Readings for Christmas Midnight Mass

December 25, 2010
The Nativity of the Lord Christmas
Mass at Midnight


Reading 1
Is 9:1-6
The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light;
upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom
a light has shone.
You have brought them abundant joy
and great rejoicing,
as they rejoice before you as at the harvest,
as people make merry when dividing spoils.
For the yoke that burdened them,
the pole on their shoulder,
and the rod of their taskmaster
you have smashed, as on the day of Midian.
For every boot that tramped in battle,
every cloak rolled in blood,
will be burned as fuel for flames.
For a child is born to us, a son is given us;
upon his shoulder dominion rests.
They name him Wonder-Counselor, God-Hero,
Father-Forever, Prince of Peace.
His dominion is vast
and forever peaceful,
from David’s throne, and over his kingdom,
which he confirms and sustains
by judgment and justice,
both now and forever.
The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this!
Ps 96: 1-2, 2-3, 11-12, 13
Responsorial Psalm



R. (Lk 2:11) Today is born our Savior, Christ the Lord.
Sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all you lands.
Sing to the LORD; bless his name.
R. Today is born our Savior, Christ the Lord.
Announce his salvation, day after day.
Tell his glory among the nations;
among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.
R. Today is born our Savior, Christ the Lord.
Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice;
let the sea and what fills it resound;
let the plains be joyful and all that is in them!
Then shall all the trees of the forest exult.
R. Today is born our Savior, Christ the Lord.
They shall exult before the LORD, for he comes;
for he comes to rule the earth.
He shall rule the world with justice
and the peoples with his constancy.
R. Today is born our Savior, Christ the Lord.



Reading 2
Ti 2:11-14
Beloved:
The grace of God has appeared, saving all
and training us to reject godless ways and worldly desires
and to live temperately, justly, and devoutly in this age,
as we await the blessed hope,
the appearance of the glory of our great God
and savior Jesus Christ,
who gave himself for us to deliver us from all lawlessness
and to cleanse for himself a people as his own,
eager to do what is good.



Gospel
Lk 2:1-14
In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus
that the whole world should be enrolled.
This was the first enrollment,
when Quirinius was governor of Syria.
So all went to be enrolled, each to his own town.
And Joseph too went up from Galilee from the town of Nazareth
to Judea, to the city of David that is called Bethlehem,
because he was of the house and family of David,
to be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child.
While they were there,
the time came for her to have her child,
and she gave birth to her firstborn son.
She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger,
because there was no room for them in the inn.

Now there were shepherds in that region living in the fields
and keeping the night watch over their flock.
The angel of the Lord appeared to them
and the glory of the Lord shone around them,
and they were struck with great fear.
The angel said to them,
“Do not be afraid;
for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy
that will be for all the people.
For today in the city of David
a savior has been born for you who is Christ and Lord.
And this will be a sign for you:
you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes
and lying in a manger.”
And suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel,
praising God and saying:
“Glory to God in the highest
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

Last Summer's Trip - Day 1, July 21

 Trying out the Gypsy Caravan.

 Mom and Dad's bunk - four feet wide foam covered shelf:

One last look at home: 

Catching up I

Working backwards to bring the audience forward, first entry.

Two weeks ago was Independence Day - my last check from Cengage.  As I read it, the terms of my exit contract have been satisfied, and we are now officially separated.

Actually, I'm not particularly interested in bashing my former employer.  I spoke the truth when I told my staff that my lay-off was a good thing.  I enjoyed summer vacation with Rob and the girls, and had some time to myself at home once school started again.  I had time, and the resources available, to think about what I really want to do, and the good fortune to start a new career almost as soon as I began looking.

I have no idea what the career will be, though.  I am now an operations assistant at a Catholic retreat center.  If I had known enough about this particular job, it would have been exactly what I described as my desired position.  I hope here to explain why, over time, and how things all happened, starting a year ago.

A Good Sign?

