a friend but that is really not why I get out of bed that is more of what gets me out the door. The question "Why do you get out of bed in the morning?" I have a family to take care of, I am a wife and mother, the maker of our home and it is the job that is in a constant state of changing. I have gone from infants, to toddlers, to preschool, school age and now in the home stretch of high school with all three. At this point in time, I am looking down the road a little bit and asking myself a lot of questions that I am not even ready to talk about but this question covers them all.

There are so many opportunities. Dreams, thoughts, as well as questions are stirring inside of me. It is important to just be still right now, do the next right thing and know that God is God.

Questions
"Why do you get out of bed in the morning?"
"What are you doing that I can support?"
"Do you love her?"
"Why can't I be freed from who I've been?"
"Why didn't you ever buy a house?"
"Where do I belong?"
"How do you make that decision?"
Then there are the questions that people ask when they meet you for the first time: "What do you do?" "Where are you from?" "How many children do you have?"
To say that I really enjoyed answering those last three questions for the majority of the last 5 years, may be an understatement. Now, in the midst of transitioning from moving regularly to being on the hunt for a house. The questions make me revert to the "smart" answers or I simply say we are in transition without getting into a discussion or turn the conversation to them and get to know them a bit. It is a very small handful of people that I want to speak with about my current status.
Back to the questions I listed. These are questions that have either been asked of me or that I have asked. Continuing on in this life, I have more questions than answers and I am finding that it is a very teachable place to be. The difficulty lies when I am unwilling to find answers or at least allow myself to meditate upon what is being asked.
There is a lot to explore, discover and learn about myself, others and the world we live in and only so many hours in the day. This is just a start but I will be back soon to continue these thoughts.

The seasons of parenting
It occurred to me the other day that I have not blogged about any changes we have been going through lately. These are numerous but I just want to focus on one: Children growing up. In February of this year our oldest daughter Grace traveled to the Netherlands to go to L'abri as a student. It was a delightful experience for her going over there with two of her very good friends. The director asked Grace if she would return for the summer session as a helper and she absolutely loved it.
This daughter of ours is vibrant, strong, thoughtful (and full of deep thoughts) and a delight to her parents. She is also no longer a child. Grace will always be my daughter but she is now a woman. In all honesty, re-entry has been a challenge for me. This is the transitional time of parenting that is crucial to maintaining a relationship and allowing it to develop in a way I am not really sure about. Even though she is not totally out on her own, she has been expanding her horizons.
It seems like labor has made its appearance again and this time I don't have to take it laying down but can walk, breath, laugh, cry and rejoice in my child who has become a woman.

Lookin' for a HOME

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am." John 14;1-3

In the last 5 years plus we have moved 15 times, some people live in the same house their whole lives, others grew up in one house, marry and raise there family in another and there are those who have moved more or somewhere in between. Our life upon the earth is a journey no matter where it is that we lay our heads to rest at the end of the day.

Shortly after our most recent move to Marlborough, MA (the place where we had called home for 9 years before traveling), Dan and I sat down to discuss our current crossroads, both of us had been considering whether or not it was time to stop traveling and thinking about finding some place to hang out for more than a year or so. The two of us had come to the same conclusion. We have loved living in different places and investing in our relationships with our kids and the people who have been put in our path. Since that conversation nearly two months ago, we have been back and forth, rent or buy, relocate to a brand new area of the country, find some place close by, go back to one of our favorite communities that we have had the privilege of being a part of for short periods of time, should we stay or should we go?

Although the economy is not in the best shape, the housing market still in the sink hole and the looming presidential election is upon us, there is always hope for those who are Sons and Daughters of a King, His economy is much different from ours. It also doesn't hurt to be in a profession that is always looking for experienced, well liked and hardworking compassionate people. The opportunities are great for us. Sober judgment is essential. Plenty of good reasons to buy or rent, stay or go.

If you have had a conversation with me of any length about traveling, not having a home or moving, it is more than likely that you have heard me say, "Its ALL temporary housing." This world although we live in it is not our home. There is a place often called Home by the children of God. Some say it is Heaven and it very well may be, Jesus called it Paradise and there we will live forever with our Father. This life is but a vapor!

Deciding to stop traveling is like having learned to live hanging upside down and being taken down out of the rafters and relearning to live right side up again. The pilgrims are now looking for shelter and desiring to hang a sign out "Welcome to The Mullaneys" and written on our hearts, weary ones can find rest and refreshment here.
Pax,
CM

*Please note there are so many people along the way who have provided a place to sleep, a hot meal(s) and wonderful fellowship from mid-New Hampshire to Naples FL and lots of places in between. We are so grateful to each and every one of you and each one is worthy of a blog post, hopefully I can get that done soon.

What Christians need to learn from Red Sox fans

Commitment, loyalty, unashamed, worship, headoverheels, belonging: these are the words that come to mind when I think of those fans who love the Red Sox with all their hearts, souls, minds, strength and even their pocketbooks.
Perhaps you are one of those people who have visited the Boston area, gone into a local supermarket and noticed that 4 out of 10 shoppers are outfitted with their Red Sox attire.
I have been a fan all my life (those who hopped on board in the 2004 season, do not realize the sweetness of that World Series since they did not go through the heartbreaking seasons leading up to that time.) When I was growing up, I was one of those crazy fans. Today, I am still a fan but I no longer worship the BoSox.
However, I got to thinking: have you ever been to a Red Sox game in Fenway Park or any other ball park in this country where the Socks are playing? One of the sounds you will hear,
"Let's go Red Sox, Let's go Red Sox" in a collective chant. And the whole feel of the place is electric.(even at away games) Isn't that how it should be with the Church and the Holy Spirit? If a bunch of folks can get pumped up for a baseball team, then we as the children of the Living God ought to be able to get juiced for Jesus.
Just a thought as we head into the second half of the season.
Go Red Sox!
Glory be to the Son! Whose Age is yet to come.

"Who are you?"
What person with faculties intact has not asked this question? or these questions? "Why am I here? What is my purpose? There are many people who wrestle with the deeper questions in life silently or disregard them, leading a life of quiet desperation.

The past few days I have discussed, contemplated and listened to others bring "the meaning of life" questions out into the light. It is a painful. It is exciting. It is like a living organism. There are two words that have come up: identity and wholeness.

