Greg Lewis Peace Garden

I went to the Greg Lewis Peace Garden dedication at Mt. St. Joseph Academy (MSJA) today. The Peace Garden was designed by faculty members, Deirdre Clancy, and Ted Becker to honor Greg Lewis. They did a wonderful job at creating a memorial to an amazing religion teacher who made a significant difference in the lives of many young Catholic women in the Boston area.

I was delayed on my way to the dedication because of traffic on Western Avenue in Cambridge. It took me 35 minutes to get down a road that usually takes me one minute. I arrived late and was disappointed for two reasons. One, I was scheduled to read the Beatitudes (Matthew 5: 1-17) during the ceremony and did not get there in time to do so. Two, I was not able to commemorate his life by participating in the dedication as I had hoped. I was late to the ceremony…but I can still celebrate what he did for me…

My freshman year at MSJA I remember having a conversation with my guidance counselor (Carolyn Dwyer) about how I was feeling like there wasn’t a place for me in the Catholic Church. My politics was very far to the left, I identified as a feminist etc. She reassured me that I would find my place. I just needed to keep looking. My sophomore year two events happened in my life that proved to me that she was right. One, I went on a retreat that made me realize that my relationship with God was a unique and individual experience that goes beyond celebrating church on Sunday and at school. Two, I took a religion class with Greg Lewis. The first class I took with Greg Lewis was called social justice. This was only the beginning. I ended up taking two (Death and Dying, Peace) other classes with him and got to know him by my involvement with the social justice club.

What Greg Lewis taught me is that we, as Catholics, have a responsibility to work towards social change in the world. He also showed me that we have the ability to change the world through our actions and ideas. Mr. Lewis opened my eyes to things like Liberation theology, the Catholic Worker Movement, and the Just War theory. These were all movements/ideas that I could identify with. They were all about justice, peace, and freedom from oppression. The major premise behind all of these being that that we need to treat each person with dignity and respect because we are all children of God. These are very empowering and important messages. In today’s world being Catholic can be difficult. However, it is these teachings that keep me coming back to church today. I am thankful to Greg Lewis for showing me that there is a place for me in this Church. I owe a big part of who I am today to him.

Much of what Greg Lewis taught is represented in the Beatitudes.

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him. Jesus began to teach them, saying:
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you (falsely) because of me.

Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven. Thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you. You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden.
Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house.
Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.

Easter Weekend 2006

Brenda and I both took yesterday off to go to the Boston Marathon and cheer on folks running for the American Liver Foundation's Run For Research Team. You all know I was matched with a super enthusiastic runner named Terri. She finished in 4:23:35. She did great. Congratulations to Terri for finishing. It has been great getting to know both Terri and her niece Kerri. I was initally also matched with Kerri, but she had a "knee injury" and needed to drop out a couple of months ago. I also met someone named Molly through Kerri...who is wicked cool and lives in my neighborhood. Molly ran for the liver team as well. These women rock and I really appreciate all the hard work they put in to support the work of the American Liver Foundation.

Sunday was Easter of course. We had dinner with my family in Belmont. Brenda made the most ham she has ever made in her life. It is a miracle it all fit in the pan and that we managed to get it all the way to Belmont without one spill. Plus...it was mighty tasty too.

Saturday we went to Parker's Baptism. Brenda and I were Godmothers...cool huh? Jen's brother was the Godfather. Parker is getting so big...he even turned over on his own recently. He is a cutie.

Speaking of babies. Cyn and Mike had their baby girl Charlotte on Friday afternoon. I am so psyched that she came early. I was getting anxious waiting for her to arrive. I think Cyn and Mike were too. We didn't get to the hospital to see her this weekend....because we were insanely busy...but we are going to meet her tonight. Yee haw! Congratulations!

