What makes a hero, a hero?

I was talking with a family friend, Mr. Poeske (the same guy who bought me “How to find your Soulmate without losing your Soul”) About what makes a hero, a hero. Here is some of the facebook conversation:

Me: It was EPIC. Maybe the best Marvel movie so far, but I didn’t much like the “perfect” hero. A good hero, in my opinion, should have some vices that he has to overcome in order to be the hero. Steve was utterly noble, self-sacrificing, handsome, charming, etc.

Mr. Poeske: I agree with you – a great hero shows us all how he/she can overcome their personal failings to do noble, courageous and self-less things for mankind. I read an interview done with Frank Miller, comic book author of “300” and the new “Batman” series said the exact same thing.

Me: Right. Because in the end, that is what makes him heroic. He is not better than everyone else, he is exactly the same kind of man, but he is the one who is willing to rise above his sin and his unworthiness for the greater good of mankind. 🙂

So there you have it. It’s another reason I hate shows where the “hero” is a selfish jerk. A true hero is virtuous, but struggling. Brave, but scared of what he cannot control. Able to overcome his own shortcoming, and be who God made him (or her!)

Love to all! Talk later!

-Tani

 

Guilt? What Guilt?

My grandpa was talking about Catholicism the other day, and he said something about how the worst thing is the guilt that we are stuck with, getting told that we are sinful. I didn’t reply then (I know better than that) but I do have some thoughts now. Enjoy!

First of all, yes, Catholicism does make a person feel guilty. But guess what? That’s a good thing. Ready for a Tani metaphor?

Let’s say you have a thorn in your foot, and a friend tells you “Hey, buddy, you have a big thorn in your foot!” The attitude of my grandpa would be saying “I know I have a thorn in my foot, but I am pretending that I do not! So don’t you dare tell me there is a thorn, because I just want to forget about it!” This attitude will cause that thorn to fester and become infected, causing great pain, but of course, you are too stubborn to admit that there is really a thorn in your foot, because you don’t want that thorn to exist. Get it?

And as for my second point? Well, there is guilt here. But there is the most blessed forgiveness here as well. I remember, on the Stuebenville West retreat, how I waited in line for two hours to confess a single addiction that I had let fester for years, I had let become that thorn. I was ready to pull it out. I confessed this sin to the priest, and I was sobbing as I said it. Like that thorn, that sin of mine hurt like all get out to pull out after it had gotten stuck in my soul. But afterward, I cried all the harder because… I was FREE!! After I left the confessional hall, I ran outside, under the sun, and yelled my heart out, dancing and singing (and because I was surrounded by other Catholics, I didn’t get that many funny looks. Except for my friend Alex, who said, “Wow, you are happy!”) And after that, during the praise-and-worship section, I was crying again, saying over and over again, “I’m free, I’m free, thank You, thank You!”

So yes, the Catholic Church is a Church of guilt, because we are a Church of sinners. But we are also a Church of those who have been forgiven. I can tell you, there is nothing that gives more peace and joy than a priest saying “Your sins are forgiven! Go, and sin no more!” I’ll fail again, I’ll be guilty again, but I can always go back and wipe that slate clean. And that is a great gift.

(Confession is mentioned in the bible, by the way, as Jesus gives the Apostles the power to forgive sins, and they pass that power on to their successors. John 20: 23 “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.”)

Love to all!

-Tani

Thoughts on the past week and the Our Father.

This past week has been very strange. In both a good-strange and bad-strange way. This week, I’ve been yelled at, hugged, annoyed, in pain, tired, hallucinating, miserable, and completely happy. I’ve sung love songs to my cat, turned eggs, daydreamed, drew, slept, and argued.

And of course, I’ve prayed. And I think I need to share a story from a while ago, about my favorite prayer. A few months ago, I went to my first real adoration at the Great Retreat. I didn’t know what I was supposed to do, so I asked God, “Ok Lord, show me what to say!” And then I got that thinking-without-thinking experience of God talking to me, and He reminded me of Luke 11:1-4, where the disciples ask Jesus how it is they should pray, and He answers by giving them the Our Father prayer. So I said the prayer, carefully meditating on every phrase. When I was finished, I had probably the most powerful experience with God I have ever had (including about 20 minutes when I actually saw Jesus’s face over the Monstrance!). Since then, I have seen the Our Father as a gateway prayer, and I say it several times a day. I usually say it like the priest says it in Mass:

” Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Deliver us, Lord, from every evil, and grant us peace in our day. In your mercy, keep us free of sin, protect our lives from all fear and all worry, as we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever.”

This is a prayer of trust. Here, we entrust God with everything from the food we eat to our own safety. It’s a plea for God to protect us, which is a big thing for me, who is scared of pretty much everything.

So, as a word to y’all, you might want to try praying this when you are in trouble. It is a beautiful prayer.

Love to all!

-Tani

Those danged consequences.

Its a lesson that we all have to learn one day or another.

Actions have consequences.

Whether those consequences are big (you marry the wrong guy and then get a divorce years later) or small (as with my sister, she cooked a full Mexican dinner and now has no food money for a week) rest assured, they are always there.