A white rabbit ran across the path as I walked up to the office the other day.  Well, it is mostly white, it has a brown patch on it's head. No pocket watch.  The rabbit following it is brown.  They live on the grounds, and come out of hiding when things are quiet.

Live Blogging Turns Into Memoir

And there it happened, in the middle of North America, we just gave up on live-action blogging.  We still saw amazing things and took lots of pictures, and Rae kept posting on her blog, but I relaxed into just soaking up the experiences.  So much for the documentarian approach.  I promise, I will post more about the trip, but it will be reminiscence.

More soon, I promise.

What day is today? (Monday, August 2) middle of South Dakota

We're here.  Wherever this is.  Actually it's Kennebec, South Dakota, in the middle of the SD prairie.  Warming up, and muggy, but I love it.  I wonder if somehow I retain a visceral memory of the summer weather in Ohio, before we moved to San Francisco?  Because I love this sort of weather, it makes me feel happy.

Yesterday (Sunday) we went to Mt. Rushmore.  The AAA guidebook suggested leaving campers at home as there is limited parking for them.  I'm glad we ignored that advise, because we were able to park at the site with no problem.  The weather was overcast and cool, sparing us the heat exhaustion I had at times in Yellowstone.  Or perhaps that was the altitude?

Mt. Rushmore is the one national monument Rob has talked of seeing, in all the years we've been married.  I joked that now we've seen it, plus all the other big things West of the Mississippi, we can just sit at home and grow old.  Actually I think we've talked of wanting to see Europe, especially the Vatican, someday, but "first we should see our own country."  Well, we're certainly doing that!

Daughter Rachel's blog is updated as well, for those who want more about the sites and sights:  http://rachelsfamilytravels.blogspot.com/.  I hope all is well with you!

Day....? Second Saturday, any rate.

What a week!  We drove from North of Denver to Cheyenne on Monday, and happened to get there for the Grand Daddy of Them All Rodeo Days.  We walked around Lions Park and visited the Pioneer Museum.  Then drove on to Rawlins WY for the night.  The next day we drove to Dubois, WY (Tuesday night), then into past the Grand Tetons and into Yellowstone for two nights.  We actually stayed outside the park in West Yellowstone, and spent Wednesday and Thursday touring the incredible spaces there.  Friday we drove to Cody, WY, and today made it to here, Rapid City, where we are staying the night.  Tomorrow after Mass at the Cathedral we will hit Mt. Rushmore, then on to Huron and DeSmet (pioneer/settler historic towns in SD), and Minnesota.

Sunday night, Colorado Mtns slightly west of Denver

We agree it seems as if we've been on the road for much longer than five days.  We've had so many incredible experiences already, especially compared to the weeks preceeding the trip, during which the girls spend each day on their computers and watching NCIS episodes on "On Demand."  While not much happened from Reno to Grand Junction, we drove such great distances each day that we spent waking to sleeping on the road.

And from Nevada to Grand Junction on we've really had adventures. On our way to Grand Junction we took a detour to see Arches National Park, where we all repeated "Wow." When we caught our breath we said "How amazing!"  We even got out of the RV and walked on some of the shortest trails to see the incredible scenes.

From Arches we went back to the highway and on to Grand Junction. We simply ate, showered and slept, too tired to do anything more.  The next morning we left I70 to swing south.

An hour out from the campground we pulled into a park in a small town and met up with friends we've only known online until now. We had a brief but full time chatting while our kids played together.  Then we pushed on eastward into the Rockies along I50, crossing the Continental Divide via the Monarch Pass. AAA has the route marked as "scenic," which we now know means mountainous with distracting views.  Rob hardly glanced away from the road in front of us, and described the experience as "intense."

Raechan (as daughter Rachel suggested I refer to her in this blog) spent the time taking pictures which she will post on the family travel blog. She actually filled one and a half memory cards with digital pictures - at one point I think she was snapping at a rate of 10 shots per minute.  I'll have her make a fast-moving slideshow and post it as a zip file for those who want to experience the ride without the actual sense of danger.

