Here's a beautiful prayer I found today:

O Lady of Mental Peace,
Mother of tranquility and
Mother of hope, Look upon me
in this time of my weakness and unrest.

Teach my searching heart to
know that God's love for me
is unchanging and unchangeable; and that
true human love can only being and grow
by touching His love.

Let your gentle peace- which this world
cannot give- be always with me. And,
help me to bring this same peace into
the lives of others.
Our Lady of mental peace, pray for me!
Amen

His Sacred Life...

This is a beautiful picture of Christ... the whole story of his life is contained in it. The sacrifice he made for us, the life he gives us, the love that he shares with us... we are so blessed as Catholics to have the fullness of the Truth in the Blessed Sacrament. It seems that the Holy Spirit is moving me to use this blog as a place to glorify and proclaim the beauty of the Eucharistic Presence of Our Lord in our midst... It is full joy to do that. I could write all day long about the glorious graces that pour out from the monstrance. If you have not ever gone to the Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament... I would urge you to do so. You will be touched and transformed from the inside out!!

The New Year is Here...

And it is my sincere hope that it will be a better year than last. The stress of the first holiday without my father was almost unbearable. I found myself coping with deep grief that came upon me swiftly and suddenly. It was horrendous. Nobody can prepare you for the loss of a loved one and how it impacts you mentally, physically and spiritually. The new year comes like a big deep breath and I am trying to keep positive and anchored in hope.

As someone who suffers from depression, it is not always easy. I grow impatient with myself. I bemoan my lack of energy and enthusiasm... as I am genetically predisposed to depression, my inner spirit is nevertheless, one of optimism and unbounded resiliency. If it weren't so, I wouldn't be here now... Most of the time, I am a deeply engaged person who enjoys life to the fullest--- except when my brain chemicals crash the party.

Thank God for faith, thank God for all those saints and sinners who have gone before me who have carried the same cross. I have learned so much from them and I am grateful. And thank God for medication and skilled therapists who listen from the heart. I believe that God gives us many helps in carrying our crosses and that it is our responsibility to take full advantage of them. Therefore, I have greatly benefitted from all of the above but nothing more than the help of the Sacraments of the Holy Catholic Church.

Just this morning I visited a local Dominican monestary where I had the beautiful priveldge of adoring our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. What a joy! What complete rest I receive in his presence. There is no greater way to renew one's spiritual strength and hope. His presence washes over you as you kneel before him. It is all I can do to hold myself back from throwing myself on my face before him in complete surrender. With Jesus I feel safe and complete.