Karate - Yellow Belt

 It took about 6 weeks for the children to be ready to be belt-tested.  All passed and now have yellow belts.  Step-by-step bit-by-bit they are improving.  We are really blessed to have not only a great instructor but a great man.  He tries to instill in them respect, self-control, self-discipline.  Not that the children have achieved that in any perfect measure, but it is good for them to be hearing these things from others.

 I think Merry and Pippin aren't sure which of the two is the bad guy... most likely they are discussing who gets the play the bad guy...

 Hm, not sure if it is wise for a tail-end of white belt to be punching the black belt... :D

 Waiting for the belts and certificates in quiet anticipation.

 Placing the white belts behind them and taking on the yellow belt.

 Bowing to the guests... that would be Bilbo, Poppy, Marigold, Kili and me-me-me.

Bravo kiddos! Great job! Keep up the good work!

Do Something

All that is necessary for the forces of evil to win the world is for enough good men to do nothing.
Edmund Burke

Good Friday Prayers

O, my Lord Jesus, I hereby beg of Thee, by the merits of Thy Precious Blood, by Thy Divine Heart, and by the intercession of Thy Most Holy Death to assist me in this pressing necessity.
(To be said 33 times for each intention. It must be said during the hours of 12 noon and 3 PM.)

†     †     †     †     †

I adore Thee, O Holy Cross, which has been adorned with the tender, delicate, and venerable hands and feet of my Saviour, Jesus Christ, and immured with the Precious Blood. I adore Thee, my God, nailed to the Cross for me. I adore Thee again, O Holy Cross, for the love of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen
(Revealed to St. Bridget that if said devoutly 3 times on Good Friday that 33 souls would be released from Purgatory. 3 souls on ordinary days.) 

Holy Week

Palm Sunday
Hosanna to the Son of David! Blesssed is He that cometh in the Name of the Lord.  O King of Israel: Hosanna in the highest! Matthew 21:9

Spy Wednesday
The evil one had entered into the heart of Judas.  Judas made his deal with the Pharisees and was waiting for an opportunity to betray the Son of God.

Holy Thursday
A new commandment I give unto you: That you love one another, as I have loved you, saith the Lord. Blessed are the undefiled in the way: who walk in the law of the Lord. John 13:34, Psalm 118:1

For I have received of the Lord that which I also delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus, the same night in which He was betrayed, took bread, and giving thanks, broke and said: Take ye and eat: this is My Body, which shall be delivered for you.  This do for the commemoration of Me. In like manner also the chalice, after He had supped, saying: This chalice is the new testament in My Blood. This do ye, as often as you shall drink, for the commemoration of Me. For as often as you shall eat this bread and drink the chalice, you shall show the death of the Lord, until He come. Therefore, whosoever shall eat this bread, or drink the chalice of the Lord unworthily, shall be guilty of the Body and of the Blood of the Lord. But let a man prove himself; and so let him eat of that bread and drink of the chalice. Corinthians 11:20-30

After the Last Passover Meal of the Old Law and the First Mass of the New Law, Jesus went to the Garden to Pray for us.  He suffered deeply over our lack of love, our sinfulness.
And  He was withdrawn away from them a stone's cast: and kneeling down, He prayed, saying: Father, if Thou wilt, remove this chalice from Me; but yet not My will, but Thine be done.  And there appeared to Him and Angel from Heaven, strengthiening Him. And being in an agony, He prayed the longer. And His sweat became as drops of blood, trickling down upon the ground. Luke 22

And when He rose up from prayer,  and was come to His disciples, He found them sleeping for sorrow.  And He said to them: Why sleep you? arise, pray, lest you enter into temptation. Luke 22

Like the Apostles, we are often asleep.  Spiritual sleepiness is hard to overcome.

As He was yet speaking, behold a multitude; and he that was called Judas, one of the thewlve, went before them, and drew near to Jesus for to kiss Him.  And Jesus said to him: Judas, dost thou betray the Son of man with a kiss? Luke 22

Woman, I know Him not....
O man, I am not [one of them]...
Man, I know not what thou sayest.
And immediately the cock crew.

Peter went out and did not despair but wept for his sins, for his betrayal of the Son of God.

Then Judas, who betrayed him, seeing that he was condemned, repenting himself, brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and ancients, Saying: I have sinned in betraying innocent blood. But they said: What is that to us? look thou to it. And casting down the pieces of silver in the temple, he departed: and went and hanged himself with an halter. Matthew 27

Will we be the Peter of repentance or the Judas of despair?

