St. Patrick's Day

It's Monday night. I just got home. Unlike a certain roommate who will remain anonymous (you know who you are) I wasn't at the Pub enjoying St. Patrick's Day like a good Irish (okay, part Irish) girl should. I was at work, training potential foster parents for the State of Vermont.
Seems unfair to me. Especially since I got up early to go to a special mass.

St Patrick is the patron of the church I've attended off and on since I was a baby. Take that and it being the start of Holy Week....what can you do? I had to go anyways to light a candle and say a couple of prayers for some friends in need and for a couple of my kids. It seems alot of people I know are having some sort of serious difficulty in their life right now. Some have faith to fall back on, some don't at the moment. I figure lending some of mine can't hurt.

One special interlude this morning before mass involved my Dad and some of the older church ladies. It seems they meet regularly before daily mass to say the rosary together. Each of them takes a section, leading the prayers and asking for special intentions, such as safety in travel for a son, healing for a parishioner with cancer, etc. All of the prayers were for others. And they do it almost everyday. Just a quiet testament to faith and good will toward others.

I do things a little differently. I don't pray the rosary, not because I don't have one. I do, my mom brought it back from Ireland for me. I haven't prayed the complete rosary since I was a child. I haven't retaught myself all the prayers again. (I can just see Sister Marcel shaking her head at me. I got that alot during catechism) So in addition to lighting candles at church, I light novenas at home. While the novena candles burn, I send out prayer requests via email. Some come from me asking for prayers for someone I love. Some come via me as requests from others. The way I see it, so long as the heart is true, where the prayer is said or how it is sent doesn't matter as much. And the more hearts engaged, the better for all involved. Of course this might be part of my past issues with the Catholic church. (Don't tell Father Rick, he'd be shocked). Must be the rebel Irish blood.

Prayer must work though, I saw the true official sign of spring. Two motorcycles out for a ride! Woohoo!