A New Year

I begin the new year with a lot of informal resolutions. Some involve reading and writing. But there are also ones about my life.

Yes, I need to lose weight. Yes, I need to have a better diet. Yes, I need to be aware of my bad habits and addictive tendencies.

But most of all, I need a change in attitude. I need to be less secretive. I need to be less sarcastic and negative. I need to use my gifts in positive ways in service of the Lord and others.

 

I also need to recognize that I can't do it all on my own. 

Lord, I need You. 

Lord, tell me what You want me to do and how I can better serve You.

Pax et bonum

2023 Reading Tally; 2024 goals

With just a few days left in 2023, it's unlikely that I'll finish reading another book this year, so here's the tally. I've organized them very roughly by category - spiritual, classics, poetry, mysteries, and so on - though some works could have been put in a couple of categories. 

2023 – 69 Books – Page Count - 14,577

Deus Caritas Est (God is Love) by Pope Benedict XVI 
Jesus of Nazareth by Pope Benedict XVI 
The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis 
Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis 
The Great Divorce by C. S. Lewis
The Message of St. Francis 
Untroubled by the Unknown by Father Mike Schmitz
See God and Live by Father Matthew Swizdor, OFM.Conv.
Diogenes Unveiled: A Paul Mankowski Collection edited by Philip F. Lawler 
The Fire of God by John Michael Talbot 
The Tree of Life by Saint Bonaventure 
I Heard God Laugh by Matthew Kelly 

Out of the Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis 
Perelandra by C. S, Lewis 
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Alexander Solzhenitsyn 
The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo
The Robe by Lloyd C. Douglas 
Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather 
Sir Thomas More - Various writers, some input from Shakespeare
The Sonnets by William Shakespeare 
Hard Times by Charles Dickens 
The Cricket on the Hearth by Charles Dickens 
From the Earth to the Moon by Jules Verne
A Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne 
The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury 
The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman by Ernest J Gaines 
The Lighthouse by Michael D. O’Brien 
Plague Journal by Michael D. O’Brien 
Eclipse of the Sun by Michael D. O’Brien 

A Case of Conscience by James Blish 

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood 
Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen 

Persuasion by Jane Austen 

The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco 
East of Eden by John Steinbeck 
Cannery Row by John Steinbeck
The Invisible Man by H. G. Wells 

The King of Elfland’s Daughter by Lord Dunsany 


Steeple Bush by Robert Frost
In the Clearing by Robert Frost
Two Masques by Robert Frost 
Rochester Area Haiku Group 2020 Members’ Anthology 
Cats in Spring Rain (haiku) 
Seeds from a Birch Tree (haiku) by Clark Strand 
A Child’s Christmas in Wales by Dylan Thmoas (with illustrations by Chris Raschka)

Fractured by Cattails: Haiku Society of America 2023 Members’ Anthology

Talking God by Tony Hillerman 
Coyote Waits by Tony Hillerman 
Sacred Clowns by Tony Hillerman 
A Thief of Time by Tony Hillerman 
People of Darkness by Tony Hillerman
The Scandal of Father Brown by G. K. Chesterton 
All the Dead Heroes by Stephen F. Wilcox 
Advent of Dying by Sister Carol Anne O’Marie
Killing Custer by Margaret Coel 
Whose Body? by Dorothy L. Sayers
Clouds of Witness by Dorothy L. Sayers

Glory Road by Bruce Catton 
Man of Fire: William Tecumseh Sherman in the Civil War by Derek D. Maxfield 
Kindertransport by Olga Levy Drucker

The Broons and Oor Wullie: The 1960s Revisited 
Small-Town Hearts by Ruth Logan Herne 
Winter’s End by Ruth Logan Herne 
The Doom Stone by Paul Zindel
The Story of the Three Wise Men by Tomie dePaola
Tomie dePaola: His Art & His Stories by Barbara Elleman
My Life and Hard Times by James Thurber 
Childless by Brian J. Gail 

The Night the Saints Save Christmas by Gracis Jagla

So how did I do in terms of the reading goals for the year? Here's what I wrote last December:

Goals for 2023: 50-70 works, 12,000+ pages

More spiritual reading, including some encyclicals and Mere Christianity by Lewis
Finish the Hillerman Navajo mysteries
Finish the Father Brown mysteries (Just 9 stories to go!)
Read at least one more of Frost's poetry books
Reread David Copperfield by Dickens
Read Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes
Read Saint Thomas More by several writers, with input by Shakespeare
Read all of Shakespeare's sonnets

Results:  

69 books, 14,577 pages - goal met 

Spiritual reading - some, including one encyclical. I did read Mere Christianity - overall, mixed results. 

Hillerman - goal met

Father Brown - goal met

Frost - finished them all, so goal met

I did not reread David Copperfield, but I did read Hard Times.  A pass.

I started Don Quixote, but just could not get into it. Goal not met, and may never be met!