We ended the day by arriving for a late dinner with friends in Colorado Springs.  I've not had the time to really hang out with them until now, so it was especially wonderful for me. Rob and the kids appreciated both the meeting with friends and the experience of sleeping in real beds again. It felt like home away from home, but better.

After lunch we drove north to Boulder, hoping to meet other 'virtual' friends, but they couldn't make it.  We did however have dinner at Beau Jo's Pizza, which has been billed as "the best pizza in the universe." Rob and I had a barbecue sauce with chicken pizza, which is what we had on our first date in Mountain View 23 years ago(!).

Now we're driving north again into the night.  Rob took a nap while we waited in Boulder and he says he feels wide awake.  We'll stop somewhere before Ft. Collins, and tomorrow take a short drive across the border into Wyoming, zagging northwest towards Yellowstone.

It's an undescribable experience - I can only hope you all have similar ones someday.

First stop: KOA in Reno, NV

We made it through the first day, we're in Reno Nevada, it's about 9am.  Everyone's had breakfast, soon Rob and Rachel Jr. are going off to take showers.

The first day on the road was a bit mixed.  The RV ride is like a train with bad shocks, or maybe like a big rig truck with bad shocks.  The KOA 'campground' is just a large parking lot with hookups, not terribly inviting to look at.  Our space is a little slanted so we list a bit, and the wind hits us broadside and rocks the vehicle.  Very much like a boat, especially at night.

But I made enchiladas and refried beans last night for dinner for Rob and RJ and myself, and we had breakfast burritos this morning,   Gabby and Tea had burritos for diner and cereal for breakfast, and are either surfing the web or playing on their gameboys now.  So everyone's happy.

By the way, I did the previous post from my cell phone - isn't technology amazing?

On the road

I am actually writing this as we leave the bay area. we are on I80 going past Berkeley.

You're kidding, another week already?!

It's Monday, July 17 - where's the time gone?  And yet every day seems as if it's three days long.  We're preparing for the trip by making lists, shopping, and making campground reservations.  So far we're booked nightly through to two nights in Yellowstone.

RV rentals are available for pickup from two to four in the afternoon.  If possible, we want to pick up the RV tomorrow, which is a day early, so as to get on the road earlier on Wednesday.  Our first reservation is in Sparks, Nevada, just outside of Reno Wednesday night.  That means crossing the Sierras about six hours after leaving home. Not a drive I want to make at night.

I also have a new cell phone, so I can take pictures and post fairly easily.  I wonder if I can post the pictures via the web interface on the phone?  That would be cool!

Status update - Sunday night approaching second week of not working:

It's been a great weekend, topped off with seeing "Toy Story III" with the whole family after waking up from a mid-day nap. Oddly enough I don't recall too much beyond the day de jour, but I feel much more connected to everything, more a part of things.  Of course, I actually am, since Rob and the girls are in the middle of summer vacation themselves.

I've thought things through, and after meeting with the outplacement counselor, my pastor, and a few casual acquaintances, I've decided to dive completely in to the experience and have a genuine mid-life crisis.  My options are still somewhat limited:  I already have a red convertible, don't feel the need to trade in my husband or family, and can't affodt my own apartment anyway.  Besides, Rob has a job with benefits. So I've decided to explore major career reset.

I had coffee with an old friend, who was an editor for the Engineering list before her son was born 12 years ago.  Circumstances have tossed her into a role in the public school system's testing program.  We talked about the ways one's 'extracurricular' activities can turn into jobs.  That's what I'll examine in the next few months. 

I will get plenty of exposure to different choices since I am the master chairperson for the year of activities our church is planning as our 50th Anniversary celebration, starting this December with an evening of Christmas Caroling and the Blessing of Creches (Nativity Scenes).  January we are co-opting the church school's Science Fair, dedicating it to St. Albert who happily is the patron saint of Chemists (we plan to blow things up).  And we have the retired director of the city's Youth Theatre on the board, so we'll be staging Godspell, the original full musical, in March.