A good friend and I were discussing our identity. How do we find our identity in Christ? There is not a simple answer. We talked about the deadly game of comparing ourselves to others and coming up short and how perfectionism plaques us. Our worth is to come from being in Christ.

Then I heard a lecture titled, "What are people for?" The simple answer, this young man came up with comes from the Westminster Catechism question #1, What is the chief end of man? To glorify God and enjoy him forever. He said, "this is beautifully put but hard to understand."

My initial thought comes from the Scripture that says, "now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known."
In all of life, no matter how mature we are, knowledgeable we have become, the best we will get in this life is seeing in a mirror dimly, yet there is hope! We have hope because we have been redeemed! Everyone is broken and in need.

Please take note: A young friend of mine says, we must preached to ourselves.

There are so many ways to answer the question, "Who am I?" So many directions that we could go in. I would like to begin by rephrasing the question: What was I created for? Danny, the guy who did the lecture at L'Abri gave these three things: creativity, relationship and redemption, as his answer. This is what he found in the Good Book. Those are definitely things I have been tossing around in my mind.
God is our Creator and we were created in His image, so we too are all creative, no exceptions. It comes out in different ways. I just so an older woman walk by the house and I thought and wondered if she crochets or perhaps she is a retired architect, how does her creativity manifest itself? The man who weaves a story or the girl who dances for joy. The woman who does agility trials with her pure bred pup or the little boy who builds a ramp for his match box cars. Any of us could add to the list ad infinitum.
In questionaires about ourselves we are often asked to list our hobbies or interests, does this not make the point that we were made for creativity?
Birth. Death. Marriage. Divorce. Cohabitate. Love. Hate. Communicate. Live. Home. When we hear that a woman has had to deliver her child by herself. We think: aw, it is sad that she was alone to have her baby. The event of a child being born usually includes others. Our desire is for our loved ones not have to face death alone. In some cases, we want to be that some one or we want the one closes to them to be there as they pass from this life and into the next. It takes two baby! Or if you are a Christian, a marriage takes three: my God, my man and me. Although a house may become a home, it is the relationships between people that make it home.
I have a little framed saying that reads: Mother is the heart of the home. Those 7 words are both challenging and encouraging. It reminds me that I am not walking through this life alone, that I was indeed created for relationship.
Referring back to my list. I believe that God is the giver and taker of life, the One who created woman for man in marriage. The Word of God says, "God hates divorce." I think the only thing that God wants us to hate is sin. He has called us to Love people. Ours is to communicate effectively with one another and I believe it is one of the biggest challenges we face. Together we are to live among people. In all of these relationships God wants to have an influence in our lives and I believe the best way (and probably the only way) is for us to be in relationship with Him.
A mere human to be in relationship with the Creator of the Universe. On the screen, that looks almost ludicrous. When we try to look at ourselves among ALL that God has created, we are speck on the face of the globe. I don't think we can ever have even a partial understanding of who God is and the fact that indeed He is able to have a relationship with all of His creation, that He cares so deeply for each of us and is carrying on personal relationships with individual people.
Sinful, broken, imperfect, left for dead, this was the state I was in when my Redeemer invaded my heart and turned my life upside down. One of my favorite songs by Caedmon's Call is Thankful. My favorite part says:

'Cause we're all stillborn and dead in our transgressions
We're shackled up to the sin we hold so dear
So what part can I play in the work of redemption
I can't refuse, I cannot add a thing

so what does it mean to be Redeemed? I looked it up at www.dictionary.com redeem definition 9. Theology. to deliver from sin and its consequences by means of a sacrifice offered for the sinner. As I walk along this pilgrimage that leads to my Eternal Home, I am having a greater awareness of God's Grace in my life. The day of my redemption I knew one thing, that not only was I spiritually lost, I was dead and that the Lord in His mercy saved me from my sins, bought me with His blood, redeemed me from the pit, gave me new life.
I do believe that I am here on purpose and created for His good works. I don't have it all figured out. My lifework at the moment is to finish raising three young people with my husband for God's glory. It is for us to lead them in paths of righteousness. Making hard choices, doing the right thing, making mistakes and making amends, living and loving life together. Creatively speaking, we have chosen to live in lots of different places. It means adjust to lots of changes on a regular basis but having one another and the Lord as our only constant.
I believe a large part of my redemption was to provide my children with a counter-cultural lifestyle and I never would have dreamed of raising and educating children at home. My husband and I did not have a 5, 10 or 15 year plan. Let me emphasize that there is absolutely nothing wrong with that type of living, we are just not those type of people. We are living on borrowed time and doing our best to live it to the fullest.

Pax Vobiscum,
CM

Every life matters



"Let us endeavor so to live that when we come to die even the undertaker will be sorry."
Mark Twain
For quite some time I have been thinking about blogging on the second most important part of the paper, the obituaries. I really like what I found on the online Etymology dictionary: from L.[Latin] obitus "departure, a going to meet, encounter."
In the book of Ecclesiastes chapter 7 it says that the day of our death is better than the day of our birth. In some respects I agree. It is hopefully, a life well lived. Some obituaries are extremely sad not because of the amount of people left behind or the young age that some die but because there are very few words written and no survived by list. Those are the ones I find extremely sad. I take those to heart knowing that some day my obituary will be written and I will be going to my eternal home.
However, no man is an island. Each life does effect another and I believe that this the way God intended it to be. We have no idea how we do indeed influence one another but the fact remains that no matter how you live your life, it will effect the life of another. For some reason I keep thinking of the homeless, that man, woman or teen that you might see on the street or in the park they are some one's son or daughter. If the parents are still alive the absence of that person in their life carries a certain heartache.
So, I guess this leads us back to life. How am I living life? What kind of impact am I having on the people around me? When its time for me to move on, will there be something worth writing in my obit? Where will I get my perspective on this living and dying business? Who will lead me through this life and certain death? (none of us makes it out of this world alive) Why should I even bother giving the death notices the time of day?
I would like to answer that last question. The short answer is: Every life matters. Just reading about people I never met is a way to honor their memory. Then there are loved ones of those that I love who pass on and I want to be able to acknowledge their loss, come along side them in their pain and help them continue to walk on in this life. In today's Sunday Herald, Margery Eagan wrote about a soldier who was killed in combat and given the full honors of a military funeral. We need to remember those who are willing to fight and die for us even if we disagree with the war. Mourn with those who mourn.
Life has been the biggest adventure. Sure there have been seasons that I've drudged through and I am grateful for the simpler days that I have known. In some ways I romanticize them, but it is important to remember that every day is a gift. It is after all the only day that we are guaranteed. And yes: Live like today is your last because if very well may be.
Some links to get you interested in the final curtain call:
http://www.obitpage.com/obits/m/massingberd_hugh4.html
http://www.goodbyemag.com/
http://www.legacy.com/NS/

This blog dedicated to my Auntie, Mary Fitzgerald who is still alive and kickin' and use to say,
"I read the obits first and if my name isn't there, then I can read the rest of the paper."

