[Taken from a Medieval hymn]

To one that is so fair and bright,

Velut maris stella,

Brighter than the day is light,

Parens et puella,

I cry to thee to turn to me:

Lady, pray thy Son for me,

Tam pia,

That I may come to thee,

Maria.

In sorrow, counsel thou are best,

Felix fecundata:

For all the weary thou art rest,

Mater honorata:

Beseech him in thy mildest mood,

Who for us did shed his blood

In cruce,

That we may come to him

In luce.

All this world was forlorn,

Eva peccatrice,

Till our Savior Lord was born

De te genetrice;

With thy Ave sin went away,

Dark night went and in came day

Salutis.

The well of healing sprang from thee

Virtutis.

Lady, flower of every thing,

Rosa sine spina,

Thou bore Jesu, heaven’s King,

Gratia divina.

Of all I say thou bore the prize,

Lady, Queen of paradise,

Electa;

Maiden mild, Mother

Es effecta.



If you continue to place yourself in [the Lord's] presence, turning away from the noise and tumult of the world, you will soon find that He is speaking to you quite distinctly. If we wish to hear the voice of God, we must go where he is most readily found: in prayer, silence, Sacred Scripture, the Church, the poor, the hungry, the sick, the ignorant, and the forgotten. You will find Him in all these places, but you will especially need the first four in order to find Him in the others. He is there…all He is waiting to hear is Amen…Fiat…let it be done. This is why Mary is our model, for it was her great Amen at the Annunciation that brought Our Lord and all His blessings upon the world. Be like Mary: listen, hear and say Amen.

The worst thing you can do is be unmindful of the good things God has already given you. Remember that we are headed to heaven! Contemplate heaven like you contemplate your weekend and life will become much easier. Think of it with the same joyful expectation and present concerns will quickly take on their proper proportions.

That from a lovely letter I recieved from my dear friend Br. Josef a couple weeks ago. His thoughts are so quiet and profound I simply had to post some for your meditative pleasure.

My cousin had a baby Tuesday night! He is so beautiful it makes me weep. I remember when my cousin and I used to play with my stuffed animals on the floor of my bedroom, or join in a grand game of kick-the-can in the backyard. Time flies, and brings new blessings. :)

What is making me smile today?

The possibility of snow tomorrow while we pick out and decorate our Christmas tree. :)

Yuletide at Fort McHenry.

Jesus is coming!

In case you haven’t seen, I’m finally typing up my Paris journals.

I had a lovely mini-retreat at the Basilica yesterday.

Applications submitted to Princeton, JHU, University of Arizona, and UT. Huzzah!

I love Olive Oil soap. As a gal who never wears makeup, this it the perfect stuff to baby your skin.

Notions from Maison Sajou.

On my way to cutting caffeine out of my diet: I did a whole week of ONE cup of coffee per day and one cup of green tea. Feeling better already.

Re-reading the Reed of God for Advent. Pure and simple: if you don’t have it, buy it.

This new lookbook (“Winter Diary”) from Miss Etoile is a true confection.

What is making you smile?

Center Point of Paris

At the Pompidou, Mommy and I picked our way amongst sunbathers in the courtyard (yes, sunbathers) to the entrace, rode the escalators, peered at the library that was Mommy’s old haunt, and finally wandered into the galleries of Picasos and other works upstairs. I am particularly fond of modern sculpture, and found one piece to be most telling: an empty frame with twine and labels tied around it, signifying (to me anyway) how art is mostly labels and trimmings these days, without any real substance or soul…

Read more of Day 5 on my travel blog here. :)

The Veterans' Chapel at Les Invalides

Before leaving Les Invalides, we visited the veteran’s chapel “on the other side” of the glass where the veterans still attend Mass. The upper ceiling is lined with captured enemy flags, dusty and mainly gray with age, a testament to the valiant Frenchmen who fought and continue to fight in service of their country. The rest of the chapel was sparsely decorated, but I thought the muted tones of the stonework and the way the light played around the chapel was breathtaking. It was one of my two favorite churches that we visited in Paris…

Follow the link to read the rest of the journal entry for Day 4 of my trip to Paris! :)

There is something so quiet, mysterious and magical about rainy nights, especially when one is out and about in them. Perhaps it is the promise of day at the end of the darkness. Check out the above print and others from Blanca Gomez at her Etsy shop. I love every. single. print.

Parisian Park

“…next, we crossed the bridge to visit La Conciergerie. Originally the palace of the French kings, it was vacated by the royal family after one king endured the scarring episode of seeing his ministers’ throats slit when he was (unsuccessfully) attacked there during an (equally passionate but unsuccessful) uprising. The sturdy medieval building was then converted to a prison for use during the Revolution, when Robespierre presided over trials where the kings used to dine. Marie Antoinette was also held there until her death – you can see her “apartments” – and Robespierre spend a few of his final hours there before he was taken elsewhere to die, crushed by the unstoppable machinery of the Revolution…”

Read the rest of my entry for Day 3 of my Paris trip here. Enjoy!

One of the things that surprised me most about Paris was the lack of “high fashion” I had imagined…there were no sky-high gladiator heels, platformed pumps, sweater dresses, or trendy statement necklaces. Yet every single French woman had a laid back, gorgeous style and fashion that knocked me flat. They could wear a pair of jeans, a t-shirt, boots and a scarf with the panache of a runway model. How?! I asked. The fashion lesson I learned from the French is a simple one: be confident and feel lovely in whatever you are wearing, and voila! instant fashion.

The beautiful Garance Dore has  post about this very phenomenon today on her blog. Check it out here. :)

Have I mentioned lately that I love Prof. Robert George?

For the past four years, I have read and been very pleased with his work.

He stands for so much that is lacking in our society, and many times he stands alone. Over these past couple months, he has worked to draft the Manhattan Declaration. Please keep him in your prayers…he is going to need them.