What is an Amateur?

    What is an amateur? Is it someone new at an activity?  Someone inept and inexperienced? Can an amateur be an expert at their activity?

    I have always been a huge fan of the Nancy Drew books.  When I was younger, it was for the adventure and the mystery.  Now that I'm older, I still enjoy them as a good way to just relax, plus I find it fascinating how they were created, and how they have changed over the years.  Nancy Drew is the classic amateur detective.  But after solving 56 mysteries in the original series alone, one can hardly call her inept or inexperienced.  No, her "amateur" standing comes from the fact that she doesn't solve mysteries because she is paid to do it, or because she has been professionally trained  - she does it because she loves to do it.

  G. K. Chesterton once wrote: "The word amateur has come by the thousand oddities of language to convey an idea of tepidity; whereas the word itself has the meaning of passion. Now is this peculiarity confined to the mere form of the word; the actual characteristic of these nameless dilettanti is a genuine fire and reality. A man must love a thing very much if he not only practices it without any hope of fame or money, but even practices it without any hope of doing it well.  Such a man must love the toils of the work more than any other man can love the rewards of it."  The word amateur is from the french, meaning "one who loves." An amateur may indeed be quite good her craft, but she needn't be.  She need only love it.

   I am an amateur.  I do many many things,  simply because I love to do them, or occasionally because I love the one I do them for.  I say I am the rambling amateur both because I have a tendency to be long winded when I write, and also because I have so many different hobbies that I rarely stay with just one for long.  And I'm always eager to learn something new, whether it is in one of my current interests or in the pursuit of a new one.  If I am an expert in anything, it is in being an amateur.

   It has been a long time since I have posted on this blog, and many things have changed in the last four years.  But now I return, as I so often return to my hobbies.  I come back with new knowledge and new ideas, and I am eager to learn more.  I have more focus now, on what this blog is.  It is the blog of a Rambling Amateur, to share what I learn and discover, and how I discovered it.  

Feast of the Dedication of St. Michael

Just a quick note before bed.  Today was the Feast of St. Michael and the angels.  Here are a few of my previous posts on the subject :)

God Bless,
Rae

http://theramblingamateur.blogspot.com/2011/03/st-michael-and-marine.html

http://theramblingamateur.blogspot.com/2011/03/st-michael-protector.html

http://somecatholicinklings.blogspot.com/2013/09/st-michael-in-time-of-peace-gilbert-k.html

When Your Kiss is Met with a Cold Shoulder- A must read from Moxie Wife

Yes, I follow Moxie Wife.  I love Moxie Wife.  No, I'm not married.  I started following her back when she was Betty Beguiles because of her great style advice and all.  And I am after all studying for my MRS. degree, so it doesn't hurt to be getting these great little marriage tips now, right?

Hallie really writes some amazing blog posts.  And now and then, like today, there is just so much wisdom in them I just thank God that she blogs, so I can hear it.  Todays post is about marriage, I know, but really it is about all relationships.  Not just romantic relationships, either.  Family relationships.  Friendships.  Even coworkers could take some notes.

How often do we loose our tempers and our joy and proceed to drag everybody else down with us?  Too often.  And how often to we find ourselves in the presence of a grump and let them take us with them?  Far too often.  It's the easy way.  It's the instinctive way.  But maybe it isn't the only way.  

Today I encourage EVERYONE to read this.  Spouses I think do have a special duty to take it to heart, but we can all learn something.
When Your Kiss is Met with a Cold Shoulder

God Bless!

P.S.
I haven't been around here much, but I've been pretty busy over at my new blog, Catholic Inklings.  Check it out!

Brain Dead?

I would like to encourage you all to read the Summer 2010 newsletter of Life Decisions International.  I feel it explains thoroughly the Catholic Church’s teaching on organ donation, and the very serious problems with organ harvesting as it is practiced in the medical field today. This is an area of the culture of death that I do not see addressed very often, and I think there is a lot of confusion on the issue.  I myself was not aware of the problems with organ donation until relatively recently.  
       What is most concerning is the fact that it is impossible for certain organs, including the heart, to be harvested if the patient is already dead.  This means that it is the doctor killing these people, not their injuries.  The term “brain dead” was created to make these harvests possible, but brain death, no matter what the doctors may say, is not truly death. You can’t be dead if your heart is still beating, and your heart can’t be donated once it stops beating.  I should note that this is often why the EMTs will continue CPR, even when there is little chance of recovery for someone - to keep the heart "beating" until the organs can be harvested.      We hear a lot about Abortion and Euthanasia when we talk about Pro-Life issues.  It’s easy to see why they are wrong.  It’s harder to realize and explain why we can’t support organ donation for organs such as the heart.  It’s hard to even to explain to ourselves when looking at those waiting for a donation WHY it is unethical for them to ever receive that donation.  But we must look at this situation, and the truth of what really goes on.  And we must continue to pray and work for the respect for life from conception through natural death.  I could keep going here, but I know the newsletter is a much better authority than I am.

Advice from a chocolate wrapper...