Miles like Years
by Catherine Mullaney

Another blue sign for GAS and FOOD yet we are not hungry
and I've got a full tank
Another little boy in the ladies room with his mommy
begging to be in the men's room

Looking for traveling mercies
again I get behind the wheel
Looking for peace in the journey
the miles speed by like the years

Wild flowers grow on the median
A country church sits on one side of the highway
Golf course cut out on the other
Motor homes and semis race down the road
Signs for history museum remind us of the stories
from the past
tired from another long expedition


Looking for traveling mercies
again I get behind the wheel
Looking for peace in the journey
the miles speed by like the years

Trip meter says I only have 100 miles behind me
and so many more to go
I note "Lodging this exit" but its not time to rest

So I am looking for traveling mercies
again I get behind the wheel
Looking for peace in the journey
the miles speed by like the years
yes, the miles speed by like the years

Basically I wrote the core of these lyrics while driving home from AL/Ga. It most likely was written quite a bit in Tennessee where one genre rules. So, the words may come across like a song out of Nashville. There is nothing wrong with that. I have put close to 18,000 miles on my vehicle this calendar year, traveling with Katie and Michael, with only an occasional extra passenger or two. I know the truckers, pilgrims and other crazy mums like myself will have probably identified with my thoughts and feelings.

A Covenant

As much as Emily and Patrick's wedding was a celebration, it also had it's serious side of this is a covenant that neither one of them is taking lightly. There was talk of marriage not being easy, there were prayers and words of laying down one's life in order to live for the other. Thoughts of my own children (Katie and Michael sitting beside me) coming of age and wondering about the things they still need to learn and know before making such a commitment ran through my head. Thoughts of Dan and Grace were not far from me as I felt there absence.

Overall it was a joyous occasion and the Lord was a focal point. It was great to worship with Emily and Patrick as this is the first thing they wanted to do as husband and wife. We were led by Emily's sisters Erin and Lauren. Overall, a great shout of joy rang out as we praised the name of our God and lifted up grateful hearts.

What amazes me most is Emily's patience. Ever since I have known her, she has wanted the title of Mrs. It is a dream come true and her longing has been fulfilled, yet this is only the beginning. There will be pain as well as joy, laughter and tears, good times and trying times and above all the Love of Christ which is the glue that holds any Christian marriage together.

Sunrise, Sunset

Have you ever seen the Father of the Bride practically leap out of his shoes with so much joy? Yesterday, I did. Katie, Michael and I attended the wedding of a dear friend and we are friends of the Bride. Instead of ushering his daughter in with the traditional wedding march, Randy Smith sang acapella, "is this the little girl I carried..." the WHOLE song. I was so taken aback and wouldn't you know, I forgot the most important part of my wedding apparel - tissues ;-)

The wedding was one of great celebration of what God has designed for marriage! And hopefully most of it will remain in my heart to finish this blog.

In the mean time: Happy Honeymooning Emily and Patrick!!! More importantly welcome to the adventure of marriage.

World's End

It is right here on the south shore of Massachusetts which is not the Cape. Although, I didn't see Reepicheep's ghost. As we near the end of our time here in Hull, I have made it a point to make time to go to the beach even if it is only for 20 minutes. It is here that I feel the nearness of the Lord. Today was quite different. I was on the water for the majority of 2 hours. Michael and I went out in the kayaks in Nantasket Harbor.
The sun was shining, the winds gusting up to 30 miles an hour and neither one of us went into the drink. We conquered the wind and the water and we didn't hit any of the larger crafts that were on the water. It was great to be out there together and come home victorious. Both Michael and I enjoy solitude at the ocean but with the weather being absolutely beautiful this weekend, there really was no solitude to be found. Both of us did venture out alone yesterday but among those celebrating the unofficial start of the New England summer at the beach. Today, we went out together and I am so grateful that we did.
I will miss living so close to the ocean, it is by far one of my favorite places to be when it comes to the outdoors.
Pax,
CM

If someone was to go through stuff in your desk or somewhere else in your house, would you find things dated as far back as December 27th, 2005? This is the oldest thing that I have come across while packing up. That is pretty old for me. It is a newspaper clipping and since it is from when we lived in Naples, FL, I am going to say it is from The Naples Daily News since it simply reads "Daily News" on the top of page 6D.

As you can tell, I am still on the learning curve when it comes to traveling light. I travel lighter than most Americans but I am still not where I would like to be. My willingness to let go of things has certainly increased but staying put for so long (it will be 8 months by the time we leave here) makes the moving on more difficult. This isn't the first time we have moved and not left a state however this time it is much closer, in a much smaller state. Not only are we staying in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, but we will return to the point of departure from 5 years ago - Marlborough. We are looking with anticipation what this summer will bring. A few more family gatherings I suppose since both the Mullaney and MacDonald clans mostly reside in the greater Boston area.

There is still the dream of living somewhere out west (of the Mississippi River that is) and we will see if that will come to pass, in the mean time, there is a box or two looking to be filled. Please do keep in touch.
PAX,
CM

Going through Storage

One comes across some interesting things when you go through storage (for those of us who have things in storage).
There was some yellowed index cards with Quotes from my high school days which were also my bc days (before Christ). Here are a couple:

"People will remember you better if you always wear the same outfit."
David Byrne of The Talking Heads

"Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind."
Rudyard Kipling CATE 1984 edition

It is also moving time for the Mullaney Pilgrims. So....that being said I will be off.
Pax,
CM

I am a blessed mother.....

