Novenas, prayer.

So a while back I posted this about how I pray. and how I think that everyone can find comfort and direction in prayer, even if they don't believe in a higher power.

Today I started a Novena.* It's basically just a prayer to do every day for 9 days until an important event. This Novena I'm praying is to help prepare for NCYC, National Catholic Youth Conference that is happening in my city this year. I attended and LOVED every minute (that's a lie, but most of it!) of NCYC 2003 (HOUSTON) and 2005 (ATLANTA). And am now going, not as a high schooler, but as a volunteer.

This was my favorite part of the NCYC Novena:

Give me good health in body, soul and spirit. Help me to rise above my human weaknesses, and to continually grow stronger in my faith and belief in you. Help me to conquer anger with gentleness, greed by generosity, and apathy by fervor and caring. Help me to forget myself and reach out toward others. Make me prudent in planning, courageous in taking risks... Let my conscience be clear, ... my life well ordered, and my love for you unending and unwavering...

Love prayer and Novenas,
J

also. words of affirmation are important to me. I am trying to find where I blogged about NCYC and found a comment from a friend (angela!) when I had just gotten back from Atlanta:
part of it was:
"i like you a lot , i just realized i can't ever think of a time you have been a bad friend"

*Novena: The custom of praying for nine (9) consecutive days prior to the celebration of a major solemnity or feast is suggested by the nine days the apostles spent in Jerusalem, at the Lord's command, as they waited the coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost.
The devotional novena first appeared during the Middle Ages in France and Spain as a preparatory period prior to the celebration of Christmas, the number nine (9) representing the nine months that Jesus spent in Mary's womb. As the custom developed, it became a popular devotion, not only during the Christmas season, but for other feasts and special celebrations and events. During the nineteenth century, the practice of praying novenas was strongly endorsed by the Catholic Church.
The tradition has continued into present time. Currently, it is an acceptable practice to pray, or celebrate, a novena for any number of occasions, including praying for special intentions and requests in conjunction with a particular solemnity, feast, or event.
Novenas may be celebrated in either public or private.

church.

I was baptised but not a practicing Catholic until 4th grade. my grandma cleo died and I didn't understand heaven etc. I asked my mom if we could start going to church. So me, my mom, and april became members of Good Shepherd Catholic church.

I am now at college and attending a new church which is literally a 45 second walk from my house, which makes it easy to wake up 10 minutes before and get ready quickly!

And today I figured out another reason I love going to church.

In the monotonous repeating of words I've said since 4th grade, I can plan in my head. but it's not the type of to do list making I do frantically during class. It's the type that is just thinking about what I can do and how I can think differently about how I am living my life.

It's just relaxing.

It's similar to the reason I love prayer (esp the TALK way) You take time to actually realize how thankful you are for all you have and take time to ask God to help you to make the things that aren't going so well possible. And maybe there isn't a higher power up there listening, but it's amazing how clear my thoughts are. It's fun to see what comes to mind when I want to pray. What I am thankful for. What petitions I have. Most of them are things I don't take time to think about in my day to day routine.

I'm going to try to eat healthier this week (already started, delicious omelet and fruit for breakfast along with a dose of knowledge that is my first issue of the KC star that came to my door this morning! yeeess!)

I'm going to figure out a better study schedule.

I'm going to spend more time being productive while spending time with friends, mainly the boy. I'll have a list of things ready to study for when he needs to get stuff done as well.

I'm going to make more of an effort to be friends with my roomies.

I'm going to make more of an effort to be friends with more people and hang out and have fun.

I'm going to fully appreciate the time I have with the people I like a lot. because sometimes they are gone for a weekend and I feel silly because I don't know what to do with myself without them around.

Also. Rock Chalk Jayhawk. we clobbered Northern colorado!

Love, prayer and Jayhawks,
J

also.This explains a lot about why I blog. "I write to express myself. I write to record the things I do and see and experience. And especially lately, I write because I am dealing with a lot of things, and this blog is one of the only things that feels familiar. I don't write to be the best at it."- Kristina Horner
also. i just read an entry of kristina's and an entry of hayley's and realized how much I miss reading what they have to say!

Required Reading

My sister writes (well, used to write) for a compilation blog that her friend Sam started, This Ordinary Day.
Sam vehemently protests that she did not start a blog, as she sees that as a negative thing. (btw I love that google spells better than me. vehemently.)
TOD is a compilation of people from all over who know one another somehow who write about ordinary successes and optimistic things. Many or all of them are journalism or english majors or teachers.