Baseball Revisited

I was raised in Boston, MA. I was taught to love the Red Sox and hate the Yankees. That being said....I can honestly say that I never really followed what was going on until recently. I had an "ah ha" moment when the security guard at work started talking to me about the Red Sox this morning. I told him what I thought about the new players and even commented on yesterday's game. I realized at that moment that I had become a Red Sox fan. I started thinking about other ways this was showing itself. Over the weekend we went to Maine to celebrate Brenda's father's birthday. While there I spent some time with her 11 year old nephew. He is obsessed with two things right now...hunting...and the Red Sox. I didn't have too much to say about hunting...but I definately had some thoughts on the Red Sox. Tomorrow is opening day at Fenway Park. Lets hope these "boys of summer" can pull it off this year and that I will get to see them play as often as possible.

Big Bad Blogger

I was on a roll with blogging back in January and early February, but I have since lapsed. I really mean to be a good blogger...but I just can't get it together. Some people like Sigh Club and Biotic are great about putting good stuff out there. Not me. So....this is what I have been up to since February 7th.

We went out to celebrate Brenda's Birthday on February 10th. We had some folks over for pizza and then headed over to Toast. I consumed too much Red Bull and rocked out to 80's music with Brenda, Dave, and Erin.

We had a great Valentines Day. We rented a Hot Tub at Urban Oasis and went out to eat.

I went to Hartford to have lunch with Meg and talk to some 2nd graders about liver disease on February 17th. These 2nd graders rock!

I went to the Boston Comic Book Spectacular on February 19th. I finally found issues of Rawhide Kid. Marvel's gay cowboy comic book hero. Rawhide Kid came out three years before Brokeback Mountain. Who knew?

I had dinner with my friends Nora and Bill on February 23rd. Nora and Bill were my neighbors when I was growing up. I spent a lot of time at their house when I was young. I love seeing them.

We went to see the Oscar nominated documentary shorts at the Coolidge Corner Theatre on February 27th. I love seeing these shorts every year. I feel lucky to see them at all. They don't usually show in theatres. Although...it seems the Academy really likes depressing topics.

We went to Cynthia's baby shower on March 12th. Yee haw. I cannot wait for the baby to come.

We also went to a surprise birthday party for Jen that night. Happy 30th Jen!

We brought my cousin Rachel to a maple sugarhouse on March 19th. The 19th was her 15th birthday. Happy Birthday Rachel. We took a really cool tour and got some yummy maple syrup. I would highly recommend the Warren Farm and Sugarhouse in North Brookfield if you are in the area.

I started to feel the beginnings of a cold on the 19th. I ended up with a virus that morphed into an ear infection. I was out of work for almost a week. I took antibiotics, stayed home, and consumed a lot of liquids. I am feeling a lot better these days.

We took my step-dad to a Boston Bruins on March 25th to celebrate his birthday. We beat the Buffalo Sabres 5 to 4. Russ' actual birthday was on March 28th. Happy Birthday Russ.

My mom and I took a ballroom dance class that met once a week for eight weeks in Cambridge. Our last class was on March 29th. We learned foxtrot, rhumba, and waltz. It was a lot of fun. I'm bummed it is over. I actually ran into someone who I went to grammar school and day-care with in my dance class. Small world huh? We also met a nice couple named Steve and Anne. Steve is originally from Dorchester. I love meeting people from the neighborhood.

My step-father ended up in the hospital last Friday night. He was having chest pains at work so they sent him to the hospital. He stayed the night and had a stress test the next morning. Everything looked ok. They don't think it was a heart attack. His doctor prescribed him Zantac. He is home now.

We went to see little Parker on Saturday. He is such a cutie patootie. He is getting so big. Brenda and I are looking forward to being godparents.

Saturday night we went to see Mike and Cynthia's new condo in Salem. It is a nice place...and the rooms are big. Congrats to Cyn and Mike.

Last night we tried to go to the Wolfe Women's Final Four Party at Club Cafe. Both Sheryl Swoopes and Sarah Shahi were there. Unfortunately we got there a little bit too late and were unable to get in. We ended up eating dinner at Laurel and getting drinks at Jurys. It was a lot of fun. There were tons of women around since things were so busy at Club Cafe.