Now writing that from New England can be risky business. "Isn't there only one Blessed Mother?" my Roman Catholic relatives might ask. Not according to the Bible where it says, "Her children arise and call her blessed;" from Proverbs 31 verse 28 That is what my children did yesterday morning. My three young adults thinking ahead with both Dan and Grace leaving early this morning getting on two different flights out of Logan.
I woke up to a lovely breakfast in bed, balloons, streamers and 3 very precious gifts. After we started traveling Grace thought that we ought to scrapbook our adventures. I agreed but I have been terrible about creating pages. Anyway, each of the kids did a scrap book page of themselves and wrote some honoring thoughts acknowledging this Mother's Day. It brought tears to my eyes. What more could I ask for?
Grace is 18 and seems to be just back for visits these days. Katie is 16 and living life to the fullest and Michael is 15 deep voiced, growing and showing greater care and protection of his mother and 2 sisters.
If someone could have showed me even a glimpse of my life today back when I was 18 I would have laughed and said, ridiculous. Oh the blessings I had no idea that were in store for me. To say that I am truly grateful for my husband and kids is a tremendous gift from the Giver of Life.
Wishing all the mothers out there including my own a wonderful mother's day! I hope that your children arise and call you blessed.

It was my sin that held Him there.

Wise as Serpents
"Christian shrewdness must always be governed by dove-like innocence."
Dr. Tom Ascol

When I read this quote on this Sunday morning, my first thought was, "this is how we ought to go about resolving conflict especially amongst the family of God." We are indeed called to be wise and gentle. The Lord has given me wisdom in some very crucial times, but I still struggle with being gentle. I am blessed to be married to someone who has been fashioned with a very merciful spirit and he has definitely helped me in dealing with my very passionate bent toward justice.
If love is to cover a multitude of sins, then we must deal openly with the effects of those sins in order to strengthen and sure up relationships. I am coming to believe that relationships are above all the hardest things to maintain and keep in good repair and that the people involved in those relationships, especially among the family of God, are most dear to the Father in all that He has created. In the gospel of John, Jesus says, "By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." In Paul's letter to the Corinthians he states, "I show you a still more excellent way," which leads into the chapter on love. Finally, we are called to live at peace with one another.
What does "loving one another look like?" Some might say, "it is when we are being kind to each other," but I believe that there can be an appearance of kindness without any love. In First Corinthians, it says (and I paraphrase) I can have the tongue of an angel and offer my body to be burned, but if either of these things occur without love, it says "I am as good as a noise gong and it profits me nothing." These two actions, speaking well and laying down my life, amount to nil if they are not motivated by love. My conclusion on the matter is the way we treat one another needs to be motivated with a heart filled with the love of Christ.
Paul tells us that this love has several characteristics, but the one I am particularly thinking of when it comes to peacemaking is: "[love] does not rejoice in unrighteousness but rejoices in the truth." For Christians I think one of the hardest things for us to do is to sit down and have a face-to-face conversation. We need to say things like "this is my wrong doing" or "this is where you wrong me" or "there is something between us and I want to work it out in order to restore our relationship." There are too many Christians who don't want to work it out. It ends up coming out in ways that are far more hurtful then the pain experienced in facing the truth. In the end I have found the people who are willing to go through it become some really close friends or at the very least know that the air is clear. This enables us to live at peace.
My concept of "living at peace with all men" was passed on to me as a child as "peace at any cost." This was defined as 'whatever you do don't talk about it' (at least not with the person involved), leaving no restoration of relationships, having those relationships in disrepair and acting as if everything was fine which created a false sense of peace. Meanwhile inside myself was an uneasiness, unrest and anything but peace. The result being that every interaction after that is not only stained with the unresolved issue(s) from before, but also continues to damage the relationship and all the other relationships that overlap that one. It also is very costly because more people get hurt as a result.

So with an aching heart I pray for wisdom, gentleness and a willingness to do my part in being a minister of reconciliation, not wanting to put a band-aid where the Physician’s hand is needed.

Pax Vobiscum, CM

The breaking of the clouds

A ray of sunshine shoots through my window,
as I look to see it break through the willow,
the beauty of this soft light,
only shows the power of his might!

Clouds begin to form,
and strike a bitter storm,
hiding his great glow,
oh how the clouds billow!

The clouds linger as I stand and look on,
Oh how I wish that they would be gone!
Then comes the rain, and thunder,
the darkness comes to plunder.

The hail strikes me with great bite,
sometimes it becomes so hard to fight,
and just when I think of falling,
his light returns with lovely calling.

-Michael Mullaney

Mullaney Pilgrims

never far from the road

(windmill photo by Katie Mullaney)


Write an email or write a blog? This is the question that I am asking myself after a phone call with my friend Becky in Georgia, who said keep us updated with what is going on. Some of you may or may not know that our daughter, Grace is in Holland right now and will be back in the States next month, Katie has become a great speech writer and Michael's comedic timing is near perfect (I don't want to say perfect because then there would be no room for improvement, there is always room for improvement).

If I just answer the question, "What is going on?" A possible answer is "I am going, and going, and going even though our address here in MA has been the same for nearly 6 months I have spend time in NH, FL, IN, KY, VA Beach, Houston, TX and next week we head to PA."

Living in an old seaside village just south of Boston is a great place for someone like me. Far enough out to enjoy solitude but only a drive away from Boston and the greater metropolitan community. Hull is also the former home of Paragon Park

and the place where I had my first roller coaster ride on the Comet or The Giant Coaster as it was known as back in the day. Since, taking this little detour down memory lane, I went on the web to learn a little bit more about the old ride and I came to find out that the coaster is still in operation at Six Flags in the DC area and is renamed The Wild One. Here I thought it was dead and gone. It makes me want to go to that Six Flags just to ride it with Michael who has never ridden a coaster.

The park closed in 1985 and there are now condos where the park use to be. There are still a few remnants of the old park down on Nantasket Ave.

The plan is to stay here until May 31st, another long stint. (Gainesville, FL having been our longest stay one day short of a year. This Monday will mark the beginning of our 6th year of traveling or will it?) To say that this is a time of evaluation, contemplation and speculation would be pretty accurate. Do we stay or do we go? Do we go somewhere and plant ourselves for a while? A cross roads and we eagerly await the road we will take next, or where the road will take us is probably a little more accurate.

Dan has been working a lot of hours which provides for all of our travel and then some. He is still passionate about his work, celebrating 10 years of nursing on Michael's 15th birthday and being named RN Network's Traveler of the year for 2007.