Saint Thomas More - goal met

Shakespeare's sonnets - goal met.

Overall, not bad.

Some good works in there. There were a few clunkers, but in general a pleasurable year of reading.  

My only real disappointment was with the amount of spiritual reading. The 2023 tally was okay, but I could have done better.

So goals for 2024:

60-70 books, 15,000 pages

More spiritual reading, 13-15 works, including at least 2 encyclicals

Reading the Bible daily, including finishing all the OT books I have not yet read

Read at least five Dorothy Sayers Wimsey mysteries

Read a couple of Agatha Christie mysteries

Read at least one Dickens novel that I haven't read before

Read at least one Chesterton novel that I haven't read before

Read all of Emily Dickinson's poetry

Read another Michael D. O'Brien novel 

Read Winter's Child by Margaret Coel

Pax et bonum

Spiritual Resolutions for 2024

Last year I made some spiritual resolutions. Here's part of that post, with added notes:

My daily routine usually includes:

The Seven Sorrows of Mary

St. Bridget's Twelve Year Prayer on the Passion of Jesus

Morning Prayers from the Liturgy of the Hours

The Rosary.

A Novena to St. Sharbel

Daily Mass Monday, Wednesday-Friday.

There have been a few days when I fall short. One of my resolutions for the new year it to not miss any of these current prayers. (Fell short.)

I also resolve to add daily recitation of the Diving Mercy Chaplet. and to say Night Prayers from the Liturgy of the Hours. (Started to do so, but inconsistent.)

I was working on reading the Bible daily with the goal of reading the entire Bible. (Fell short.) 

I resolve to spend 10 minutes daily reading and reflecting on the Bible. (Really failed on this one.)

I try to read spiritual works, but it's not a daily habit. I resolve to spend at least 15 minutes each day doing some spiritual reading. The will likely require that I give up some television time and reading of secular works. So be it. (Did not meet this goal either.)

I'm already reading The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis and The Everlasting Man by G.K. Chesterton as part of two reading groups I'm in. I will continue to do those. On my own I've been reading The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis, but that reading has been irregular. I will give that daily attention until I finish it. (Succeeded.)

I resolve to also reread Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis. (Read it. Success.)

The death today of Pope Benedict has inspired me to add two of his works to my list of ones I also resolve to read: Jesus of Nazareth and the encyclical, God is Love. (Another success.)

There are other works that I will try to read once I get through those listed works. Among those other works are

The Yes of Jesus Christ by Pope Benedict

A New Song for the Lord by Pope Benedict

A Concise Guide to Catholic Social Teaching by Father Kevin McKenna

The Splendor of Truth by Pope Saint John Paul II

The Gospel of Life by Pope Saint John Paul II 

Pacem in Terris by Pope Saint John XXIII

(Sigh. Read none of these, though I did start The Splendor of Truth recently.)

So looking ahead ... 

Continue my daily prayer routine, but try to be more consistent.

Continue going to daily Mass as much as possible.

Begin again to read the Bible daily. I've read most of it already before, so one goal this year would be to finish reading the rest of it, then to begin rereading.)

Read spiritual works daily. At least one work should be Franciscan in nature.

Finish The Splendor of Truth, and read at least one more encyclical.

God willing, and with renewed fervor, I hope 2024 will be a year of spiritual growth. 

Pax et bonum

Writing Goals for 2024

I enter 2024 with some writing goals.

I plan to complete Santa's Diary - adding entries to fill the entire year. That's the major project.

I plan to submit The Grumpy Shepherd to another publisher, and if rejected to search for another one. I will be sending a query letter to Our Sunday Visitor to start.

I will continue to write haiku, senryu, and clerihews, and to submit them for publication. I had 10 published in 2023; it would be nice to have at least as many in 2024. 

Pax et bonum

Reading and Writing

Finished Clouds of Witness by Dorothy L. Sayers - my 68th work of the year. Good read. Will I get in another work by the end of the year? We'll see.

Meanwhile, I'm up to January 22 in Santa's Diary. Elf Flu! '

Pax et bonum

Three in December 2023 Failed Haiku

empty house -
circles of unfaded shelf
where spices stood


blood on the pavement
mother distracts child
with an old folk song


my late father
when I see deer in a field
when I see deer

Pax et bonum

More Work on Santa's Diary

I continue plugging away at Santa's Diary. I'm already past mid January. Elvis impersonator elves, a bottle of mead, and a flu outbreak!

Meanwhile, I wondered if anyone had written a mystery novle with Santa as athe detective? Hmm 

Pax et bonum

Santa's Diary Work

Now that Santa season is over, and most of the annual minister's report for the Fraternity is done, I was able to spend some time on Santa's Diary. I'm currently revising some entries for January. 

One of my Christmas gifts this year was Christmas Trivia: 100 Christmas Questions. I may find some material in there to help inspire diary entries! Even if I don't, they will be fun to read.

