I want to talk about food pantries again: what they are, how the current political regime is hurting them, and what you can do. A while ago, I wrote an article trying to explain what food pantries are, what it’s like to go to one, and the kind of people who use it. Let’s go over the basics. Essentially, a food pantry tries to fill the gaps that are left by the social safety net, because the income limit... Read more
I woke up anxious. I have been at peace since the Easter liturgy, but it’s not surprising that the anxiety trickled back. Healing is not linear. For several days I was certain that God didn’t hate me and was showing me the path of life. That was a beautiful Easter gift. But this morning, the anxiety rushed back in. I was afraid of the vengeful god of the Charismatic renewal. I felt as if Jesus was angry that the PTSD... Read more
It was the day of the Great LaBelle Easter Egg Hunt. A friend sent me some money to do a good deed for the neighborhood children, so I took it to Aldi and the Dollar Tree for treats. I told the Artful Dodgers and Jimmy’s boy to come to my house at two o’clock for a backyard egg hunt, and then at the last minute I invited the two littlest of the Baker Street Irregulars as well. I’d planned on... Read more
I went into Triduum, anxious. I was brought up to think that the Church was the perfect, spotless mother, and now I know better. The events that have unfolded since I came to Steubenville shook me to my core. I can’t ever back away from the shock of that disillusionment. I’ll never be the person I thought I was. There are no simple or happy answers for that. But again and again I realize that I think that Christ is... Read more
I woke up this morning, and found that Pope Francis had left us. I don’t even know what to say. I’ve already written what I expected would be his obituary, and then he rallied, and lived another two months. I’m glad we got another Easter with him. When Pope Francis began his papacy, I had a certain idealized notion of what the Vatican was. Twelve years later, I have quite a different one. This blog is not the place to... Read more
Charlie has not left. I’ve never had a cat in my life before. My father had a bad allergy and didn’t like pets anyway, and then I married a man who was allergic. But cats keep dropping into our lives. Charlie is the first one who’s stayed– on the porch, where she can’t make Michael miserable. All I did was put a blanket in a box, and put out some food and water until she felt like going home to... Read more
A man came to us for help. He came to all of us: you and me. America is a republic, which is a type of democracy, and that’s how democracy works. A democracy is a government of, by, and for the people. What the government does, it does in the people’s name. So, a man came to you and me for help. His name was Kilmar Abrego Garcia. Kilmar was a citizen of the country of El Salvador. He fled... Read more
Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus, but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” So to them Jesus addressed this parable: “A man had two sons, and the younger son said to his father, ‘Father give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’ So the father divided the property between them. After a few days, the younger son collected all his... Read more
The Dow fell another thousand points today. I don’t own any stock. I don’t have any money. I don’t usually pay attention to the stock market, but nobody can look away from the financial world just now. It’s not as though this mess is only going to hurt rich people. Last week, talking heads were saying that everybody should stock up on toothbrushes and other disposable goods before the tariffs hit and prices soar, and I just blinked at... Read more
Again, I opened my door at the end of the world. I shouldn’t have wasted time sitting outside. It was too chilly to get any gardening done, and I was supposed to be researching Pearl Harbor and World War Two to give a presentation to the children at the church outreach. But I didn’t want to be near a computer. The news on social media was all bad. The case of the innocent men deported to a gulag in... Read more
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