Holding in Memory

canticle for Mike CALLAHAN

1/18/12

R. (5b) In God I trust; I shall not fear.
Have mercy on me, O God, for men trample upon me;
all the day they press their attack against me.
My adversaries trample upon me all the day;
yes, many fight against me.
R. In God I trust; I shall not fear.
My wanderings you have counted;
my tears are stored in your flask;
are they not recorded in your book?
Then do my enemies turn back,
when I call upon you.
R. In God I trust; I shall not fear.
Now I know that God is with me.
In God, in whose promise I glory,
in God I trust without fear;
what can flesh do against me?
R. In God I trust; I shall not fear.
I am bound, O God, by vows to you;
your thank offerings I will fulfill.
For you have rescued me from death,
my feet, too, from stumbling;
that I may walk before God in the light of the living.
R. In God I trust; I shall not fear

Psalm Ps 56:2-3, 9-10a, 10b-11, 12-13

 To my old brown earth
And to my old blue sky
I'll now give these last few molecules of "I."

And you who sing,
And you who stand nearby,
I do charge you not to cry.

Guard well our human chain,
Watch well you keep it strong,
As long as sun will shine.

And this our home,
Keep pure and sweet and green,
For now I'm yours
And you are also mine.

Words and Music by Pete Seeger (1958)

The 'Happy' in "Happy New Year!"

It's still the first month of the new year 2012. Time for my very first post! "This is the day the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24 "Proclaim the year of favor from the Lord..." Isaiah 61:2 This is the year the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it for at least 366 days (It's a leap year!).

"I wish for those I love this New Year an opportunity to bring into the lives of those about them some measure of joy, to know the satisfaction of work well done, and to end the year a little wiser, a little kinder, and therefore a little happier. - Eleanor Roosevelt

"Why is a car's windshield so large and the rear view mirror so small? Because our past is not as important as our future. So look ahead and move on." - Peter Dring, Land O'Lakes, WI

"Often when we lose hope and think this is the end, God smiles from above and says, "Relax. It's just a bend, not the end." - Author unknown

"Reflect upon your present blessings of which all people have some.: - Charles Dickens

Quotes reproduced with permission and courtesy of The Joyful Noiseletter, official publication of the Fellowship of Merry Christians. http://www.joyfulnoiseletter.com/

Studies- some recent and some not so recent show optimistic views of life decrease risk of heart disease! Reported in the Positive Health chapter of Flourish by Martin E.P. Seligman, published 2011. So Happy and Healthy do belong together in our traditional New Year's greeting!

Finally from A Year with Thomas Merton by Jonathan Montaldo: January 16 Content to Be Happy.  "You can make your life what you want. There are various ways of being happy. God gives us the freedom to create our own lives, according to His will, that is to say in the circumstances in which He has placed us... I am a happy person, and God has given me happiness..." I'm grateful I can say I am a happy person and God has given me happiness.