There are so many things I could write about. Lucky for you, I am stuck writing on my iPod, which makes a long post impractical. My computer and Internet have had yet another fight, it would seem, and they refuse to speak to each other. But I said I'd write a blog post this weekend, so write I shall!

Advice from a chocolate wrapper: "Smile before you go to bed. You'll sleep better." Sounds reasonable. Too often I go to bed with nothing but the worries of the world and my day on my mind. Even my evening prayers seem to be an endless litany of petitions regarding the countless concerns in my life and those of my friends, family, and the world in general. Not exactly the way to pray. Or to ensure a restful night.
About here is where I generally strike upon some profound solution to this problem. Oh, I know the general formula. Let God take care of it, smile, and have peace. So simple, yet oh so difficult to do. And oh so easy to forget.

It's so easy to imagine that the early Christians - and anyone not living in today's world - had it easier. And I'm sure there were times when it was easier. But in truth, the early Christians were living in a world just as bad as ours today - if not worse. There wasn't even a faint memory of Christendom for them to turn to. Granted, there also wasn't a deep seated hatred for it, either, as we sometimes find now. But they were dealing with people who either already had their own gods, or who had pretty much no use for any gods. And they were dealing with people whose vices were at times considered virtues in their pagan religion. Not so different from now, eh? How did they do it?

I'm guessing they started with themselves. And their lives were such a contrast to the darkness around them, their message was easier to believe. And the light spread.

We live in a time when darkness seems to be spreading rapidly. Everywhere we look, it seems to have touched something. I find it overwhelming, especially at night, when I find so many petitions in my prayers. It feels as though nothing I can do could ever be enough. But, in the heart of my heart, I know there must be hope. I know that the darkness cannot overcome the light. I know the darker it is, the brighter the light will be. And I know that if I count me blessings, thank and trust God, and smile, I will rest well.

Sursum Corda: Registration is Open!

Yay!  They have opened up registration for Sursum Corda!  My sister and I are signed up, so now I can safely spread the word far and near ;) Register and then tell your friends!
http://www.institute-christ-king.org/go/sursum-corda/

So, at a glance, here is the info:
What: Sursum Corda, a social and spiritual weekend for young adults.  And if previous years are any indication, an amazing weekend.

Who: You (if you are older than 18 and still consider yourself a young adult,) me, a bunch of other really cool people, and The Institute of Christ the King.

When: Friday, June 21, 2013, 3:00 PM through Monday, June 24, 2013, 12:00 PM.

Where: Beautiful Mundelein Seminary, about 40 minutes from O'Hare airport in Chicago.

Hope to see you there!

Lenten Resources

   I should have made this list in the beginning of Lent.  But here it is, at least ready for Holy Week, and maybe for next year, right?  One advantage of doing this now is that I’ve had all of Lent to remember and discover and use these, so they are fresh in my mind.

   MYSTERIUM FIDEI - This source has been a soul saver for me this year.  As you may or may not know, I came down with whooping cough a couple of weeks before Lent.  Tomorrow will be my first Sunday Mass in about two months (I was able to get to Mass and Confession this morning, too.  Yay!)  One of the things I tried to do every Sunday to keep it holy was to listen to Msgr. Cook’s homily from the corresponding Sunday from last year and the year before.  I would also get this year’s homily usually later in the week when it was posted. There are many, many excellent sermons on here - I haven’t listened to any without feeling I learned something.  (A note: I usually attend the Extraordinary Form of the Mass, and I know many of my readers do the same, so I want to point out that these are from Msgr. Cook’s Ordinary Form Sunday Masses and the corresponding readings. Sadly, he doesn’t do a homily at his beautiful Extraordinary Form Saturday morning Masses.) THE STATIONS OF THE CROSS BY ST. ALPHONSUS LIGUORI 
 
There are many meditations on the Stations of the Cross, but my favorite are the ones written by St. Alphonsus Liguori. There is such beautiful prose and repetition in it.  If you haven’t had the opportunity to use these meditations, I encourage you to do so.  Especially an older translation with the “Thee”s intact.  Did you know that Thees and Thous were terms for loved ones, not formal?  There is also a recording of these meditations produced by David Phillips, featuring Robert Kochis and Seraphim.  The music added is so lovely - I only wish it was possibly to listen to the hymns without the meditations. 
BENJAMIN’S BOX:
I love this book.  Yes, it is a children’s book, and yes, there is one page that needs to be edited a bit (on page eleven, when telling about the last supper it says the wine was “like” His blood, and the bread “like” His body. A bit of marker fixes that easily.) I think this copy has a little "parents guide" that is geared toward the "saved" thinking, too. But what better way to bring children closer to the story of Christ’s Death and Resurrection than through the eyes of a child? If you have children, I recommend reading this book with them during Holy Week.  You can buy the eggs that go with it, but my brothers enjoyed putting together their own boxes and improvising. 

That's all for now, folks!  Oh, and you can check out my YouTube Playlist for Lent.  It's a little short, but maybe I'll add a few more songs.

May God Bless and Keep You this Holy Week!