For more than four decades I have visited the eye doctor annually.  I have had the same conversation over and over:       Eye Doctor: Read the lowest line you can see. Me: E.   I was the unlucky winner of the genetic lottery, inheriting the family &#...
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I’ve got the joy, joy, joy, joy Down in my heart (Where?) Down in my heart (Where?) Down in my heart...   This song has been on replay in my head the last few weeks.  The word “joy” resonates in this holy Advent season. It’s literally everywhere, from the decorati...
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“If every person in this room made it a rule that wherever you are, whenever you can, you will try to act a little kinder than is necessary - the world really would be a better place. And if you do this, if you act just a little kinder than is necessary, someone else, somewhere, someday, may...
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Recently, while watching our older son dance and sing on stage while dressed as the most hideous bride one has ever seen, one comment -whispered in the darkness of a small theater - caused my husband to shake with laughter.   “He gets that from me.”   We throw the comment aro...
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One of my most enjoyable tasks as assistant editor of The Message is meeting new people throughout the Diocese of Evansville.  Each week brings with it the opportunity to sit and listen as people tell their stories.  Young or old, it never fails to amaze me how quickly two strangers can f...
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The roar is deafening.     Approximately 200 middle-school students return to the cafeteria after performing their speeches; adrenaline still coursing through their bodies as they enjoy pizza, candy and very loud conversations with their friends.   A lull comes over the cafeteria as...
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The 25-minute drive from the Catholic Center to Saint Wendel School is generally my reprieve to listen (and perhaps sing along loudly) to the radio and unwind from the day’s stressors.  This past week it seems the luster and majesty of the changing seasons have transformed the tall, gree...
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Each day, I am blessed to spend uninterrupted time with my children as I drive them to and from their respective schools.  At pick-up, the conversation always is the same as I ask them to tell me about their day. After hearing tales of student council elections, the killer wasps residing on th...
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A group of frogs was hopping contentedly through the woods, going about their froggy business, when two of them fell into a deep pit. All of the other frogs gathered around the pit to see what could be done to help their companions. When they saw how deep the pit was, the rest of the dismayed group...
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Two years.  That’s how long I lived with the underlying premonition that something wasn’t quite right with my health. For two years I had nights where I would lie awake, afraid of what might be wrong.  I would convince myself that it was only the inevitability of reaching mi...
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