Since Katie, Michael and I have been on the road so much we have not had a chance to visit with a good number of people that we want to see while we are hear in our earthly homeland. Plans are being made to meet up with some of you and if you are reading this and we haven't been in touch and you want a chance to meet please email me.

The fun part is we have made new friends right here through the national speech and debate league that has taken us to a number of the places I have mentioned. I will end with a shout out to my new friend Sue who is celebrating her birthday today! Happy Birthday Sue!

For those who are followers of Jesus Christ, we remember the broken body and poured out blood of our Lord and Saviour this day.

Non-Readers read no further

Has your Christianity included a steady diet of Max Lucado, John Elledge & Gene Edwards, perhaps Ed Young & Joel Osteen, or G.K. Chesterton & C.S. Lewis maybe John Calvin, Martin Luther & Wycliffe? Now that I have probably offended everyone, please hear me out at least continue to read.

As a family we have been reading Table Talk for the last year and 1/2 or so. It is a monthly publication put out by Ligonier Ministries. The April 2008 issue's theme is the 3 forms of Unity. One of the articles is about the Heidelberg Catechism which I have never heard of before picking up this magazine, as I finished reading the article, it dawned on me - the Lord has given me a rich diet from a variety of saints who have gone on before me. This is why I posed the opening question. If we stay in one spot and let's say it is marked "Baptist & its' sympathizers" (my apologies to all my baptist friends) and only drink and eat the literature approved by them then we reject a whole bunch of wisdom that comes from other brothers & sisters in the faith.

Ecumenicalism is not what I am advocating but what I am saying is let us continue to be seekers of the truth. When the Bible says "seek and you will find, knock and the door will be open' it is not addressing the unbelievers - Jesus was speaking to His followers - when the Word says "seek, find & know" it is not for the unbeliever. Some may disagree but let's look at just three of those passages in context.
Matthew 5 verses 1 & 2
"1Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2and he began to teach them saying: "
The Lord began to teach these followers for the next 3 chapters including
Matthew 7; 7-12
"7"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

9"Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! 12So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets."

John 8; 31 & 32

31"To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. 32Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

If you continue searching the Scripture for these 3 verbs, look at them in context and ask the question, "who is being addressed in this passage?" You may be surprised.

It was one of those shining bright moments of gratitude that I have not been limited to just a certain flavor of Christianity. Please know that I realize that we are called to be discerning (and some who I have listed you or I may have an issue with) and to not just accept every book, author or preacher who holds up the bible and says, I am in the way of Christ. The scripture is my measuring stick and if you are a believer then I hope it is yours too.

Grateful for a God bigger than all my aha moments! CM

"I fall, I fail and I cry out for mercy"

A week ago today we attended church with dear friends of our in central MA. There were two families who dedicated children to the Lord. One man who dedicated his second child to the Lord used the following scripture as a prayer request to the seated congregation. From Deuteronomy 6 verses 4 through 9.

"Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one!

"You shall love the LORD your God with

all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.

"These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart.

"You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up.

"You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead.

"You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

I couldn't help but think to myself, is he listening to the words he is saying? does he mean it? Is he willing to do what it takes to "teach" his children "diligently"? If I hadn't been so tired, I would have like to have gone right up to him and his wife after the service and ask him if he meant it. So many things get in the way of us accomplishing this goal.

As I have referred to in previous posts, we are in the home stretch, the heart break hill of parenting. We know that our time with our children now 15,16 & 18 is quickly nearing the finish line. Not that we will no longer be their parents but our role as their parents is changing drastically at this time. Every day I am more convinced that the shortest season of life is childhood. Some say that educating children at home is a calling and this passage above may indicate that it is a little more like a command. If you give away the most precious hours of the day to another whether they be private or public educators, I have a hard time seeing how you can execute Deuteronomy 6. Perhaps the messages of the modern day American church coupled with the messages of the culture seem to be right since that is what most Americans Christians are doing. The Lord however has given us minds, to think, to reason and to question the church and the culture. To see if what these two influences have to say match up with what the Lord has to say. It is difficult to stop and to seek the LORD, search the Word and have HIM search our hearts.

As a Christian, the first authority in my life is Jesus Christ and His Word and believe me I fall, I fail and I cry out for mercy because I can't live up to HIS standards, but GOD is bigger than my faltering ways and HIS GRACE is sufficient to meet all our needs. I have seen the LORD work in my children and I know that it has nothing to do with me and everything to do with God's purpose. The reason we continue to educate our children at home is primarily out of obedience to God and I can say without regret that this small act of obedience has produce the greatest joy in parenting. This time with our children has allowed us to cultivate relationships with our children that we could have never imagined. Hopefully, we have helped prepared them for life to be affective agents for God's Kingdom.

So my prayer for this couple who are longtime married and very new parents to two little ones is that they would take this scripture to heart, that they would be a living sacrifice in their parenting, indeed that they would walk and talk and impart the ways of the Lord to their children. I sit here convicted by my own words. With the little time left, I pray that my husband and I would take the time to give of ourselves to our children while they still live with us.

PAX VOBISCUM,

CM

"The Most important part of the paper is the funnies."

That is what I tell my kids anyway. It has been my desire to blog everyday and to have oddles of readers, but alas 2 years of desire have not produced the desired results. Commitment. I need to make a commitment to myself. Before we go any further I must share another.

Lio is one of the more twisted comics found in the Boston Herald. The one above is kind of tame. I don't always like it but sometimes it makes me laugh out loud.

I also like the ones that magnify the stupidity of the general population, like in The Duplex. My other favorites are "Close to Home" and "Bounded & Gagged."

The world is going crazy well at least the USA, just pick up the paper and check out the Presidential race. If we don't maintain our sense of humor and keep our priorities straight we may end up going insane ourselves.

Lastly, these are the kind that make me smile and remind me about the important things.

There are so many ideas I want to write about and now I need to go and decide if this is truly something I need to commit to at this stage of the game. Funnies may be the most important part of the paper, puzzles and the obituary run a close second and third.

TEAM 10 Initiation
As many of my readers know our family has been involved in NCFCA (ncfca.org) a competitive speech and debate league for students educated at home since 2004. The first 3 seasons we spent competing in the Southeast (Region 8) and resided in Florida. This past fall we moved to MA (a place we are somewhat familiar with ;-) and we are now competing in Region 10 with a great gang some natives, like ourselves and some wonderful transplants. Last week we experienced our first tournament in the Northeast and it was an experience.
Before moving here there was a strong desire to return to Region 8 but as our kids know we stay open to what the Lord would have us do that included where we will live in any given season. So Katie and Michael have gone with the flow as their sister Grace has gone over the big pond.(that is a whole other blog) We have all made new friends and renewed some old ones.