In my case, this is how it works. Because I was a nice person, and let my friend Stasha have the easiest job during the game last Sunday, I took the hardest and sprained this ankle. Consequence #1. Consequence #2: I can neither go to the gigantic Tucson Meet Yourself festival (which I have been looking forward to for a while, as my aunt is flying down from Boston for the weekend to come along) and neither can I go up to Mt. Lemmon with my family, which I was also looking forward to. Oh, and the fact that my entire leg is achy and the ankle burns.

So, this the part where I warn you to think before you do things. Such as *hint hint* how not getting homework done could mean you cram, cramming means less right answers, which means lower grades, which means lower scores, which means not as much of a chance to get into a good college, which means less chance of getting a good job. So unless you want to go to a raving liberal community college, which will teach you that black people are better than white people, “gays” are better human beings than straight people, everything written by white men before 1970 is a lie meant to enslave women, the government will cater to your every need, and the Catholic Church is made up of pedophiles… I highly suggest you do your homework.

That’s enough mothering for the day. Off to go start show prep on some chickens (this will be fun! Because, as you know, plucking wing feathers and getting pecked in the face by an angry chicken is the epitome of fun!)

Love to all!

-Tani

Today’s essay: Qualities of Faith.

Today, I had to write a formal essay, of about 400 words, on the qualities of faith as expressed by renowned apologist Fr. Laux in his book ” Chief Truths of the Faith.” Ok, so not a total formal essay, as I didn’t follow MLA format or even have a decent thesis or conclusion. But this was my essay, and it’s a pretty danged deep-thought-full one. So, without further ado:

“In this world, you will have trouble. But take courage, for I have conquered the world!” (John 16:33 NSV) In this passage of John, Jesus reminds us to have faith. Faith is a topic that has ensnared the human mind since the beginning of time, when prehistoric men built stone shrines to invisible gods and storytellers told of the works of mighty heroes. It gives comfort, reminding men to believe in something more, even when life is troublesome and seemingly worthless. It is the foundation of hope, the reason behind love, and it decides the end of all life. True faith is the first step to heaven. But what are the qualities of true faith?

Faith must be universal. This means that if God says something,  mankind is supposed to have faith and believe Him, no matter how foolish He sounds. A good Christian should never be a “Cafeteria Christian,” picking and choosing what words of God to believe and obey and which parts to ignore. He must have faith that everything that God says is true.

A strong faith, rooted deep, is highly important. Firm and steadfast, even in the heart of evil, temptation, confusion, doubt, and pain, the faith of those who are strong can never be bent or torn. Abraham was willing to sacrifice his only son for faith. Paul Miki and his companions faced torture and crucifixion joyfully, having faith that God would take their immortal souls to Himself. Would that the faith of all Christians be as strong as this! Yet sadly, many a man has let his faith die, for fear that God would not take care of him.

For this reason, faith must be living. It is not enough for one to say “I believe,” and then do nothing to prove his belief. Faith is like a flower, first it must be planted, and then cultivated, given sunlight and water and good earth to grow in.  It can neither be dried nor scorched, it cannot be subjected to parasites, but lovingly taken care of. Thus must faith be watered with prayer, fed with the light of the sacraments, protected from pride and foolishness, and allowed to flourish in the love of God.

Faith must lastly be constant. In life, there will always be troubles that assail those who believe in God. The devil likes nothing better than a man who loses his faith, for such a man is all but assured a place in hell. Though this knowledge is terrifying, it also brings enlightenment and an armor against the devil’s tricks. He tries a great many things to get people to lose faith; the death of a loved one, a debilitating disease, war, natural disasters, all designed to make a person ask “where are God and his plans now? How could He let this happen?” These questions wear away at faith, until there is nothing left. To fight against this, faith finds the answer to these questions. God allows disaster and pain to come because it makes man stronger, tests his faith, and leaves him better than he was before. With constant faith, one can trust that God is with them, always, and will never leave them alone.

Yes, this is the kind of essay that won be straight A’s last year in Humanities. The only reason I got a final grade of a B+ was because the quizzes were murder.

Love to all! (Someone call me? Please?)

-Tani

Well, I feel like an idiot now.

I have a great many rules of life that I live by. They range from the useful to the embarrassing. Yesterday, I learned a new rule.

Rule #75: If you have a condition that weakens the joints, do not ever decide to engage in a game in which you must hope on one foot through an obstacle course. Even if teen leader Rick says you must.

So, today I am confined to bed with a sprained ankle. Lucky me. In a ton of pain. And I’m not even able to sit up, lest I move this thrice-cursed foot.

Par for the course, par for the course. Yesterday, the day that started with me having to run out of mass to sob my eyes out in the Church Garden, ended with me not able to walk and in a ton of pain.

Thanks, Lord, I suppose there was indeed a reason for this?

Love to all. I’ll be around all day.

-The very in pain and very hungry Tani

 

Captain Fantastic’s Very Own Post!!!

Our good friend Evelyn Murray (it is an “a” and not an “e”, right?) has recently alerted me to the fact that my namesake exists! Observe!!!

bserve!

The guy from Monty Python loves me!!! 😀

(I posted this on Tacha’s blog because I did not feel as though mine was adequate)

What makes you smile like nothing else can?

I know, I know, I’ll leave after this post!

1) Gabe.  😛

2) Chickens.

3) Not being in pain!!!

4) Adoration.

5) Numbers that make sense, like 5’s and 10’s.

Love to all!

-Tani