Pax et bonum

Dickens (and Christie)

One of my reading goals next year is to read at least one Dickens novel. There are a number of them I have not yet read:

Nicholas Nickleby
The Old Curiosity Shop
Barnaby Rudge 
Martin Chuzzlewit 
Dombey and Son 
Little Dorrit 
Our Mutual Friend 
The Mystery of Edwin Drood (left unfinished due to Dickens's death).

 

I have Nicholas Nickleby, The Old Curiosity Shop. Dombey and Son, Martin Cuzzlewit, Little Dorrit, and Our Mutual Friend, so it will be one or two of those. I'm leaning toward reading The Old Curiosity Shop first. 

I was also watching a PBS special on Agatha Christie (Agatha Christie: Lucy Worsley on the Mystery Queen). It reminded me that I wanted to read more Christie, so add a couple of them to the list!

Pax et bonum

Pope Francis Did Not Just Authorize Priests to Bless Same-Sex Unions

Pope Francis Did Not Just Authorize Priests to Bless Same-Sex Unions| National Catholic Register: COMMENTARY: Anyone who claims that the Fiducia Supplicans authorizes blessings of same-sex unions has not read the declaration or is intentionally misinterpre...

A Bit of Wimsey

I just finished reading Eclipse of the Sun by Michael D. O'Brien. It's a well-written and intelligently plotted Catholic dystopian novel with interesting characters. As a work of fiction, it's quite good.

But it IS very dystopian. And the world created in the novel uncomfortably parallels so much that is going on now, some 25 years after it was published, that it was sobering. Yes, the Lord wins in the end, but getting there means loss and struggle.   

After finishing it, I wanted to go on to something lighter! 

For me, that's means a mystery. Or two. Or more.

So I thought of Dorothy Sayers, a highly-regarded mystery writer more of whose Lord Peter Wimsey works I've wanted to read. Her ties to faith and to G. K. Chesterton add to the attraction. 

I had read Unnatural Death a couple of years ago. Back in the 80's I had read a few of her other books, but can't for the life of me remember which ones. 

So ...

 

A goal for the next yeas or two: Read all of her Wimsey novels.

There are 12 Wimsey novels written by her: 

Whose Body? (1923)
Clouds of Witness (1926)

Unnatural Death (1927) (U.S. title originally The Dawson Pedigree)

The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club (1928)
Strong Poison (1930)
The Five Red Herrings (1931)
Have His Carcase (1932)
Murder Must Advertise (1933)
The Nine Tailors (1934)
Gaudy Night (1935)
Busman's Honeymoon (1937)
Thrones, Dominations (1998) Unfinished Sayers manuscript completed by Jill Paton Walsh

There are also some Wimsey short story collections

Lord Peter Views the Body (1928)
Hangman's Holiday (1933) Also contains non-Wimsey stories
In the Teeth of the Evidence (1939) Also contains non-Wimsey stories
Striding Folly (1972)
Lord Peter (1972)

With that goal in mind, I stopped by our local library and was pleased to find they had several of her novels. I took out a few, and have started the first one, Whose Body?

Since retiring in 2020, I have set a few reading goals, and have completed several: I've now read all of Chesterton's Father Brown mysteries, all of Shakespeare's plays, all of his sonnets, all of Tony Hillerman's Navajo mysteries, and all of Robert Frost's published poetry collections. The Sayers goal is to try to find and read all of her Wimsey novels over the next two years. 

That should help to keep me out of mischief. 

There will be more reading goals, but I'll deal with them in my end-of-the-year reading tally post.

Pax et bonum

Romans Didn't Crucify Jesus

Pax et bonum

The Media is Lying About Kate Cox and Abortions on Disabled Babies

The Media is Lying About Kate Cox and Abortions on Disabled Babies

Chestertonians and the American Solidarity Party

The November/December 2023 issue of Gilbert, the magazine of the Society of G. K. Chesterton,contains a review by Chuck Chalberg of The Political Economy of Distributism by Alexander William Salter.

Chalberg concludes the review with, "All three (Chesterton, Belloc, and Ropke), plus Salter himself, seem to agree that politics can never be the solution, much less the ultimate answer. And yet, once again Salter wiggles for room with a nod in the direction of something called the American Solidarity party. Created in 2011, its platform is 'not shy about its debt to distributism.' It's also more than a few votes shy of relevance, totaling only 42,305 for its presidential candidate in 2020. Thank goodness we will always have Chesterton and Belloc, as well as the Alexander Salters of Texas Tech and elsewhere, to keep steering us in the right direction."

That mention of the American Solidarity party in a way that seems dismissive of it stopped me short. Chalberg may not have intended to be dismissive, but still, he did declare the party "a few votes shy of relevance."

Ironically, his review is published in the magazine of a society that I last heard had just 2,000 members. Surely he would not suggest the Society is not relevant because of the small number of members?