I having examined Him before you, find no cause in this man in those things wherein you accuse Him. No, nor Herod neither; for I sent you to him, an behold, nothing worthy of death is done to Him. I will chastise Him therefore and release Him.

How often to we mock our Lord in how we treat others as the soldiers mocked Jesus with a crown to mock His Kingship?

Now of necessity he was to release unto them one upon the feast day. But the whole multitude together cried out, saying" Away with this man, and release unto us Barabbas.  Who for a certain sedition made in the city, and for a murder, was cast into prison.  And Pilate again spoke to them, desiring to release Jesus. But they cried again, saying: Crucify Him, crucify Him.

Behold the man.

And by the hand of a whimpy man, He was condemned to death, even though he found no case against him. And Pilate washed his hands of the whole affair... but it is not the hands that are the source of the evil... it is in the heart.

 Imagine the pain between hearts as Jesus meets the gaze of his suffering Mother.  Their union of hearts, minds and souls would have been intimately united in the passion.

 For fear that Jesus would die on the way and not be tortured to the most hideous death, they forced Simon of Cyrene to help Jesus carry the cross.

 The Seven Last Words of Christ from the Cross:
First:
Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.
Luke 23:34
Second:
Amen I say to thee, this day thou shalt be with me in Paradise.
Luke 23:43
Third:
Woman behold thy Son...Behold thy Mother.
John 19:26-27
Fourth:
Eloi, Eloi, lamma sabacthani? ... My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?
Mark 15:34
Fifth:
I thirst.
John 19:28
Sixth
It is consummated.
John 19:30
Seventh:
Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit.
Luke 24:46

And it was almost the sixth hour; and there was darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. And the sun was darkened; and the veil of the temptle was rent in the midst. ... and He gave ups the ghost.

 Let us bind ourselves tightly to the Sorrowful Heart of our Heavenly Mother and reflect on it’s boundless grief and how precious is our soul.
Padre Pio

 And behold there was a man named Joseph, who was a counselor, a good and just man of Arimathea, who also himself looked for the Kingdom of God. This man went to Pilate and begged the body of Jesus. And taking Him down, he wrapped Him in fine linen and laid Him in a sepulcher that was hewed in stone, wherein never yet any man had been laid.

Jesus descended into limbo to receive the souls of the just who had died before the resurrection.

Hymn to Our Lady of Sorrows 
By stony streets my Jesus bears the Cross to Calvary. See
with what love His Mother shares the Cross He chose for me.

Refrain
Mary now your all is given; through your soul the sword is
driven: Mary maid of Nazareth, pardon me my Jesus’ death.

Unto the earth my Jesus falls beneath men’s mocking gaze.
See Mary watches and recalls the steps of baby days.

Upon the Cross my Jesus hangs in grief and agony.
O Mary, in His dying pangs, the Lord is still with thee.

In Mary’s arms my Jesus lies and all His pain is done. See
Mary kiss those tired eyes. ‘Tis still her little Son.

Just Stuff

Kili was not sure about the prickly grass on his toes but a ball can cure all that ails us.  

 Pippin wasn't thrilled with our breakfast one morning and said, "I'm going to war, I don't have time to eat breakfast."

 Half of this calf belongs to us.  I think I'd prefer the back half, since it's likely to be tastier.

 Very bad pictures of what at first we thought was a wolf in our field but upon a bit of a zoom we think it is probably just a coyote.

 I won this awesome juicer at one of my favorite blogs.  I had always wanted to try a juicer but just not something we'd spend the money on just trying out.

 I've made several rounds of juice so far and like it. Excuse the bottle of lime juice... I didn't have a lime... but you can juice juice and get juice.... I know! I'm ingenious!

 So far my favorite has been strawberry, lime and apple mix.  It's sort of like a strawberry margarita.

 We had a flop batch of cheese which ended up a fabulous cheese dip.  We've been making lots of cheese curds to perfect it to sell at the farmers' market but this one didn't quite work out.. the way it was suppose to but sometimes I guess that is alright! Everyone thought this tasted like velveeta (minus the extra salty taste).

 I also tried out the ice cream recipes at Randazzo Inc This one is the strawberry ice cream.  It was very good.

 We also tried out the St. Patrick's Day ice cream, I forgot to take a picture and it was eaten within about 30 seconds.  It actually uses juiced spinach but with the mint and maple syrup added to the frozen cream.. it's good!

Playing weeping angels version of "statues".