Now it is not hard to imagine being on an adventure in the home land and it is a fantastic way to be baptized into the pool from which you were originally born. Day 2 of the S.U.N. Tournament it snowed all day and we lost very few community judges and I didn't hear of any competitors or parents being involved in fendah-bendahs. To say I was excited to be at my first tournament in the snow would probably be an understatement. There is a whole different flavor to this Region and we are grateful to be welcomed in with open arms. THANKS TEAM 10!
Working hard is good for the parents as well as the competitors. Those who work hard together also know how to have fun and "initiate in the new kids on the block." The Mullaneys are feelin' the Love.
Pax Vobiscum,
CM

First one sometime in the mid-80's
In one of the Boston papers there is a puzzle that I like to do, "Cryptoquote." (sometimes called Crypograms in other papers) It is a quote that uses different letters to represent the real letters and you have to solve what each letter is for in order to solve the puzzle and read the quote. Since Dan and I are now in the second half of life, I enjoy poking fun at my age on occasion. Yesterday puzzle:

Some of the other papers in the country also have it but most of them give hints. Hints on this kind of puzzle rob a puzzler of the challenge. I would do the puzzle without using the hint. Thankfully, Boston knows what true puzzlers want and that is TO FIGURE IT OUT; ON THEIR OWN.
The quotes range from down right ridiculous to thought provoking. If nothing else it help keep some of the wheels greased in my brain. It is also fun to solve, especially when life throws things at you that are outside of your control and you can't solve the problem.
There are so many of the quotes that have passed me by, that I haven't shared with anyone. But this post is not so much about the quotes as much as it is a little thing about me that you might not have know.
Have a great day.
Pax,
CM

Two days into the New Year

Life takes us through seasons and to say that we are in one that definitely feels like going into the deep heart of winter, not like those who fall asleep more like those who know that the hope of spring will surely come to pass.  Girls becoming women and a boy becoming a man, at the same time their parents saying what is next for us:  wanting to finish the marathon of parenthood and continuing to struggle through heartbreak hill and wanting to also dream about the next stage.  

Community:  this little tight-knit one called our family is going through changes and it can get a bit uncomfortable at times.  The Lord will preserve us and His grace will see us through it all.  People come in and out of our lives and we are blessed to be here and welcome the fellowship on the Spirit with the brothers and sisters that are put in our path.  

As you change your calendars do not be afraid of the changes that come with journeying on in this life.  Embrace these times because it is in this season that we live.

Thank you God.  

Pax, 

CM

Did you get it for Christmas?

Even us adults are asked, "what did you get for Christmas?"
I am going to be much more specific:
Did you get peace that passes human understanding?
Did you give and receive Love?
Did you make someone else's day?
Did you extend forgiveness and grace?
Were you patient with a little one who just wanted more?
While in line at the mall did you extend kindness? Did you allow the goodness of Jesus Christ shine through as you sat through 3 green lights?
Above all:
Did you experience, did you get JOY that's unspeakable?
If not, go to the One who gives it, the God of the Universe, the One who came as a babe humbly the same way we came into the world, except He came to redeem the world, confess your need for forgiveness and walk in newness of faith.

Merry Christmas: Go out with Rejoicing, Dancing and Singing!!!

PotPoG IV
More from Brother Lawrence
"We must behave very simply with God, and speak frankly to Him, asking Him for help in things as they happen. It had often been his experience that God does not fail to give His help."

This in a way describes my prayer life. As things approach and as they are happening, I am praying and asking for God's guidance. I don't tend to be one of those pray'ers who have a big list of things around the world that I am praying about and it is only recently that I have peace about it. Strange the lies we tell ourselves: "because I am not praying for the soldiers in Iraq, and the people of Durfur, I thought I was a second class Christian." Then the TRUTH swept in to dispel the lie. God has all
different kinds of children and therefore, we will pray in different kinds of ways. So, when I do ask for help, I get what I need and that makes all the difference. When I spin my wheels and try to do things in my own strength, I will get things done and even do a good job, but often it is not the best or on occasion not the right job. On this journey called life I continue to learn.

Case in point, this past week I was offered a platform which I took but failed to deliver the message that I believed God wanted me to give. It was at a meeting where I was the speaker, the topic was the 2nd step of Alcoholics Anonymous part 2 "Came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity." I did pray prior to the meeting, prior to speaking but I stumbled. I am still learning and I believe that this failure was for my benefit.

I shared how I no longer ask God to keep me away from a drink and a drug because it is a gift that God has given me and He wants me to simply be grateful every day for the gift. I left it at that and really didn't tie it into the chapter we read or the other comments that I made. In the chapter, it says, "elimination of our drinking is but a beginning" then further it says,"the main problem of the alcoholic centers in his mind." This is where the restoration of sanity needs to take place in the mind. If my main prayer concern is simply the physical sobriety then I will not get down to causes and conditions which are centered in my mind. I had to go on in my relationship with God and turn my whole will and life over to the care of God (not just physical sobriety: which is included), ask to do His will and not my own. Still isn't this the wrestling match we stay in while living life in the flesh. I believe we have times of rest because we surrender utterly to God and we know His peace but we are a living sacrifice which means we have the ability to crawl off the table and go do our own thing. We must go on and grow spiritually.

The message I believe that I was to give is WHO I came to believe in and that would be Jesus Christ, not the one of the imperfect church but the one of the Bible, the Son of God who came to seek and save those who were lost. I didn't go looking for Him, He came found me and changed the course of my life for all eternity. This is the Carpenter who is in the business of restoring mankind. We are his workmanship and consequently we cannot take any of the credit.

So, these two cross section of my life are interwoven and I was afraid of what other people would think of me or what they might say in response to my sharing and I had to ask God to remove my fear just to share it here with you, my readers. This is real life and at times it seems very complicated. Living is simple if we let go of all the junk, ask God to restore (or renew) our minds, and let Him live through us.

May peace, mercy, joy and a sound mind be multiplied to each of you.

