It was good to see the church fairly full this morning; some years, unfortunately, it seems like many people decide that spending Memorial Day Weekend at the lake is more important than attending mass. I appreciated it last year when our pastor made a point of announcing, the Sunday before Memorial Day, that our Sunday obligation is not suspended on long weekends! His homily today was excellent, as usual. He is the chaplain for the local fire station and often covers mass at the Air Force base, so he feels strongly Memorial Day, but he wasn't about to skip preaching about the Trinity for Trinity Sunday, and he managed to tie the two together surprisingly well. After briefly recounting his class on theology of the Trinity in seminary (and how incredibly complex a mystery it is), he drew out one particular facet of the mystery for us: unselfish love. We experience the unselfish love of each Person of the Trinity differently--the Father as He creates and sustains us, the Son as He sacrifices Himself for us, the Spirit as He pours out His gifts upon us. Our men and women in uniform, Father went on to say, also show us this unselfish love in their own unique ways as they put their lives on the line for the sake of their country and for all of us.
Little Bear is settling into an unfortunate pattern at mass: he stays quiet and well-behaved until the homily, when he starts squirming and fussing and asking to nurse. When he begins to be disruptive I take him out, to the cry room if there is room or outside if it is full, where he promptly becomes happy and denies having asked for food. If I take him back in, he gets mad again; if I don't, he tries to explore. How do you teach a nearly-11-month-old to be quiet in church? (Don't laugh; I know it's kind of an outrageous question, but I have seen other kids his size who sit quietly all the way through. What do those parents know that I don't???)
We are enjoying shockingly gorgeous weather this weekend, with high 70s and low 80s and so, so much sun! Also mosquitos, but they are the big slow ones that come out first, so they aren't too bothersome. Last night we took Little Bear to a nearby restaurant and sat out on their deck overlooking the river, enjoying the wonderful summer-ness while chatting with Matt's friend from work.
Unfortunately, I'm realizing that my nursing-friendly wardrobe is really limited to winter colors and pieces... as you can see, I was definitely not dressed for summer sun today!
Top: thrifted
Skirt: Walmart
Shoes: Payless
Have a lovely rest of your weekend! Don't forget to stop by Fine Linen and Purple for more What I Wore Sunday. As you celebrate Memorial Day tomorrow, remember all of our servicemen and women and their families, especially those who have given their lives!
Eternal rest grant unto them O Lord, and let your perpetual light shine upon them, and may they rest in peace. Amen.
I truly think temperament has a lot to do with how well kids sit through Mass, and at what age. I know some parents swear by bringing their kids to the back and not letting them down (so they don't learn to just run around in the back), but Lucia would SHRIEK if we insisted on holding her. It was just much more calm and peaceful if we let her walk around, and now she almost always sits through Mass very well. (For a 2.5 year old, anyway). Some babies are more content to stay still in their parents' laps than others. Their naptimes are probably a factor, too (Felix wakes up from his am nap right before Mass, so it's just unavoidable that he'll be very active while we're in church). I guess what I'm saying is....I beat myself up a lot when comparing Lucia with other, seemingly more well-behaved kids her age at Mass. It's not worth the stress, and everything's a phase anyway. You're doing great! :)
ReplyDeleteIt DEFINITELY has to do with temperament. Andrew was always so...easy. We didn't do anything special, other than make it clear how he was supposed to act. He loves mass and watching and imitating. So, yeah, it's always been easy for him to sit and be quiet most of the time.
ReplyDeletePeter is proving to be a different story...
This is one of those times where our different styles of worship really keep me from helping you. I let the ninja crawl around, or hold my hand and awl. First lime of defense for a fussy child is a handoff to her Godmother or someone else with whom she is better behaved. Second try is a "Visit" to her saint- we go venerate the icon of her saint and a few others while we are at it. Third try, the breezeway which is open to the church, but quieter so I can see and hear but we are out of the way. Fourth try is the hall or outside, depending on timing, weather, number of other fussy babies in the hall/outside. It's a challenge!
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