Feast of the Immaculate Conception

Well, it has been almost 12 months since my last post....now that is the way to lose faithful readers, but thank you Loren Paul for your kind comments. I checked out your site and really liked it.

Well, carrying on with the theme of Life According to the Queen, I wanted to say hello on this important feast day for Mary, Queen of Heaven. Today, December 8th, is the day Roman Catholics celebrate the Feast of her Immaculate Conception. That is when she was conceived without the stain of original sin brought on by our first parents Adam and Eve when they denied God's wisdom in the Garden of Eden. (That is my theology lesson for today.)

Life has been rather rough with all the weirdness of my last post. All the people who did not like the speed of my emails or how I ran one of my lists left my world together on December 31st. The ringlet of discontent tried to organize a mass exit from the lists, but, of 125 list members, only 3 left. I learned to try and listen to others, but to ultimately go with my own conscience. Gee after all these years, you would have thought I had known that.

My mom got cancer, so I spent the summer looking for an experimental drug to fight this cellular demon. I found it and this little pill has shrunken the tumours. So far so good, but everything is still wait and see since the drug takes such a physical toll on her. I miss getting to talk with her when I have problems at work since she has to rest so much, but when I do get to talk to her, I cherish our talks more than I ever did. That has been a good outcome of this stressful time--for me at least.

I watched the NBC and then the CBS movies about Pope John Paul II these past two weeks. The CBS version was especially true to what I remember about the Pope's pontificate--especially his last few days. It especially reminded me that in addition to my beloved mother on Earth, I have a mother in heaven and, as mother of Christ, she is Queen of Heaven. Life lessons according to this Queen seem to be: wait, pray, and remember that I am not alone. That is good to remember these days. So today, on this Feast Day, I not only remember it, but I seem to feel it just a little bit more. As Pope John Paul II said, "Totus Tuus" and "Be Not Afraid." Those thoughts are meant for you, too, dear reader.