The Chesterton Society is small, but it would seem to be a natural ally of a party that espouses many Chestertonian and Christian ideals, including distributist economic policies.

He also refers to the party in a way that suggests he really doesn't know much about it.

Yes, the party garnered "just" 42,305 votes for President in 2020. But that was only the second presidential election in which the party ran a candidate. In 2016, the first time it ran a candidate, it received 6,697 votes. So from 2015 to 2020 a six-fold increase. What might happen in 2024 with an actively campaigning candidate, Peter Sonski?

Moreover, in 2016, the party was listed on only one ballot; the other votes were by write-in. In 2020, the party was listed on nine ballots. And in 2024?

Perhaps this is a party Chestertonians should investigate. Given its platform, they just might find it relevant.

Pax et bonum

Shakespeare Insult Kit

Pax et bonum

3 Ways Our World is Becoming a Dystopia

Santa's Diary Update

 

Gates Recreation Breakfast with Santa last year,

With Santa season in full swing (three visits yesterday alone, and another on tap for today), and Nancy's health issues, I have not been doing as much work on Santa's Diary as I'd planned. Things will begin to loosen up after Christmas (I hope).

I had thought of using one of the entries as my Christmas story this year, but even though I did revise it for that purpose, it just didn't work. I then wrote a clerihew to include with our Christmas cards.

Off to be Santa, and then I have to get all those Christmas cards ready for mailing! 

Pax et bonum

at the hospice (Failed Haiku)

My poem in the November Failed Haiku:

at the hospice
folding all her laundry
one last time

Pax et bonum

Christmas Poem 2023

St. Francis of Assisi,
joyfully grateful for the Nativity,
created at Greccio a stable display
that’s imitated world-wide to this day.

Pax et bonum

Imagine… Communism (John Lennon Parody)

Biden, Did You Know? (Song Parody)

Plague Journal by Michael D. O’Brien

I just read another one of Michael O'Brien's book: Plague Journal.

The book is the middle book of a trilogy, the first one being Strangers and Sojourners, and the last of them being Eclipse of the Sun.

I cheated and did not read Strangers and Sojourners before reading Plague Journal. I will do so later, I'm about to start Eclipse of the Sun because I really liked Plague Journal and want to find out what happened to the surviving characters.

Plague Journal is dystopian novel of the kind really popular among conservative Catholic writers back in the the late 1990's and early 2000's. People were convinced that Catholics and people of faith will be persecuted, the government will become tyrannical, and that all sorts of evils will take control of society. 

In this book, a newspaper editor speaks out against government control, schools usurping parental authority, abortion, anti-morality sex education, and more. Even though he wrote 20 something years ago he's really describing today when the government spies on conservative Catholics, arrests pro-lifers, attacks parents speaking out about what their children are being taught, and more. 

Although his vision is darker than the reality, it still hits too close to home. Given my pro-life activities, my speaking out against the moral decay in our culture and society, and my resistance to government control, I wouldn't be surprised if some day I face some legal issues or social retaliation.  

But beyond the ideas it contains, the book is well-written. The characters are interesting - hence inspiring me to get out the third book in the series.

Pax et bonum

My Poem in the HSA Anthology

hail storm
waiting for what
she has to say next

- Fractured by Cattails (Haiku Society of America 2023 Members' Anthology)

Pax et bonum

Alice's Restaurant 1969

The Catholic Origins of Thanksgiving | The Catholic Talk Show

Podcast?

I've been working on Santa's Diary.

Meanwhile, the idea of having a podcast has been suggested to me. 

My interests are too eclectic to have a focus for a general prodcast. But what about one focusing on either Santa or on storytelling. I used to tell stories under the name "Tunes 'n Tales." There's a stortwller up in New England who uses that title, but she has only posted a few videos on YouTube. As far as I can tall, she does not have a podcast.

I thought of doing something Santa - Santa's Diary? - as a podcast, maybe with him telling stories, but that might be limiting.

I like the Tunes 'n Tales idea. I certainly have a number of stories I used to tell, songs I used to sing, and several story/songs like Great Big Monster Under My Bed. I even have a theme song I used to use!

Hmmm. Just need to get those teeth fixed!

Of course, this all could be just another one of my whims.

Pax et bonum

Not en-Raptured

David Jeremiah
eschews the prosperity path in preaching about the Messiah.
Yet part of his path is seeing how much money he can capture
by marketing the myth of the rapture.

Pax et bonum

Letitia's Smirk

Attorney General Letitia James
is fond of playing games.
Her latest was attending a trial and practicing her smirk
instead of showing up at the office to work.

Pax et bonum

Santa's Diary

I earlier noted that since I didn't have an idea for a Christmas poem or story this year I'd use one of my stories from Santa's Diary.