JUST FOR FUN
My fellow blogger had this on her blog so I decided to do it just for the fun of it.

You Are Comet

A total daredevil, you're the reindeer with an edge! Why You're Naughty: You almost gave Santa a heart attack when you took him sky diving Why You're Nice: You always make sure the sleigh is going warp speed

Which of Santa's Reindeer Are You?

MERRY CHRISTMAS

My friend Carol Gray
Tomorrow is Carol's birthday and it is about time that I wrote about her on my blog.

We all have people in our lives that are mainstays no matter how radically our lives may change there are people who will be there no matter what. Carol Gray is one of those people in my life. Our cherish friendship has continued to grow even though we have been miles apart.
When we started traveling almost 5 years ago, it was Carol who threw us an intimate going away party. On our first return to New England, she called me as we were leaving Pennsylvania on our move from Knoxville, TN in the late summer of 2005 and said, what are you doing on Sunday? I said, "coming to your house?" and she said, "Do you think you can make it? Stephen is going to be baptized." And you can bet that is where we found ourselves. The only plans we had at the time were driving and making our way to Vermont.
As we found ourselves on a second return to New England this fall, I made plans with Carol to stay with her upon our arrival in the Bay State. Their family lives in our old hometown and we had plan to stay one night. We ended up staying for four nights as my van broke down while trying to leave, my old mechanic fixed the van and we were on our way, after being taken care of by my dear friend.
Carol is a faithful friend and sister in Christ. One of the sweetest, warm hearted human beings I know. The embodiment of a loving handmaiden of her Lord. Carol is the beloved of her husband, Steve and the devoted mother of 5 beautiful children. She is unwaivering in her dedication to her own family as well as the body of Christ. I am very grateful for Carol being in my life.
Happy Birthday Carol!!!

The Heartbreak Hill of Parenting

For those of you familiar with the Boston Marathon, you know about Heartbreak Hill in Newton, it is the last of four gruelling hills in a row and only 5 and 1/2 miles to the finish line. Raising three older teens is the Heartbreak Hill of Parenting. Even with kids who bring joy and don't cause us too much heartache (I don't care how well your kids are doing, you will go through something with your kids), it is the time of letting go and helping them to grow into adulthood, not perpetuate their adolescence. It is the time to press on, and press into the heart of Our Father who each of them will need to trust more and more. Grace said to me the other day, before this season of her life, "I could just trust you and dad and you had to trust God. Now, I have to trust God myself." Not an exact quote but that was the gist of what she was saying.

I am still very involved in my children's lives but this will decrease as it is meant to be. My role is always changing as my children (who really can no longer be called children) grow, mature and change. It is a wonderful thing as well as difficult. We want to continue to send our children out with blessings from Dan and me. Again, we are driven to our knees for wisdom. As the saying goes, it is hard to stumble while you are already on your knees. The road of childhood is very short and it has been completed by our oldest and the 2 younger are not far behind.

The beauty, grace and surprise of this journey is that I have been present for each stage of development and we have enjoyed laughter, tears, pain, joy and togetherness. I sat next to a mom with her infant (child #8) on the plane coming home from Florida with Grace last week. She was nursing her little one and I remember nursing Grace and humbled by the fact that God would give me the honor of being a mother. Linda Shepard, a mother I once knew gave me one of the greatest words of wisdom pertaining to motherhood when I was pregnant with Grace,

"Pregnancy is the ultimate in motherhood from birth on, it is a process of letting go."

For the second time in the last 4 plus years we have returned to New England to live, this is the motherland and we are living on the South Shore of Massachusetts in the city of Hull very close to Nantasket Beach. There are a number of people who walk or run the beach each morning and I am one of them. I have made a feeble attempt to write about one of the freedoms of New England living. If you have any questions, I hope you leave it in the comment box and I will attempt to answer them.

Sincerely Yours

Walking down the beach at the break of day
Not the soft sands of Florida but the rugged terrain of New England
The air is brisk, the sky is clear and the ocean is tuned
To the rhythm of my foot steps
I am not alone but . . .

I don’t have to say good morning
No one will think I'm rude
You don’t have to say good morning
we respect your solitude

To me this is home in the human sense of the word
It’s not that we are an unfriendly people
We just like to keep to ourselves
It’s your people and my people
A pleasant smile can say hello just as well as Good Morning but . . .

You don’t have to say good morning
No one will think you’re rude
You don’t have to say good morning
we respect your solitude

Another way to have freedom and solitude but an acknowledgment
Is through a nod or a simple twinkling of the eye
Say Good Morning if you want to but remember . . .

You don’t have to say good morning
No one will think you’re rude
You don’t have to say good morning
we respect your solitude

I have spent some time in the south
I love some folks down there but there
are pressures of civility that made me question their sincerity
Here in the Bay state, you will encounter the grumpy, cheerful, depressed and some clicking there heels for joy
Be careful if you ask someone how they are because you will probably get the truth

Catherine Mullaney ©

PotPoG III

"The goal of all his[brother Lawrence] actions was to do them for the love of God."

"Outside of feelings of surprise a person should not allow himself to be carried away with his feelings because God should remain the Master and center of our attention."

When I was a new Christian, I came across a little illustration of a train the engine being FACTS, middle car being FAITH and the caboose being FEELINGS. The point being that the train will run with or without the caboose. This may come across as simplistic, however I think that the above quote by Brother Lawrence can be taken as a warning. Since prior to my conversion I was led around by my feelings this was a good word of advice.
If God is to remain Master, it is important for me to know my place and the roles he has assigned. First and foremost, I am a child of the living God, daughter of the King and handmaiden of my Lord. Each morning I do my best to laid down my will and ask for His Will to be done. To surrender all that I do to God and ask Him to direct me in my everyday activities as wife, mother and friend is essential to bringing glory to God in this season of my life.
If God is to be the center of my attention, then I need to know the facts about who God is not just in my head but in my heart and I am responsible for exercising the faith that I have been given. The Truth needs to permeate my whole thinking and how I view the world, man and God. It also needs to be written in my heart. My faith needs to be authentic and reflected in my actions and decisions.

Practice of the presence of God
by Brother Lawrence
2nd installment

"What we need is to make our faith come alive."

"The goal of all his (Brother Lawrence's) actions was to do them for the love of God."

