I am cheating and writing this on Saturday between the two Confirmations because yesterday was a very full day. I don’t know where the day goes. I got up early yesterday because I had the school Mass at 9:00am.
Then I called my cousin, Michael Caruso, whose birthday it was. I offered Mass for his parents who gave him life and faith. When I was in the seminary, a missionary who worked in Japan told us that on your birthday you don’t get gifts, you give them to your parents. Since then, I have always celebrated by own birthday and the birthdays of my family and friends by a gift (or Mass) for their parents. It worked out nice that Michael was at work at Caruso’s Florist down on M street and his dad, Philip was there also. It was an extra treat to speak with them both.
Then I went to Walter Reed Hospital to visit Frances Icaboni, whom I had the privledge of witnessing her marriage to Jim Krilich while I was at Ridge. She is a retired army officer and while being very sick, she was her charming and gracious self when I stopped by to bring the Eucharist, which I knew she would love to have.
Then I went to Sunrise, which is one of the residences nearby that we have Mass in sometimes for those who can not get to church. It was my first time there and I met lots of lovely people. It is just up the road on Conneticutt Ave.
Then I had five interviews for First Eucharist. As always there were spirit lifting. Then I had the stations of the Cross at 6pm. We do them with families and at each station a family drops off with a lit candle and stays there till the Church is “rimmed” with 14 candles. We use the booklet that Fr. John’s Dad, Deacon Clarence Enzler, wrote many years ago and has been re-issued. I found it very moving.
There was pizza for everyone – and its great to see how many families come – in the center but I couldn’t go because I was going over to Riverdale. My sister, Marie, and our friend, Danny were both being inducted into a service level in the Elks. There was a dinner, which I missed but I got to sit with Marie, Maggie, Mary, Marie’s daughter and with Ronnie, Marie’s oldest boy and Debbie, his wife. That was paricularly nice as I don’t see Ronnie and Debbie very often and we laughed and “caught up”.
I got home around 11pm and just jumped into bed and that is why there was no blog on Friday.
I started this yesterday (Saturday) between the confirmations but now it is Sunday and I am finishing it off. I hope to tell you about Saturday later tonight (sunday)
That c-pac MUST be working!!! Sounds like a demanding schedule for an “old” priest! 🙂