Swine Flu

I have been out of communication for a little bit, but here's to catching up on days off. We have today and Monday off due to much illness in the school, including possible swine flu. So, while I am worried about the students, I feel healthy and enjoyed my day off.

School has been on a different schedule this week due to standardized testing. They kept the middle school safely contained in the silent cafeteria under the supervision of a former marine. It was a relief, although I missed the interaction with the students. I also subbed with Ana for the 6th grade teacher, who was ill. They are still at the age where they will ask for help, and I feel useful when I can help someone figure out the difference between "between" and "among," or what a culture "adapting" means.

At the end of the week in a meeting with the middle school staff and admin, we started reworking the schedule as well. We're hoping to stem some of the chaos in the school. Pray for us as we do this!

More Colbert

I realized recently that I have been derelict in my Colbert watching, due to no cable and limited free/internet time. However, I started in time to catch Colbert's return from vacation. In the wake of this remembrance, a friend sent me this message:

holy crap i need to find some of this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Colbert's_AmeriCone_Dream

i haven't had any yet, but i'm fairly certain if you don't like it you must hate america

I agree with him on both points. Plus, it sounds delicious. A seminarian today told me that when living simply, we should every now and then partake in "affordable luxuries." America is one of these.

Death of Pro-Lifer

I seem to be blogging like crazy for the past couple of days, but the news is just so comment-worthy. Today, I read about an event on Friday: the shooting of a pro-life protester.

From what I've been reading, there is no official link between his murder and his stance on abortion, in spite of the fact that he was killed holding a sign. The man accused of his murder killed another person that same day and had another shooting planned, but was arrested first.

Still, this has caused a flurry of media attention, and even a comment from President Obama. Not that he seems to have much of a problem commenting on areas that the President does not need to comment.

Mass In the Park

The apostles gathered together with Jesus and reported all they had done and taught. He said to them, "Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while."

People saw them leaving. They hastened there on foot from all the towns and arrived at the place before them.

By now it was already late and his disciples approached him and said, "This is a deserted place and it is already very late. Dismiss them so that they can go to the surrounding farms and villages and buy themselves something to eat."

He said to them in reply, "Give them some food yourselves. How many loaves do you have?" They said, "Five loaves and two fish."

So he gave orders to have them sit down on the green grass. Then, taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he said the blessing, broke the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; he also divided the two fish among them all. They all ate and were satisfied. (from Mark 6)

Today, St. Pius V had Mass in a nearby park, something they do once a year. Em told us about it, and since the rest of our house went to Mass last night, we went together. It was a very different liturgical adventure from last week's Tridentine Mass. This Mass, in "God's first cathedral," as the priest put it, harkened back to my days at Yosemite National Park, leading worship services under the rocks and mountains that took my breath away. Here however, we sat on flat grass and could see the cars on the nearby roads.

The experience of participating in Mass on a blanket held a different type of sacred. At first, I mostly just enjoyed the fact that the lectors were the best two I've heard since leaving W&M (we have some amazing lectors there; I'm liturgically spoiled). But then during communion, as I watched everyone get up off the green grass to share this meal of broken bread, it hit me.

I was living out the story of the loaves and fishes.

Our seminarian last year, in his theology series, explained the linking between the Last Supper, the Passion and death of Christ, and the Mass and Eucharist now, in terms of anamnesis. It means a remembering that is more than a remembering -- as separated as we are by time and distance from the historical event, spiritually, anamnetically, we share the same sacrifice. The cross, the Eucharist, and our Mass are all the same.

The sharing of the loaves and fishes serves as a precursor for the Eucharist. A sort of foreshadowing. It might be somewhat backwards for the experience of the foreshadowing deepen the actual event, but that's what happened today. Being a part of the miracle of loaves and fishes drew me into the miracle of the Mass, reminding me of the oneness of everything in our lives and our history.

After Mass, we had a picnic in superabundance. It also was reminiscent of the 12 wicker baskets left over.

The Morning Paper

Some days, the Post-Dispatch is a little too local for me. I miss the DC metro area, where local news always seemed to have national import. Today, however, I received some priceless Obama news. In the wake of yesterday's anniversary, we're discussing whether or not to send more troops to Iraq. According to the Post-Dispatch, "It's unclear when Obama will make a decision, although the White House says he won't be rushed. 'Getting it right is of utmost important to the President,' White House secretary Robert Gibbs said Friday."

Did I hear that correctly? Well, okay, did I read that correct? When it comes to war, a matter that is clearly time sensitive, when not getting it right in a timely manner can jeopardize both previous and future success, we can take our time to get things right. Yet when it comes to healthcare, we must act quickly. It's too important to wait long enough to figure what Obama's plan means and if it makes any sense.

I'm not criticizing the President for wanting to take his time and make an important decision very carefully. I'm just confused by his logic.

"A Village Called New York"

Over the summer, I read David Oliver Relin's Three Cups of Tea. The book tells the story of a lower-middle class rock-climber who began to build a school for one small Pakistani village and ended up running a foundation starting nearly 80 schools across Pakistan and Afghanistan.

I was reading it when I worked in the city, taking the bus up I-95, dropping off at the Pentagon, and stopping at various places along 14th St. The day I came Mortenson's day of Sept. 11, 2001, I was coming up to the Pentagon bus bay. Mortenson was in a Pakistani village and his host woke him up to tell him, "A village called New York was bombed." I found myself tearing up and having trouble reading on.

Today, we discussed the events of 9-11 with the middle school classes. In the 7th grade, the social studies teacher covered most of it, and I surprised myself by wiping away tears. With a group of people who don't remember that period of time, in a place geographically far from DC which is home, I found myself shaking as I read the Wiki article on September 11th to the 6th and 8th grades. And they understood the importance... the same way I understand the importance of the Kennedy assassination.

How long does it take for our lives to become history? To me, it's life, current events, reality, not something to be taught, something whose importance must be impressed upon middle school students. It makes time seem different in my mind. I'm not sure if it makes life shorter, or fuller, or both.

Side Note: The 8th graders were more interested in the math to figure out my age based on where I was in school in 2001 than learning about 9-11. One secret is out of the bag.