Reunions & A Celebration of God's Goodness!
I am preparing for a 20 year seminary reunion at St. John's in Camarillo, CA. The celebrations begin tomorrow afternoon/evening, but I will be leaving after my Masses in the parish and won't get in until quite late.
I haven't seen a lot of the guys since we were ordained 20 years ago. It will be fun to see how things have been and how gracefully (or not so gracefully) we have all aged in the past 20 years. 😀
I will spend a fun day by myself at Universal Studios on Wednesday and then will head to the Sera Retreat House for a couple of days of prayer and reflection.
I am working on a reflection on the priesthood and will hopefully have that posted pretty soon.
Unfortunately, I will have to miss the Episcopal Ordination of Bishop-Elect Daniel Mueggenborg on Wednesday. I made my plane reservations about three days before the announcement of his appointment. I'm sure that will be an amazing day for him.
The reality of my upcoming transition to my new assignment is really starting to sink in. At my last post-op appointment, I was planning on asking about whether or not I could go to Magic Mountain next week to enjoy some of the best roller coasters in the world. I soon realized it would be a very imprudent question to ask after the physician assistant gave me a stern lecture and warning about my upcoming move to Tukwila. She shared with me that one her patients recently destroyed his surgical repair while moving. She told me to put the sling on during the packing and moving process so I wouldn't be tempted to lift anything more than 2 pounds.
Having to say goodbye to so many people whom I have journeyed with in good times and bad is definitely like being on a roller coaster. (It's not as fun as the ones at Magic Mountain!) Archbishop Sartain came by our transition meeting on Thursday and shared some helpful thoughts with all of the priests who are getting moved about the realities of transitioning into new parishes. He is celebrating his 40th anniversary this year and has gone through a lot of transitions. I will try and remember what he said and the specific things he told us to do before leaving.
I quit watching The Voice when Miley Cyrus got on it. (Sorry, I'm just not a fan.) I did continue to record it and caught the finale with Usher and Chris Blue singing "Everybody Hurts" for the bombing victims in Manchester. That was the first time I had ever heard it. I have "Losing My Religion" by R.E.M. but had never heard "Everybody Hurts." It's a great song! Gladys Knight appeared on the show as well and looked and sounded great. A lot of people don't probably know that she converted from being a Baptist to being a Mormon in 1997 following her son and daughter.
Let's keep each other in prayer as we head towards the awesome celebration of Pentecost! The Heavenly Father loves to lavish the gift of the Holy Spirit upon His children. He doesn't ration but gives generously to those who ask!
If you are a friend on Facebook expect to see some photos from sunny Southern California in the next few days. Please pray that I behave like a Christian on the freeways 😎 (I never have missed driving in Southern California! Especially when I had a 1971 Super Beetle that barely could go the speed limit.) Thanks!
I haven't seen a lot of the guys since we were ordained 20 years ago. It will be fun to see how things have been and how gracefully (or not so gracefully) we have all aged in the past 20 years. 😀
I will spend a fun day by myself at Universal Studios on Wednesday and then will head to the Sera Retreat House for a couple of days of prayer and reflection.
I am working on a reflection on the priesthood and will hopefully have that posted pretty soon.
Unfortunately, I will have to miss the Episcopal Ordination of Bishop-Elect Daniel Mueggenborg on Wednesday. I made my plane reservations about three days before the announcement of his appointment. I'm sure that will be an amazing day for him.
The reality of my upcoming transition to my new assignment is really starting to sink in. At my last post-op appointment, I was planning on asking about whether or not I could go to Magic Mountain next week to enjoy some of the best roller coasters in the world. I soon realized it would be a very imprudent question to ask after the physician assistant gave me a stern lecture and warning about my upcoming move to Tukwila. She shared with me that one her patients recently destroyed his surgical repair while moving. She told me to put the sling on during the packing and moving process so I wouldn't be tempted to lift anything more than 2 pounds.
Having to say goodbye to so many people whom I have journeyed with in good times and bad is definitely like being on a roller coaster. (It's not as fun as the ones at Magic Mountain!) Archbishop Sartain came by our transition meeting on Thursday and shared some helpful thoughts with all of the priests who are getting moved about the realities of transitioning into new parishes. He is celebrating his 40th anniversary this year and has gone through a lot of transitions. I will try and remember what he said and the specific things he told us to do before leaving.
I quit watching The Voice when Miley Cyrus got on it. (Sorry, I'm just not a fan.) I did continue to record it and caught the finale with Usher and Chris Blue singing "Everybody Hurts" for the bombing victims in Manchester. That was the first time I had ever heard it. I have "Losing My Religion" by R.E.M. but had never heard "Everybody Hurts." It's a great song! Gladys Knight appeared on the show as well and looked and sounded great. A lot of people don't probably know that she converted from being a Baptist to being a Mormon in 1997 following her son and daughter.
Let's keep each other in prayer as we head towards the awesome celebration of Pentecost! The Heavenly Father loves to lavish the gift of the Holy Spirit upon His children. He doesn't ration but gives generously to those who ask!
If you are a friend on Facebook expect to see some photos from sunny Southern California in the next few days. Please pray that I behave like a Christian on the freeways 😎 (I never have missed driving in Southern California! Especially when I had a 1971 Super Beetle that barely could go the speed limit.) Thanks!
