Saturday, January 15, 2011

Cooking and Cleaning

Posole

My running group is on a one week break between the winter and "spring" sessions, so I didn't have to travel across town for an early morning run this morning.  I slept until nearly 7 a.m.!  That is so out of character for me, I am normally up between 4 and 5 a.m. whether I need to or not.  

I have been cooking (posole, yumm, yummm) and cleaning, I went grocery shopping, and will soon plant myself on the sofa to watch football.  I really do like Saturdays.  But I like Sundays better.  

I remember when I was a young mother, talking with another young mother in the neighborhood, she mentioned the "sabbath."  That was a concept so foreign to me at the time that I still remember it all these years later (probably 30 years).   

When I returned to the church in my early 40s, I kind of tip-toed in.  I went to mass every Sunday, but didn't do much else that was required.  It took me 3 years to muster the courage to go to confession!  Then that became a habit as well as Sunday mass.  There was still a large category of my behavior that I didn't acknowledge as sinful, and therefore did not feel the need to confess or change - oh my stomach turns when I think of this now!!  One small example of that was behaving as though Sunday were just another day.  I knew better - I knew the Ten Commandments!  But I thought that was just another antiquated idea, like the rest of the commandments which I found inconvenient.  

It is so embarrassing to admit how long it has taken me to realize that if I call myself Catholic, that means the whole thing.  I can't decide to ignore what I don't want to face.  I remember another conversation maybe 18 years ago, with a formerly Catholic man.  He called me a "Cafeteria Catholic," to which I responded that it was better than not being a Catholic at all.  

Now I wonder.  

But I am so grateful that I wasn't struck dead while I was pulling all those shenanigans.  I am grateful that I have been given the time to come into the fold.  I wish it hadn't taken so long.  But glad I am here now.

Thanks be to God.  

4 comments:

  1. OK, please tell me what posole is. I'm sure it's delicious, so please share the recipe!
    We certainly are lucky. Someone was looking out for us.

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  2. I have to say that if one was a cafeteria Catholic, as the gentleman suggested, then it would be better than jumping ship entirely. At least that person has given the Holy Spirit the opportunity to avail himself of his/her services. I think that being Catholic also means being used...Used by the Father, Son AND Holy Spirit. The loss comes when the cafeteria Catholic is unresponsive and never know the Joy! God bless you and, indeed, Thank Be To God! Cathy

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  3. I agree with Grandma. A cafeteria catholic is better than not being catholic at all. I say that as a former cafeteria catholic. That's part of what purgatory is for.

    I have never heard of posole, but it does sound and look yummy.

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  4. Hey everyone, Mary C is a perfectionist so she's always extra hard on herself.
    Mindyou, getting up at 7.00am is sliding down the recalcitrant's slippery slope isn't it? Ha-ha-ha-ha!

    I like using that word 'recalcitrant' so expect to see it over the next few days/weeks/until I get bored with it. I might even check I've spelt it correctly?

    I am not sure what i allow the Holy Spirit to expose to me, about me. I mean, we can't hide anything from God but we can hide stuff from ourselves, me especially, i don't want to lose all my 'comfort' blankets at once, such as sugar and self indulgent time keeping to name but two.

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