Santa's Diary was blog I started in July of 2005. I wrote a number of entries in 2005 and 2006, then wrote a few more intermittently after that. There are some 200 entries, though some are repetitive, such as the ones for Christmas Day, or ones where I note I haven't been good about posting.

Still, there are some interesting stories - such as the one I intend to use for Christmas this year about a mishap with a young young reindeer. I tell about lives with the elves, how I met Mrs. Claus, encounters with mythical creatures like trolls and giants and goblins, and so on.

I figure there's about 180 or so usable entries.

Then it hit me that I really should organize and develop them, and add some new ones. Next year is a leap year - 366 days. So 366 entries? 

Worth considering. 

Certainly a better use of my computer time than arguing on social media or playing online games.

Ho! Ho! Ho!

Pax et bonum

The King of Elfland's Daughter (Dunsany)

Some friends who are fantasy fans touted The King of Elfland's Daughter by Lord Dunsany as a book I should read.

I took their advice.

There are some interesting elements to the book. I thought the treatment of the trolls was amusing and different than what I've seen elsewhere. I liked the idea of there being a crossable boundary between the world we know and Elfland. The romance between the Elf Princess and the human Prince had me wondering if Tolkien had read this book and was unconsciously inspired to create his romance between Arwen and Aragorn.

I can see why my fantasy-fan friends like the book, and why it's considered a significant fantasy work by critics and fantasy writers.

But in the end I did not like the book. I wanted to see more of Elfland. The brutal killing of a unicorn, and the hunting of others, turned me off. I didn't find the characters particulalry appealing - except, maybe, the trolls! I didn't find the ending satisfying.

I like some fantasy works, but this novel didn't make it for me.

Pax et bonum

The so-called Equal Rights Amendment is an Abortion Trojan Horse

In 2024, New York voters will have a chance to change the State Constitution.

The Equal Rights Amendment bill is deceptively called the New York Equal Protection of Law Amendment. But rather than just being a bill to promote rights and equality between the sexes, it is really a means to codify abortion and to undermine parental authority.

As The 19th News(letter) notes, "Democrats and abortion rights advocates in New York are pushing for a novel equal rights amendment they hope will establish the state as a haven for abortion access, boost Democratic enthusiasm in 2024 and set a roadmap for other states."

The article goes on to report, "Andrea Miller, president of the National Institute for Reproductive Health, a national advocacy group, described the amendment as 'exciting' and a 'first of its kind' in how it expressly links sex discrimination and reproductive rights to LGBTQ+ rights and others.

'This would be the first time that a state constitution would explicitly name all of those as being encompassed by sex discrimination and within the context of sex discrimination,' she said."

... and ...

"New York Democratic leaders, like Hochul, also said they hope the measure will drive voter enthusiasm and turnout that will benefit Democratic candidates. In some ways they see the amendment as testing the mobilizing power of abortion rights.

'The ERA isn’t just about a single issue,' said Emma Corbett, state director of communications for Planned Parenthood Empire State Acts. 'Fewer and fewer voters are single-issue voters these days. There’s this real opportunity to codify those freedoms for New York, and I think voters are gonna respond positively to that.'”

It's not just about abortion.

"The amendment’s inclusion of civil rights and anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ New Yorkers also reflects a rising recognition of the interconnectedness of the attacks on abortion and LGBTQ+ rights unfolding across the country. In 2023 legislative sessions, many Republican-controlled states have sought to restrict abortion and gender-affirming care for transgender youth."

Although supposedly aimed at government actions, critics contend the amendment would effectively deny parental rights when it comes to abortion or to sex transitions by their children. Indeed, if they try to interfere they could potentially be charged.

Planned Parenthood points out the New York ERA would "protect against any government actions that would curtail a person’s reproductive autonomy or their access to reproductive health care. For example, the ERA would prevent the State from:

implementing a state abortion ban
stopping state funding for abortion via Medicaid
banning private insurance coverage of abortion
prosecuting or criminalizing miscarriage
adding medically unnecessary burdens on patients or facilities"

The statement about "criminalizing miscarriage" is part of the deception and fear-mongering engaged in by the pro-aborts. Miscarriages are not the same as abortions, and no pro-lifer is calling for this.

Kristen Curran, the New York State Catholic Conference's director of government relations, decried the Equal Rights Amendment as a continuation of false and misleading narratives by state lawmakers regarding abortion.

“Unfortunately, this bill solidifies the message that New York has been sending women for some time now: Abortion is positive, empowering, and the key to success. This couldn’t be further from the truth,” Curran said in a statement July 1, the same day the Equal Rights Amendment was passed. “Women, children, and their families deserve support and compassion. Baby formula is scarce, raising a family is unaffordable, and the fallout from the pandemic continues to take its toll. New York State should be pouring resources into helping women and families, not promoting abortion through limitless funding, advertisements, and splashy legislation.”

“Our elected officials should stop promoting abortion as a woman’s best and only choice,” Curran added, “and focus instead on true support for women, children, and families.”

