as the bridegroom rejoices in His bride

5 days?

How does it happen that the less time you have to do something, the time slips away faster?  There must be some kind of natural law about this type of thing.

5 days.  Literally.  Crazy.

Today I spent the day with my best friend, Maggie.  For those of you who don’t know her, I am sorry for you.  She’s pretty much the best woman I have ever met.  We have been BFFs for since about the 5th grade and we have seen it all together.  Good, bad, ugly, uglier.  We have laughed, cried, sobbed, yelled, *bit*, and loved.  Being an only child some people would think is sad because I never got to have a sister of my own flesh and blood, but God stepped in and gave me this great woman.  She is a holy woman of God, a great friend, an even greater listener and she inspires me to be the best version of myself.  AND I’d say all this even if she was in the room (I also just subscribed her to my blog, so this is my shout out to you barb).  I could seriously keep going on, but you get the idea.  I love her.  Nuff said.

So we had a wonderful day together, played with her beautiful daughter, had dinner with the whole Barber clan who was home, took senior pictures (thats a whole story in itself) and then I came home and had a very long and great conversation with another good friend.  A very relaxing day.

I have some more packing to do, and it will all get done.  God is granting me great peace right now that I can just chill, take each of these next few days as they come, and just.. be me.  What a gift that is.  Can anyone believe that this is actually happening?!  God is so good.  And I’m on my way to becoming a NUN.  Fantastic!

A day I will never forget

4 masses.  4 homilies.  4 blessings.  4 encounters with our Eucharistic Lord.  2 very blessed young women.

I had the pleasure of standing next to my sister in Christ, Jackie, this whole weekend, as we journeyed with our parish family and asked for their blessing as we begin this new chapter of each of our lives.  What an emotion ride it was!  You would think going to 4 masses in 2 days would be boring or repetitious.. but it was anything but that.  Every mass had a new and hidden treasure.  Or I met another person who God placed there to encourage me.  Or a priest did something that made me laugh hysterically.  I captured each moment within me, and like Mary, I will be pondering all these things in my heart.  Every sight, sound, hug, handshake, wink.. my senses were fully alive and I felt my Bridegroom within, around and beside me.  How. Glorious.

How could you not feel joy surrounded by a family that loves us as much as St. Francis parish loves us?  Praise God for all these blessings.  And Fr. Schleicher, this one is for you. :)

Why do we have ‘stuff’?

I was really hoping to get a reflection on the beatification.. and I promise I will!  (but mostly I haven’t taken the time to download photos, so it will have to wait a little bit longer) What is really on my heart is, well.. stuff.  Rather, having ‘stuff’.  As I unceremoniously sift through all that has accumulated in just my room at the 1-5-0-4 (aka my house in Akron), I realize just how much can be packed into a bathroom and bedroom.  

And why do I need this ‘stuff’?  Is it going to make me happy?  Does surrounding myself with piles of papers and clothes and other possessi

Why do we have ‘stuff’?

I was really hoping to get a reflection on the beatification.. and I promise I will!  (but mostly I haven’t taken the time to download photos, so it will have to wait a little bit longer) What is really on my heart is, well.. stuff.  Rather, having ‘stuff’.  As I unceremoniously sift through all that has accumulated in just my room at the 1-5-0-4 (aka my house in Akron), I realize just how much can be packed into a bathroom and bedroom.  

And why do I need this ‘stuff’?  Is it going to make me happy?  Does surrounding myself with piles of papers and clothes and other possessions make life better?  Easier?  More fulfilling?  Obviously, the answer is no - but then why do I have it?

I come from two savers.  If my parents can find a use for something or someone might need something, we MUST save it.  Or give it to Goodwill.  And don’t get me wrong, I appreciate this quality and there have been an abundance of times I have asked my mom for something and magically she has just the right item.  That being said, I don’t believe the world would end if I haven’t saved just the right item for just the right occasion.

In fact, I think that may be what God is teaching me through this experience.  ”Hey, by the way, I am still God and you are still not.  No matter how many ‘perfectly good’ items you stock pile, the answer is still always Me.  I will provide for you.”

Whoa.  It’s so true though.  No matter what, God is what I need.  But when I enter a time of transition/change/insanity, I tend to cling to the familiar.  The known.  The ‘stuff’ of my everyday life that I don’t want to let go of yet, because it provides comfort to have something still here amidst chaos and confusion.

So how do I learn to let go?  My first step has been giving stuff away.  My roommates have already been blessed by the bounty of my room, and there will be more to come I am sure.  It is rather therapeutic to hand an item over to someone who needs it or can use it - and it also means I don’t have to move or pack it - DOUBLE BONUS!  Simplify, simplify, simplify.  

At this point we are t-minus 9 days until entrance, and still plugging away at the packing, sorting, donating.  This weekend will be busy with aforementioned tasks as well as attending all the masses at my home parish for a special blessing and a reception on Sunday for me and my sister at the parish who is also entering a religious community this summer.  Please pray for me extra hard this week, that I may keep trucking with my packing and seeing friends and preparing.  Know there of lots of packing prayers being offered for you!!