This is my sister on TOD. I think she's a pretty amazing designer and writer when she puts her mind to it. And so do most people she meets. She's kinda a genius.
And this is Susan, Cough. (said with a long oh, like coke w/o the ke) She is one of the best people I know for so many reasons. She has affected so many people I know, including me. and her writing, though uncommon, is beautiful, poignant, and touching. Her writing is rare because she spends her time helping young people write and helping them put together beautiful publications and put together their own lives. She was my high school journalism teacher.

If I had to assign required reading. I would require you to read some of Susan's TOD's. I would require anyone who knows my sister or anyone who has ever been mean to someone about something they love, especially when they are trying to do a good thing.. to read her Jayplay article about Trego. I would require the reading of John Green's novels, especially Looking for Alaska and Paper Towns. I would require Harry Potter, well because I love it. And I would require "Don't sweat the small stuff for teens" especially the chapter on 90-10.

And I wouldn't require my blog. I appreciate so much when people actually read this - even if I'm a bit perturbed at first when I didn't know you'd been reading. But reading this is like a gift to me, a chance to try to understand me a little better. And I'm trying really hard not to expect so much. Mostly for my own good, but also so I learn to appreciate people better for who they are and not who I want them to be for me. But that's another entry.

Love, optimism, and good quotes,
J

another good TOD:
I'm not a runner, but I've been trying to practice lately. I'm a Catholic, but I've been getting out of practice lately. (Last time I went to church was easter and last time I prayed was when I needed something.) So TOD's entry here made me smile. made me want to run. made me want to pray and read the bible.


Thoughts to expand on later:
Someone once told me that staying happy was the ultimate endurance.
I have always struggled with this because I truly put a high importance on staying happy and cheerful for both my benefit and the benefit of those around me.

I expect less from my guy friends, I think this is why I prefer hanging out with them. They don't let me down, not because they are more reliable at all, but because I expect less.

I'm a huge fan of finding out that more people I know have blogs. I feel like it's much harder to share a blog with a person who doesn't have one. it just feels strange to put yourself out there and not be able to see what parts of themselves they would put up there.

also.. I really like this song

BEDA9th

Impulse buys. oh my. So I bid on something on ebay. I can afford it with my own money, and I want it... but I was hoping to find a better deal. oops. there goes most of my spring break paycheck I receive on monday! haha Let's just call it an easter present to myself.
edit////
Today I bought way too many things. I like things. I got a new job about 2 months ago and have more disposable income that I have ever had. So I have gone on a few small shopping sprees for myself. today was the biggest.

got this bible. The cashier man @signs said his daughter has this one and if she tries to talk to someone about christianity and they don't want to hear it - she can hit them with it, lovingly. (it's metal) uhm.. cool? I used to have this bible when I was first in high school and I loved it, highlighted it, etc. and I lost it.

but onto the big purchase! A touch!
I'm far too excited.
I can have apps!
and nike+sport!
and kindle!!!!!
got any app recommendations? (I don't plan on buying any or at least many. I want free :) )

I have never had an ipod that wasn't a shuffle! I had a first generation (I dropped it in the lake.) so I got a 2nd gen,and plan to continue using it or maybe lend it to mi madre so she can learn how to use an ipod. She doesn't want one, just wants to know how to use it.
this is my ipod shuffle case, it's on my keys and it opens bottles, what more could you ask for???? I has silver shuffle, green case.

p.s.

Moments

There are always moments you want to always remember. Even if you can't remember everything about them. little tidbits of information you learn and get to use again. I like those.

Like when I was probably around 7th grade, I started giving communion at church. For me, it was great because church is as a whole, a boring hour, when you're not old enough to comprehend much of what is said. So it was a break where I got to help out and smile at some people who needed it.

And when I was learning to do communion. They taught us about how to deal with if someone sticks their tongue out to receive communion without having to touch their tongues and that we had to eat the broken bits and only put the whole hosts in the sacristy.

But my favorite thing I learned was that when you put a host in someone's hand, you place it so that your middle and pointer finger touch the palm of their hand. It's a small gesture. But as we learned,
"For some people, that's the only touch they will get all week."

TALK

"what are you supposed to do when you don't have a make-believe supernatural force to suck up to (pray) to get something to go in your favor? "



My friend .. well more like boy I kinda have a crush on who I awkwardly drunk text inappropriately... asked this on his facebook status.



I'm catholic.