Pax et bonum

Death vs Betrayal vs Catholic Social Teachings

It's the American Solidarity Party for me!

Pax et bonum

Satan Applauds Democrats' Tactic

Pax et bonum

Election Over

My opponents for Gates Town Board have been declared the winners. No surprise there - I did not expect to win.

The unofficial write-in totals at this point is 1.08% of the vote. I apparently got 86 votes - and I had said I would be happy with 25! I Not bad for a last-minute, six-week, no-budget, write-in campaign. 

My brief foray into politics, and the pro-abortion results in many places, just show that too many people have chosen to render unto Caesar. Many Republicans, for example, are talking about abandoning their "pro-life" positions for the sake of winning. Certainly they are backing away from even talking about the issue.

And the fact that the voters voted as they did tells me Satan's control of the media and public education has worked. 

I feel as if I'm living in the days before the French Revolution!

Pax et bonum

Oh Happy Day!

Pax et bonum

The campaign comes to an end

My six-week write-in campaign for Gates Town Board is nearly over; the polls close in three hours.

I raised some pro-life and environmental issues. I got to meet some interesting people and to learn more about things going on in my town. 

When I started, I thought I'd be happy if I got 10 votes. Thanks to meeting some new people and an environmental issue/group, it might even be possible to get 20 vote, and I'd be really pleased if I got 25. Of course, I may still just get 10. Or even fewer. 

Humility is good for the soul.

I also saw that the same personality traits that convinced me I would be a poor insurance salesman back when I tried to work with my father were interfering with my ability to campaign. I'm too reserved, too private, too reclusive; not a people person. Oh, I interact fine when I have to, but I'd rather avoid interacting to any great extent. 

I'm basically a hermit.

I also discovered how easy it would be to get drawn into the nastiness and pandering of politics.

And I realized how dead and ineffective the American Solidarity Party is in New York. After repeated attempts for the six weeks to get responses from them, I finally got contacted by a state ASP official the day before the election! Too late to do anything.

Will I run again, and make it a regular campaign rather than a quixotic write-in one? 

Not likely.

I have more important things to focus on. My faith life. My Parish. My Fraternity. My writing.

But I'm enough of a political junkie to still be hoping for 25 votes!

Pax et bonum

My Town Board Campaign

Back on September 27, I announced I was running as a write-in candidate for Gates Town Board.

Several factors led me to make this decision.

One was that the two officially announced candidates were running unopposed. They were running as Republicans with cross endorsement by the Conservative Party. But the other parties active locally  - the Democrats, the Greens, the Libertarians - didn't have anyone running. Nothing against the candidates personally, but with them running unopposed the people of Gates had no choice; that's not democracy.

I also thought that this would give me a chance to promote some of my pro-life,, environmental, and open government values.

Finally, I thought it would be a way to promote the American Solidarity Party.

My initial campaign pledges included banning Planned Parenthood from town sponsored and financed events, and preserving green space in the town. 

They now stand at:

- Banning Planned Parenthood from all town sponsored and financed events

- Passing a resolution in opposing to State Legislature efforts to legalize physician-assisted suicide

- Seeking to declare Gates a Sanctuary for the Unborn, either by Board vote or through a proposal on the ballot

- Preserving or adding green space in Gates as much as possible

- Opposing the use of part of the Dolomite Forest donation for the Highway Department or as a dumping ground

- Placing a proposal on a future ballot to determine the use of the Dolomite Forest donation

- Banning the use of poisonous or carcinogenic lawn treatments in the town

- Broadcasting all town public meetings through some means such as a YouTube channel 

- Passing term limits for Town Board members 

My race is a long-shot one. But even if I don't win, these are still ideas I'd like to see implemented. My campaign will hopefully help to draw attention to these issues.

It's now been five weeks since I have announced. I've actually picked up some support. And I've been in contact with state and national officials of the American Solidarity Party. 

At this point, it's in the voters' hands. 

Pax et bonum

Christmas Story?

It suddenly dawned on me that I had not started working on a Christmas story or poem as I normally do by this time of the year. Nor do I even have an idea for one.

I dug out one of the entries from my draft of "Santa's Diary." It's the story of one of the replacement reindeer almost causing an accident while in flight. It might just work, though I'll look at some o the other entries to see if one of them might work.

So unless I have aa sudden inspiration, a "Diary" entry might just be my offering this year.

Pax et bonum

Two Clerihews

Matthew Perry,
boarded Charon’s ferry.
As Charon pushed off, Perry was heard to crack.
“That parachute really WAS a knapsack.”


Taylor Swift
has an annoying gift
for always creating a hit song
out of yet another relationship gone wrong.

Pax et bonum

One Reading Goal Met

One of my goals for the year was to read 60-70  books.

I hit 60 yesterday when I finished The Invisible Man by H. G. Wells.

