Posts

CMO 32: GRATEFUL

Image
  Hello, Neighbors! Posting a new blog means one thing -- it most likely is Sunday because it seems that Sunday is the best day for me to blog. I wonder why that is? Perhaps it is because I am either on my way to Mass or just returned from and either way my heart is at peace. This is the time when my mind seems clear of empty thoughts and concerns. And why not? Sunday is a day of rest. This is the day when I hop out of bed, greet the Lord, thank Him for the blessing of the new day, ask for His mercy and forgiveness for every wrong I committed the previous day, make coffee, get ready, say a prayer, check email, and head to Mass. Today and last week I went to St. Thomas More. The week before that, St. Patrick. The week before that, Christ The King. Roman Catholics may only be four percent of the population in Oklahoma, but there are enough parishes spread throughout the state that no excuse is required for missing Mass -- not even for football. After worshipping the Lord and shaking hand
Post a Comment
Read more

It's Such A Good Feeling ...

Image
 Hi Neighbors, I pray whichever day or time of the day you may be reading this blog, that you are experiencing a truly wonderful day. What was it Mister Roger's would sing at the end of his show?  It's such a great feeling to know you're alive. It's such a happy feeling: You're growing inside...  ( click here to listen to Mister Roger's sing the song himself). I have had a great deal to digest this past week. I won't go into it suffice to say, the challenges, setbacks, and experiences have reminded me once more how much I am inclined to rely and lean on the mercy of Christ rather than the platitudes  of a variety of well-intentioned, caring human beings. Myself included.  I suppose I PLA-TUDE a lot myself. Following a meeting I participated in on Friday evening, a fellow member of the team reached out to me on Saturday and asked if I was okay. On the one hand, I wanted to say, "No," because a part of me was not okay. However, the other half of me
Post a Comment
Read more

CMO 30: 080121 I AM LOVED

Image
  Saturday I was listening to a video presentation by Fr. Chris Alar, MIC (Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception) titled, Explaining the faith: The corporal works of mercy: Why they are necessary for salvation. I did not get an opportunity to finish listening to the presentation because I had to run some errands. I will watch the video in its entirety during the week. One point that Fr. Chris mentioned during his presentation stood out for me. It was when he said, "God loves you too much to let you stay that way?"  Fr. Alar was referring to living in a state of sin as I was prior to and sometimes after 2017. Why 2017? That is when I believe I was called by the Lord to return to Him through His Mother and His Church, both of which made absolute sense to me. I decided to be obedient to that invitation, as that is what is was, an invitation, temptations, falls, and struggles notwithstanding. Thank you, Jesus, for the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Getting back to Fr. Alar&#
2 comments
Read more

CMO 29: THINKING, COFFEE BREAK, ATLANTIS and GRIMM

Image
  Reflective Thinking I watched the Jul 22nd episode of EWTN's, Called To Communion with Dr. David Anders  Friday morning. In response to a question Dr. Anders was responding to, he made the following comment that gave me pause to really think about ...   'As a Christian, am I living my life as Jesus lived his life?'  If Jesus is both God and man and by virtue of the fact that he is the Son of the Living God and therefore could not sin even if he wanted to, my question to myself is, 'How then can I live my life as Jesus lived his life?'  What exactly does that mean? What does living like Jesus look like? Coffee Break w/Carlos Michael I decided to see how many Coffee Breaker's  listened to Episode 21: Labeling  of Coffee Break w/Carlos Michael  which aired on Wed. Jul 22, 2021. The number was four (4). I am certain three of the four were myself, Bro. G., and Mr. Man. Who was the fourth listener? As much as I am tempted to make this about me by going off on a tira
1 comment
Read more

CMO 28: FITNESS, EMPOWERMENT & GRIMM

Image
  Hello, Friends! Thank you for stopping by my little corner of the world. My typing is a little off after jamming my index finger into a carton of milk Thursday morning. I have only myself to blame. I was rushing to get things done and didn't pay attention to what I was doing. As I lifted the bag containing the milk, I did so in such a way that one of the cartons began to fall from the bag. As I reached up to prevent the carton from falling onto the floor of the trunk, I jammed my finger into it. 'Ouch!' The takeaway:  pay attention to what you are doing and do not be in a rush to get it done.   Jammed finger aside, I had a very productive Thursday.  This week was my first week at making a conscientious effort of tracking how much I eat and the number of steps I walk per day. To reach my target goal of losing 5 pounds by August 14th, I need to walk an average of 10,000 steps per day and not consume more than 2,410 calories per day. This is by no means easy to do. Then agai
Post a Comment
Read more

CMO 27: 062221 THE WINDS OF CHANGE

Image
  AJPM+ I was working on scripting out Friday and Saturday's podcast/video blog this morning, when a wonderful event happened. It's all about how we look at things, right? I wanted to check the stats for Friday's June 18th podcast. When I landed on the homepage of the Anchor website, I realized that I could not log in. For some reason I could not recall the password. That meant having to request a password change  which I did. Fine. Now I am in. Guess what? My entire account was wiped clean as if it never existed. No past episodes. No account information. Nada! Zilch! Caput! That is where the wonderful  part of this event came to light. Instead of getting upset, which I could have easily done, I paused, breathed, and looked at the situation for what it was-- an opportunity to turn the corner and move in a completely new direction that may prove to bear fruit down the road in contrast to my previous work. Something that has been important to me as of late, bearing fruit , I
1 comment
Read more

CMO 26: 062021 FATHER'S DAY

Image
  Hello Journal: "Happy Father's Day" to all the dads across America and in the world. For each of them, I pray, "St. Joseph, Foster father of Jesus. Pray for the fathers across America and in the world. Amen." When I mention the name Freddie Joe Steinmark , what or who comes to mind? Until last night, I didn't know who Freddie Joe Steinmark  was. Steinmark was a student at the University of Texas Longhorns (Austin), who passed away from bone cancer on June 6, 1971 at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas (2021, Wikipedia ). His parents were Fred and Gloria Steinmark. He also had a brother named Sammy. Finn Wittrock stars in the role of Freddie Joe Steinmark  in the 2015 film titled, My All-American , release date: Nov. 13, 2015. Directed by Angelo Pizzo.  Based on Courage Beyond The Game: The Freddie Steinmark Story,  by Jim Dent. According to Steinmark's website, freddiejoesteinmark.com , Freddie was a starting safety  for
1 comment
Read more