I don't subscribe to every beleif catholics proclaim. I am pro-choice and pro-gay marriage (If you don't like it, don't do it! there is no place in the law for these things to be denied, moderated like other health issues and traditional marriage, yes. denied, no.) but that doesn't matter for this post. what matters is that
I believe in prayer.




my friend (more like best friend since 8th grade who I secretly disliked sometimes but still hung out with until I got to know her well enough to truly call her my best friend who is currently away in thailand and I miss dearly) anyway.. she.. doesn't really have a religion.. so I was surprised when she told me a few years back that she had prayed about something... I was like wait.. you no religious, huh? She's not, but she believes there could be something out there and just simply finds comfort in prayer. I think thats awesome. this non-religious person made me enjoy prayer more.




So my advice, if he wasn't a boy I kinda have a crush on who I awkwardly drunk text inappropriately, just T.A.L.K.

Thank whatever/whomever you believe in, or since you don't, just list off the things you are thankful for.

Ask for what you want, but be sure to include your wants for others as well as yourself

Listen, you might not hear or feel anything, you might not even figure out in your head what you're praying for.. but sometimes it's just nice to quiet your mind and take a minute to just listen.

Kudos, maybe leave this one off if you don't believe in anything like this,.. but this is where I reimburse the fact that I think my God is awesome.. so maybe just where you reimburse that your life is awesome etc.




This is how I pray. I Talk. I just think about what I am thankful for and who's lives I wish could be better, including my own.
And it's lovely to pray for other people... because it makes you feel all good inside, even if you don't think anyone is listening.. it is you.. remembering that you care about something other than yourself.


if only I had the courage to TALK to the boy (who I kinda have a crush on who I awkwardly drunk text inappropriately.)

Idols.

This week I'm going to concentrate on ridding false idols from my life.


Definitions of idol:

noun: a material effigy that is worshipped as a god

noun: someone who is adored blindly and excessively

noun: an ideal instance; a perfect embodiment of a concept




Idols can include:

crushes-- Boys are people too, I can't let them intimidate me. Can't let myself think they are perfect. Can't think about it so much.

websites, yes.. websites.. I adore facebook no matter how much I know I waste my time on it.


Another goal of mine is to worship/value something else - my body. I need to get in shape b/c this is getting ridiculous!! not skinny, in shape.. and if skinny happens.. so be it! :)



music of the week:

Internet love song

"Pour our hearts out on the screen, one line at a time"


He said she said - Ashley Tisdale

yes, it's by a disney star, but I looove it!


funny video of the week:

Made of awesome

so this week is made of awesome


I spent a nice night on mass st. w/ the awesome Danielle (Happy birthday!) I really like Encore, kinda expensive, but very delish!

I exercised @ the rec

I bible studied

I used a suck/awesome analogy using the 90-10 method during the bible study.

I love being a nerdfighter

I watched secret sibling videos (specifically the nerdfighters in nerfighter like)

I was productive

I finished a paper I thought I would never finish. holy crap amazing that I finished it. <3!



I felt just good b/c I'm no longer sick



Music

So, new feature, music of the day.

British Columbia by the Elected click here to hear

The union click here to hear

sunday.

"Take me back Lord, into your loving embrace.
hold me close Lord, wipe the tears from my face
I don't deserve all the love you show, but I'm trying to love you too, I hope you know."

Music is a big part of my worship. I'm listening to a CD by Sarah Bauer, Delighting in Dreams. [sidenote: I rarely buy CDs, but I don't regreat this one, twice. I wore out the first one.] It's comforting, it's beautiful. It's fun to sing to and to fall asleep too. It's just damn beautiful.

The music is church however, wasn't so awesome. hard to sing. music was too all over the place in notes that were hard to sing.

Church was good tonight, ..better than I expected.. The whole time I was there.. I was thinking about differences, similarities, time.

church is hillariously beautiful

and whenever I check my watch in church, I remember Father Paul and how he talked SOOO fast and without fail, ended mass early.

I'm weirded out by the altar man. Altar boys shouldn't have bald spots.

I wish I was giving communion..

I liked the sermon for the most part, he used a KU football metaphor, twas impressive..

I wish I had a singing buddy for life. one who would come over and we could sing good songs. I wish that was a pasttime.. oh wait.. karaoke! lets do it folks.

I have a new bookshelf.

And a new pillow [sidenote: I miss my old pillow.. the one my sister lost last summer.]

and cute gifts for my kids and grandkids (in the sorority)

here's my new kid!


here's my 1st kid and grankid


Skydivers came down at the game.




and from sibling's weekend

my cousins!