Of course, nothing much will happen until we return from The Trip.  I'll be blogging here about it, but my oldest daughter has started a family blog as well: rachelsfamilytravels.blogspot.com.  She'll have more pictures than I, but I will have more inspired writing.

Wouldn't you know my daughter would start a travel blog?

I will record as well, of course, but Rachel Emilia has created a travel blog for the family: http://rachelsfamilytravels.blogspot.com/

Enjoy, and we will be by to see you if at all possible!!

Last Day

Made it! work done, papers signed, door key and an ancient card with my conference number on it, computer and blackberry all turned in. Nap time!

A Good Sign

Yesterday and today I've heard the chirps of a tiny bird seemingly in the shrubbery along the walk down towards the first floor door at the office.  It seemed like that of a small warbler or other little songbird, and I looked for it in the shrubs and the low trees around the outside dining area, but could not locate the source.

Today at lunch I carried out a box of assorted personal things from my office to put in the car.  As I reached the top of the walk from the first floor to the parking lot, I heard the tiny chirping, and louder near its source.  And then I saw several small birds, one rather ragged one clinging to the front of a car parked at the foremost parking spot. Two others hopped nearby on the ground, then flew quickly to the small shrubs lining the walk.  The scruffy-looking one chirped a nagging chorus at the other two, then finally seemed to gather its strength and launch itself after them onto the ground nearby, dancing excitedly across the ground then the short-mowed lawn, pecking at somethings about its feet and chirping in excitement the while.

The two more smoothed-feathered and slightly larger birds had hopped, with their chirps, across the grass and into the small shrubs, chirping loudly as they went.

I paused with a smile and watched the summary of the scene:  the slightly larger (but rather slimmer than the other unruly chirper) pair exchanged comments between themselves, while the scruffy and louder chirper exclaimed loudly at everything before its eyes, then with an excited hop pounced and pecked upon it.

And the summary of the moment: The two slimmer birds are Western Bluebirds, somewhat less ornamented than their eastern cousins, harder to distinguish from all the other small songbirds we have out here.  All our birds bear their colors within subdued coats of dust or dun-colored overcoats.  The louder and more neatly arranged bird is the fledgling, gangling, awkward, and extremely reluckant to try feeding itself yet demanding that someone owes it a feeding.

The omen for me?  the little one is a fledgling, today upon its first flights from the nest.  It explodes with energy today upon the walkway and into the lawn, poking and pecking and chirping in delight at the bugs it fnds and consumes.  Its foray into the open shows me it is a western Bluebird - much less colorful than the Eastern cousins but just as opinionated about its diet, to judge from its vocabulary.  It has happily fledged and now joyfully launches itself into this new game of food-gathering, now on its own (with some unobserved oversite from Mum and Dad) to get as much out of life as it possibly can.

A good omen indeed.

Interesting Possibilities

Packing up things at the office, I came across a little thing I haven't seen since maybe two office moves ago.  It's a little figurine, about two inches high, of the Navajo "Storyteller."  This one has five children climbing over her as she sits with her mouth open, signifying that she is telling a story.

I bought it some five years ago in the Phoenix airport coming back from the Blackboard Users Conference.  At the time I was taking writing classes and wanting to spend time writing.  Things got busy, to say the least, and I have not had time to write for pleasure in years.  Coming across it now gave me pause.  Maybe now is a good time to think about that again.

From Robert Frost's "The Sound of The Trees"

I shall set forth for somewhere,
I shall make the reckless choice
Some day when they are in voice
And tossing so as to scare
The white clouds over them on.
I shall have less to say,
But I shall be gone.

First Day of Summer 2010

I'm sitting outside again, watching the evening turn into twilight. I just came back from a walk with my oldest daughter, and feel completely worn out. I feel like a convalescent recovering from some drawn out illness instead of just a somewhat severe attack of the common cold.

Birds are chirping their evening songs up in the trees around the house. Inside, the parakeets are squawking in response, chirp-squawk-trill.