"We must give ourselves entirely and in complete abandonment to God, both in temporal and in spiritual matters. We must find our contentment in the execution of His will, whether He leads us by sufferings or by consolations, so that everything should seem the same to a person who has truly abandoned himself. We must remain faithful in the dry periods by which God proves our love for Him. In this way we make fruitful acts of surrender and abandonment. A single act of this kind enables us to make much progress along the pathway."

"Find our contentment in the execution of His will" not in getting what I want or what I believe I need or deserve (how unamerican of me) but in this carrying out process of doing what it is the Father would have me do. This reminds me of John Piper and his passion, that "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him." The longer I walk this road called life, the more I see that I am nothing without Jesus Christ. I want to cry out and be in the place of Thy Will, not mine be done. Strangely enough, I find myself there more often than not especially in these days living as a very mobile American in a very non tradition way. In the material sense you could say that my life is unstable but in the spiritual sense the foundation stones are becoming more settled and secured than ever before in my life.

The practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence

I have probably owned a copy of this little book for years and I am finally getting around to reading it. There are many good books and this one is already a treat. For right now I hope to share some lines or passages that grab my attention. I may or may not comment on them. I hope if you read this and you have any insights that you would share those with the rest of us in the comment box.

"Thou knowest well that it is not Thy gifts that I look for and desire, but it is Thyself and I can be content with nothing less."

"This sums up our entire call and duty: to adore GOD and to love Him, without worrying about the rest."

"...we must establish outselves in the presence of God by continually conversing with Him. It is a shameful thing to break off our conversation with Him in order to engage in trifling or foolish talk."
I think this last line sums up the purpose of this little book. I do want to be aware as much as humanly possible the presence of the Lord. I know that in this life, it is next to impossible but it is something to shot for because in the next life we will be with Him for all eternity.

Pax,
CM

Update

I have updated my profile. It occurred to me when a new friend said she had read through several of my posts that she still couldn't figure out what it was that we did. So, hopefully my update will help with that. I will add that I am a daughter of the Most High God, lover of life, know about joy because I have experienced pain, make time for a walk most mornings and currently it is by the sea.

The following post is from an older blog of mine, which I am thinking about returning and doing some of that type of reflective writing.

Thinking Out Loud

September 1, 2004

Currently, I am traveling with my family and I do have a travel type blog (catriona.blogspot.com) but I wanted to track my internal journey as well. Not only is this thinking out loud but sharing my heart. A dangerous thing to do here in cyberspace or anywhere for that matter, but I believe that to really live we are to live dangerously. I am doing my best to live by faith and not by sight, to think for myself, not believe every sound bite I hear, to pause, reason, discern and act in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ (not the gospel of American Churchianity).

I meet with The Carpenter each morning. My husband and I educate our children at home and now on the road. We worship with fellow pilgrims and settlers who love Jesus and live for Him. We do our best to serve those that God puts in our path.

It is my goal to write from the heart and reason from a thought-filled perspective.

The link is www.bereal.blogdrive.com and I found that I have written some interesting things there.

The Grace of God
So often I hear my fellow believers talk about grace and how they appreciate "this message about grace" or "that pastor is all about grace." Believe me I am grateful for God's grace because my life without it would not amount to much. However, the discussion never really turns to the reason why we are in need of the grace of God.
The easy answer is "we are not perfect" The harsh answer is "we are doomed, sinners, wrong doers." In our sin we will not choose to reach out for salvation through Jesus Christ. DIOT Dead In Our Transgressions. God's grace is the necessary ingredient to bring us into new life and set us on the pilgrim path. I am hearing a renewed cry for repentance from the generation who are coming of age.
I have hope because the young people that I know are not interested in wishy washy Christianity. They are however interested in the Christianity that tipped the whole world on its head 2000 years ago, put the religious leaders of the time on the defensive and the God/Man that conquered sin and death. Jesus is real, loving and just, who is not only the chief cornerstone but also the Master Builder.
I guess this blog is all my readers listening in on me preaching to myself and one of the inspirations came from an interview I watched. Check it out

Life is an adventure
There are two books that really make an incredible illustration of the Christian life. One is Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan and the other is Hinds' Feet on High Places by Hannah Hurnard, the latter one I am almost finished. Hear is a quote from a recent reading:
"Always go forward along the path of obedience as far as you know it until I intervene, even if it seem to be leading you where you fear I could never mean you to go."
Shepherd to Much Afraid

This is Worlds End very close to where we will be living.
I will do my best to blog sometime after we arrive in Massachusetts. Pax Vobiscum, CM

Cigarettes to Cellphones


Driving around Charlottesville you see so many people out walking and talking on their cell phones. Just yesterday 3 girls about to cross the street each on their phones. Not too long ago all three may have been smoking cigarettes and talking to each other while waiting to cross he street.

Just observing. CM

Constitution Day (September 17th)
220 year ago in the year of our Lord 1787 the Constitution of the United States of America was signed by the architecture of this living and breathing document.

Clear skies, the air with a hint of autumn in it, on the grounds of Montpelier, the home of James Madison, also known as the Father of the Constitution, and front row seats to commemorate this historic occasion.
The atmosphere was almost dead and there was a lack of patriotism within the very small crowd, yet we all, in some way, came to remember. Our nation though very young is still the country who has lived under the same Constitution longer than any other civilized nation in the world.
A very stoic fife and drum corp ushered in the event with Yankee Doodle Dandy and the festivities were underway with James Madison himself addressing the crowd. He spoke with grace and eloquence. As I sat listening, I thought are people really grasping what he is trying to convey? I hope so, I pray that Katie and Michael were taking it to heart.
This is a living and breathing document.
My friend Leslie from Miami alerted me to Michael Farris' using the internet, in the same way the town crier called us to the gathering place at the Temple on the grounds of Montpelier, that now is the time for a constitutional amendment for parental rights (www.parentalrights.org). I urge all those who wish for their children and grandchildren to be able to raise their families the way they see fit to join this cause. And for all Americans who may be reading this blog that they would pick up a copy of the Constitution and get to know that this parchment is not just a piece of paper on display at the National Archives but the law of the land.
As a family we have exercised our liberty freely by living like pilgrims (we have of course but described otherwise but this is the name that suits us) and hopefully we have inspired others to exercise their freedoms as well.
If you didn't have a chance to stop and reflect on Constitution Day and perhaps read it, then I strongly encourage you to take the time now and do it.
Pax,
CM