This book was not on any of my lists, though I did plan to read more Wells. But the Friends of the Gates Public Library had a fundraiser in which one donated some money to buy a mystery bag with candy and a book in it. The bag I chose happened to have The Invisible Man in it, so when I cast aside Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurty (see previous post), I picked up the Wells book.

I was also curious to see how it compared with the classic 1933 movie. I've always enjoyed the movie - especially all the scene stealing the delightful Una O'Connor perpetrated.

Obviously, the movie left out some parts and characters. And being a movie in the 1930's, it added some romance. 

I enjoyed the book. There were a number of elements not included in the movie that helped to add some depth. The ending is similar, but handled differently. But still, the movie did do justice to the book.

Now starting The King of Elfland's Daughter by Lord Dunsany, a book for a reading group I'm joining.

At my current rate, it seems likely I'll finish 65-70 books this year. I might even beat last year's 66.

Pax et bonum

Lonesome Dove: Won't Finish

Lonesome Dove was a highly regraded miniseries. I did not watch it all, but I saw parts of it, and I've always appreciated the acting of Robert Duvall and Tommy Lee Jones. Then I spotted the novel by Larry McMurtry on a couple of lists of the best American novels of recent years. So I decided to give it a read.

I stopped part way through.

For me to read a book, I need to care about at least one character, or it has to have a really interesting plot or premise. It also has to avoid offending my prudish standards when it comes to content or language.

This book just seemed to drift along, and I really didn't warm up to any of the characters. It also offended my "prude" test. Not blatantly, but enough to turn me off. 

Oh, maybe if I gave it more time it might overcome my objections, but I have better things to do with my time.

It's now in the "Return To The Library" pile. 

I shifted to The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells instead. Enjoying that much more..

Pax et bonum

Britney Spears

Britney Spears
acknowledged her abortion with crocodile tears.
After all, she explained, she only killed her child for the sake
of the wishes of Justin Timberlake.

(Not pc, but she is making money off her memoirs, so ...)

Pax et bonum

Some Books to Read

A few weeks back I couldn't get to sleep. For some reason, I decided to compile a list of books I wanted to read or reread after finishing the ones I was currently reading (but not particularly enjoying), two Jane Austen books, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion.

Among the titles on that late-night list were:

The Name of the Rose by Umbero Eco

East of Eden by John Steinbeck

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

Cannery Row by John Steinbeck

Moby Dick by Herman Melville

Catch 22 by Joseph Heller

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurty

Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro 

Middlemarch by George Eliot

The End of the Affair by Graham Greene

Eclipse of the Sun by Michael O'Brien

The Citadel by Louis deWohl

The Keys of the Kingdom by A. J. Cronin

In This House of Brede by Rumer Godden 

Some are heavier than others. Some I'll have to be in the right mood to read. 

But I've already knocked off Rose and Eden! Great reads. 

Just got Cannery and Lonesome out of the library. I have Brede, Citadel, Moby, and Grapes on my shelves.

Onward!

Pax et bonum

Oh those deplorable pro-lifers

This morning a group of us were praying in front of Planned Parenthood, as we do every Saturday morning.

As we pray, a few of us hold signs with messages like "Love Will End Abortion."  We greet everyone who walks by; we smile and wave to passing cars.

Among the people to whom we regularly smile and wave is State Senator Jeremy Cooney. My state senator. Who happens to live across from Planned Parenthood.

Yes, he's a pro-abortion Democrat, but we treat him with the same respect we do everyone. The men and women victimized by Planned Parenthood. The Planned Parenthood workers. The neighbors. The people who come to the nearby pregnancy center for food and help. The people passing by, including those giving us the finger or yelling swears at us.  

He and his wife seemed to be packing their car this morning for a trip. He drove off, perhaps to pick up something, then returned few minutes later. Both times, we smiled and waved.

He ignored us. As he has done every time I've seen him.

Finally, as he was about to leave he approached one of the police cars that are always there, smiled, and made a dismissive gesture toward us as he started to talk to the officer.

Hmm.

Maybe he thought we were deplorables. Maybe he thought we needed deprogramming. Maybe he thought people with ideas with which he disagrees are worthy only of disdain.

Still, when he and his wife started to drive away we smiled and waved.

As we will continue to do. We wish them well.

After all, Love Will End Abortion and Convert Hearts.

Pax et bonum

Transitus 2023

October 3, Glory of the Most High and Immaculate Heart of Mary fraternities held their annual Transitus Mass and celebration, this year at St. Leo’s Church in Hilton, where Father Joe Catanise was the celebrant. During the Mass, Father exorcised and blessed salt and oil, and blessed food items donated for the needy. The celebration included food and fellowship, There was also an opportunity to pray before relics of Saint Francis and Saint Clare.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                  

 

 

 

Pax et bonum

Litany of Light

Litany of Light
By Carrie Gress, Ph.D.