If I remain very still, some of the wild birds may come down for a last drink from the birdbath. A pair of Western Goldfinches and a Tohee have adopted the bath as a regular stop in the early morning and evening. I can hear robins, some kind of warbler, and the tohee off in the distance, but so far no visitors.

Ah, here comes someone now, tentatively hopping along the ground picking at bugs. I will stop writing now and sit and watch. A wonderful way to end the first day of Astronomic Summer.

two plus weeks and counting down

I'm still sick, the doctor says it's just a cold. At least last night I had half a night's sleep.

My work email has dried up almost completely as people learn to go to others for much of their answers. But one manager asked me to run a report and analyze the data, and my mind jumped at the thought. I really enjoy finding the common patterns in large batches of data. I will be sure to ask the out-counseling service how I can do of that.

It's hardest to say goodbye to the people I've worked with and around for so many years. People don't go into publishing to make money, it doesn't pay at all. The reasons go way back, but the result is that people in publishing are there because they love it, in some ways it's a vocation. Working with people who have passion about what they do has been very sustaining over the years. I shall have to look into similar fields.

Sunday Afternoon

I love this house. It is small, and we are crowded, true. But though it gets messy quickly, it cleans up quickly as well.

I'm sitting on the sofa watching the afternoon pass through our back patio. A pleasant breeze blows through the house from back to front, and I hear a few birds calling outside. I also hear the freeway, perhaps a mile from us, but muted into background noise. Even the parakeets have fallen asleep in a late afternoon nap.

Rob and the kids have gone to visit their grandfather, leaving me at home to continue resting and recovering from this cough. I'm glad to have the house to myself, and equally glad to know they will be home before long. A very balanced day.

What a time to get sick!

Over the weekend I caught hold of the cough that first Gabby, then Teresa, brought home. Perhaps because I have NOT been exposed to it for the past six months as they have while it made the rounds of the class, I have been grabbed by the heels and tossed on my head. I think I spent the past 36 hours lying on one part of the bed, rolling from one side to the other and coughing.

Fortunately I had already booked the time off so was already officially offline. The kids finished school yesterday, and Rob won't be done until he cleans up his lab Friday, so we had to plan the coverage. Let me say here for all to read: our girls are wonderfully mature and capable! Today they managed their own food and entertainment, broke ranks when necessary to maintain the common peace, and generally allowed me to remain in my prone position, my only responsibilities to cough and at times roll over to prevent bed sores.

Interestingly, my compatriots at work are managing as well, though they habitually cc me on their messages. I am pleased to see that things are generally moving smoothly, which bodes well for my poor successors.

first post here

Hi, all, this is me, starting a new blog because I cannot remember the password to the first one I started, "Workingwifeandmother," but maybe that's ok since after July I would have to use strike-out characters on the "working" part of the title, and it turns out THAT title has already been used by someone else. Figures.

Yes, my position at Cengage has been eliminated, and at this time I do not have any plans. Honestly, the past two weeks have multiple layers of activities going on and it's taken most of my attention away from worry, which is good. Here's what's going on:

The girls all finish their school year tomorrow. Actually the oldest, Rachel, graduated on Friday and is officially not-an-eighth-grader anymore. Friday was filled with Bacheloriate Mass, Graduate's Luncheon sponsored by the 7th Grade, then the Graduation Ceremony itself Friday evening.

Two weekends' ago was the School Festival, and if you've never been it's just like the closing scene in the movie "Grease" - carnival rides, kids running around, and music - the latter on stage with a mix of semi-pro and talented amateur. I worked the Hamburger/Hotdog booth on Saturday night and spent Friday night and Sunday onsite while the girls ran hither and yon. With intensity.

Of course someone had to get a cold at the end of the school year, and I of course caught it from my girls over the weekend. I woke up today unable to do more than drive the two remaining school girls to school and pick them up after. I spent the time between on the sofa, under heavy layers of blankets. I know my colleagues hope I've beaten it, because we really need to work on the transfers of authority.

That's all for now, since a) I have run out of things to post and b) I am ready to fall asleep again. TTFN, and ciao.