+Peace.

She has returned!

CHRIST IS RISEN!  INDEED HE HAS RISEN!

I don’t have time today to post ALLLL of the graces, insights, and joys of the last 2 weeks (at least 5 homilies worth hehe), but I will make time very soon to get my thoughts out so all may read!  Just know that I had a glorious time in Rome, God blessed me in so many ways through this entire experience and I am overjoyed to be just a few weeks from entering.  I am renewed in Him.  Now I must prepare for a lovely Mexican-themed evening at my home with my peeps and I am safe and sound in Ohio.  

And so we rejoice.

Happy Pascha! and God’s Particular Love for ME :)

What.a.weekend.  My sleep schedule is so off that I am having trouble sleeping, but I am rejoicing in the Resurrection!  Christ is RISEN!

I had such a great week at the Monastery with the Sisters.  They received their habits on Holy Wednesday, we saw the washing of the feet by Bishop John Kudrick on Thursday, burial service of Christ on Friday, liturgy of St. Basil Saturday, and then Resurrection Matins and Paschal Divine Liturgy on Sunday at 12am!  Followed by blessing of the baskets at 3am.  We know how to party, right?  I haven’t stopped eating meat and cheese for 2 full days, but I did finally eat some veggies tonight.

Exhaustion and food eating aside, I had a really really good week at the monastery.  Echoing Fr. Rich’s Paschal homily, I just want to say how much heart rejoices in the fact that even though I am broken, I am called to REJOICE in the Resurrection of Christ.  He doesn’t call the put together and the all-knowing.. He calls the broken and the sinners, of whom I am the first.  My woundedness is what draws me to Him because I know of my need for Him to be made whole.  By DEATH He Trampled DEATH!  I laugh every time tax collectors are mentioned in a reading, because I feel like its God’s particular love for me (I can still pretend that is me, even though I stopped working as a tax accountant, right?!)

One story before I head to bed.. I have a priest friend named Fr. Patrick, who has a phrase that I just mentioned that is his favorite phrase – God’s particular love.  Today, after a very prayerful liturgy at Holy Ghost with my sisters, some friends and Fr. Rich, I got in the car to head to my parents house for Easter Dinner.  I gave up music in the car for Lent (unless there was a dire need to stay awake), so I was rejoicing in the luxury of turning my ipod on for the hour drive home.  I hit the play button and my FAVORITE Marvin Gaye song came on – Ain’t No Mountain High Enough.  I almost dismissed it as coincidence, but I mean COME ON.  Even after the great week I had, God wanted to confirm for me that He would indeed do anything for me – there ain’t no mountain high enough to keep Him from getting to me!  That was God’s particular love for me.  He was speaking to me through this particular song – and it was SO great to hear His Voice J. 

CHRIST IS RISEN!  INDEED HE IS RISEN!

Chuck Norris vs Auditing (Thanks, Kristian)

In Honor of my last day of accounting, here are some Chuck Norris Auditing Tips:

Chuck Norris highlights in black

There is a sharp rise in Workers Comp claims whenever Chuck Norris is
at the client

Chuck celebrates the end of each audit by burning the client’s house
down. Why? Cause its just what Chuck likes to do.

Chuck Norris audits in the dark

When a partner asked if the client had any other long-term
liabilities…Norris simply held up his fists

If Chuck gets tired during the day he takes a nap….on the CEOs desk

Chuck Norris does not accrue for expenses…he accrues for pain

Chuck Norris’ posting threshold for pain….unlimited.

Chuck Norris does not use a ruler when making “power tickmarks”…. he
naturally draws perfectly straight lines

Chuck Norris takes a 15 minute coffee break every 5 minutes

How does Chuck Norris hole punch? Answer: with a shotgun and an
extremely accurate aim

Chuck Norris not only assigns useful lives….he takes them away

Chuck Norris does not have to dial 9 first

Chuck Norris erases pencil marks with his beard…it erases pen too

If he finds an exception, Chuck Norris amortizes pain over the
remaining useful life of the client

Chuck Norris irons his shirts with a blowtorch and a rusty piece of
sheet metal

What’s the risk of significant misstatement? Answer: A Chuck Norris
roundhouse

Chuck Norris doesn’t issue a schedule of requests, he roundhouses the CFO and the staff pull all documents.

Chuck Norris signs the audit opinion in blood… of the last person he killed.

A non-statistical sampling template doesn’t produce a sample size, it asks Chuck how many he’d like to test.

Chuck Norris issues two types of audit opinions: Unqualified and a roundhouse kick.

Chuck Norris doesn’t propose entries, he commands them with an uppercut.

Chuck Norris scored a 100 on all four sections of the CPA… without studying.

Chuck Norris once headbutt a client so hard the shock wave temporarily merged FASB and IASB standards.

The SEC gets investigated by Chuck Norris.

Chuck Norris documentation consists of “Because I said so”.

Chuck Norris’ beard contains so much energy a strand of hair once landed in the keyboard, the laptop exploded.

“Generally accepted” in GAAP and GAAS refers to Chuck Norris’ approval.