 

It has become something of a nightly routine for one of my children to wake me up between 2-4 a.m. I can often get back to sleep quickly, but on one of those nights I found it difficult. I started thinking about all of the things that need prayer and charity in this world. “If only I could bring some light to these places,” I thought, feeling limited by my humanity and vocation to the four tiny souls entrusted to my care. 

Over this last year, I have been studying beauty and the role of light in medieval thought. Through the likes of St. Hildegard of Bingen, Bishop Robert Grosseteste, St. Bonaventure, St. Thomas Aquinas and others, I have come to appreciate anew the role that Christ’s light plays here on Earth. Christ as the light of the world is a major theme of medieval thought. We have lost a sense of light’s importance in our own day largely because we can easily chase the dark away with the flip of a switch. This is, however, a relatively new development, even if most of us never experienced life any other way. But the medievals were fascinated by light, by the gift of it and by its transforming power physically, morally and spiritually. They spent copious amounts of precious ink trying to articulate the profound relationship between light and God, and what we can learn about the latter from the former.

So there in the darkness in the wee hours of the night, the thought hit me that even if I can’t go to these places and help, I could ask the Source of all light to go to them. I realized that I could send Christ to illuminate the very dark corners of the earth. The Litany of Light below is the fruit of these meager prayers. The saints included were all champions of sorts of Christ’s light. And the places of great darkness will be familiar to us all, in one form or another. Bishop Liam Cary, of the Diocese of Baker in Oregon, has graciously given it his imprimatur. 

As our world seems to descend into greater darkness, we can be confident that our Advocate and Savior is with us and that He is “the light that shines in darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:5).

 

V. Lord, have mercy on us.
R. Christ, have mercy on us. 
V. Lord, have mercy on us. Christ, hear us. 
R. Christ, graciously hear us. 
V. God the Father of Heaven, have mercy on us.

God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us.
God the Holy Spirit, have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, one God, have mercy on us.

 

Christ, Light of the World, hear us.
Holy Mother of God, pray for us.
Mother of the New Dawn, pray for us.

Holy Trinity, source of all light, illuminate the darkness in our world:
To the minds of those dimmed by sin, bring your light.
To the hearts of those gripped by pornography, bring your light.
To those suffering depression or mental illness, bring your light.
To the souls enslaved by substance abuse, bring your light.
To those burdened by same-sex attraction, bring your light.
To those gripped by anxiety and fear, bring your light.
To the hearts of those who mourn, bring your light.
To the souls and bodies of abusers and the abused, bring your light.
To those with no place to call home, bring your light.
To those intent on killing in the name of God, bring your light.
To abortion clinics, bring your light.
To brothels and human-trafficking locations, bring your light.
To hospitals, pharmacies and nursing homes, bring your light.
To classrooms of despair, confusion and falsehood, bring your light.
To violent and drug-infested streets, bring your light.
To war-torn territories, bring your light.
To lands darkened, flooded, or destroyed by natural disasters, bring your light.
Wherever there is confusion, despair, loneliness and anger, bring your light.

St. Joseph, pray for us.
St. Mary Magdalene, pray for us.
St. Lucy, pray for us.
St. Augustine, pray for us.
St. Hildegard of Bingen, pray for us.
St. Clare, pray for us.
St. Albert the Great, pray for us.
St. Thomas Aquinas, pray for us.
St. Bonaventure, pray for us.
All the Choirs of Angels, pray for us.
Mary, Light in the Darkness, pray for us.

V. Light of the World, who take away the sins of the world,
R. spare us, O Lord.
V. Light of the World, who take away the sins of the world,
R. graciously hear us, O Lord.
V. Light of the World, who take away the sins of the world,
R. have mercy on us.

Amen.

Imprimatur: The Most Reverend Liam Cary, Bishop of Baker, Oregon

Wonderful prayer!

Pax et bonum

Book Tally at 3/4 of the Year

At the 3/4 mark of the year, I'm up to 55 books/works. That projects to a possible 73/74 works this year - more than meeting my goal of 60-70 for the year.

The latest reads are an eclectic mix:

The Fire of God by John Michael Talbot

A Case of Conscience by James Blish

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

Persuasion by Jane Austen

Cats in Spring Rain (haiku)

Seeds from a Birch Tree (haiku) by Clark Strand

Quick reviews:

The Talbot book had many fine moments of inspiration, but sometimes seemed dated

The Blish book, a reread, showed a misunderstanding of Catholic teachings.

Atwood's book, another reread, was as flawed as I remembered - and it sure seems the current proaborts referring to it clearly have not read, or understood it.

The two Jane Austen novels, read at the advice of others, were skillful, but not to my taste.

The haiku book about cats was amusing.

The Strand book was also dated, and not really engaging.

So it goes.

Now reading St. Bonaventure and The Name of the Rose. Better, more inspiring and entertaining fare!

Pax et bonum