Be a Star

"The darker the night, the brighter the stars, the deeper the grief, the closer is God."
       -Fyodor Dostoevsky.

Everyone wants to be a star. A movie star, a music star, any kind of star. Why are famous actors called stars?  They have an ability to supersede acting and brighten up a scene with their mere presence. Every person can be an actor but it is very difficult to be a star. Everybody wants to be a star because they want to be loved by others. They want to be successful and shine bright. It's hard to become a superstar. You have to stand out in the midst of so many actors and singers, having to train hard, work hard, be patient, and determined to win. But there is something even harder than becoming a superstar. Becoming a real star.

 God is calling each one of us to become stars.

 He wants us to become the best version of ourselves. He wants us to reach our highest potential and to be happy. The only way we can experience true happiness is by experiencing pain first, and through that pain help Jesus carry His cross, and on the way, help others carry their cross as well.

Be bright where there is darkness.

There is so much pain and grief in this world. Many ask: How can a God of love permit such things in His world as war, sickness, pain, and death? God allows us to suffer to turn closer to him. The holy spirit leads us to realize our needs of salvation and then turn to Christ in repentance and faith. Our suffering helps us develop a more Christ-like character.  Jesus came to the world not to deliver us from suffering but to teach us how to bear suffering, for he knew that there was no world without suffering. 

With that in mind, we should realize that every single person in the world suffers. Everyone suffers in a different way- one may be suffering sickness or a death in the family, while someone else may be experiencing unemployment, or worry over a friend or child. Many others experience things such as mental disorders, or just a hard day at work that we might not be aware of. 

Our job then, is to try to ease others' sufferings by showing everyone kindness and compassion, and it is through  our actions that we will ultimately lead others  to the light; Jesus Christ. Because only by being united in his sufferings will we ever realize that yes, everyone suffers, but how beautiful it is to suffer for him.


Guide people to The Light

How do you guide someone to the light? By being the light.  Jesus lives in every single one of us and He wants to reach others through you and me. It is our duty to evangelize. I'm not talking about the kind of evangelization where one goes door to door and asks people if they have been saved or tells them about the gospel. That is great, for a lot of people have still never heard of Jesus, but what He is asking for is not only to talk about the gospel, but rather live out the gospel. It's not easy, but that's the only way to become a star. God wants us to help people find the right direction. The one direction. By helping people go in the right direction, we help them become happier, which is every human's biggest desire. 

Ways to live out the Gospel

Ok, so now you are thinking...Then tell me how to be a star. How do I do it? By living the gospel! How can I live out the Gospel? The answer is simple: by loving more and better. By loving every single person that you meet because they were created by God. That is the first step, but it is very hard to accomplish. By the way, that does not mean you have to be friends with everyone, it means that you should accept every person and try to see life within their point of view; realize that they too suffer, and all they want in life is to be happy and loved, just like you, and have a desire to be treated with respect. I have found that in order to reach that level of understanding, first you have to practice the gospel. Here are some ways to do that:

1. Carrying out the corporeal works of mercy

- Feed the hungry: make lunches for the homeless, volunteer at a soup kitchen, share part of your lunch with your friend at school or coworker that forgot theirs or is not as good as yours, bake some cookies for someone who is hungry for love, teach someone how to make food you are good at making.

-Give drink to the thirsty- distribute water bottles to the homeless, give a cold soda to your mailman on a hot summer day, pour the water for others at dinner, donate money to an organization that makes water available to different parts of Africa, take shorter showers to conserve water, drink a lot of water yourself to feel and be healthier, give words of affirmation to people who are thirsting for approval or acceptance, talk about the gospel, invite people to come to a church event.

-Clothe the naked: look in your closet and donate clothes that you haven't worn in a while, take out some winter coats and scarves and distribute them to the homeless, if you see a friend that is cold, let them borrow your jacket, make blankets for expectant mothers, dress appropriately.

-To shelter the homeless: have a real conversation with a homeless person, let a friend stay at your home in times of trouble, go on a mission trip and help build houses, invite people to your house and let them feel welcome, host a surprise birthday party for someone who would never expect it.

- Visit the sick: visit lonely people in a hospital, send a care package to a child with cancer, offer to babysit for free if you know a family that is struggling, run for awareness, let someone with a mental illness know you are there for them, help make meals if a family member is sick, pray for the sick.

-Visit the imprisoned- visit people in jail, pray for people in jail, send letters to someone in jail, try to learn more about the American justice system, visit someone who is lonely, visit your grandparents ( I'm not implying they are prisoners but rather people who get to interact with other people less). 

-Bury the dead: attend funerals or memorial services of people you cared about, attend those services even if you did not know the person but to support their family, pray for the dead and their families, see if there is anything you can do to help a family going through a big loss, light a candle at a church for someone who has passed away, remember the good qualities of those who have passed and learn from them.

2. Carrying out the spiritual works of mercy

-Instruct the ignorant:  Let people know about your beliefs, have peaceful conversations with people from opposing political parties, teach a child how to read, learn how to speak sign language.

-Counsel the doubtful- give advice to a friend, help someone with their work or homework, let someone know about what Jesus has done in your life, let someone know they are great people, answer every child's question, even if they sound irrelevant or annoying.

-Admonish sinners- warn your friend that going out on a school night may not be the best idea, tell your kids what they are doing is wrong, tell a friend about your past mistakes in hopes of helping him (Always always remember though that as Christians, we should love the sinner, but hate the sin!)

-Bear wrongs patiently- be patient in the supermarket line, be patient when someone cuts you off in traffic, forgive, ask for forgiveness, breathe.

-Forgive offenses willingly- forgive your friends, pray for your enemies, say sorry, call your mother, tell someone they were right, accept you were wrong.

-Comfort the afflicted- hug someone, cry with someone, tell them everything will be ok, surprise someone sad at their house, let people know you will always be there for them, tell them to let you help them, write a card to someone going through a hard time, pray for them, give candy to a sad child, call a friend if you are aware something happened, smile at strangers, listen.

-Pray for the living and the dead- pray pray pray pray pray for everyone. Let people know you are praying for them, and do it. Light a candle for the dead at church. Sacrifice little things in your day and offer it up for people, do your homework and offer it up for your teacher or friend, don't eat that cookie and offer it up for someone who is sick. Go to daily mass to pray for someone; even the little things, if your friend is going to an interview or taking a test, offer the whole mass for them. Tell God everything. Become His best friend. 

3. Practice Random acts of Kindness

The Gospel tells us that Jesus practiced miracles. We do not have the ability to perform miracles, but we do have the ability to be Jesus' hands and feet and help make other people smile, or be the answer to a small prayer of theirs. By performing random acts of kindness, we allow ourselves to be 'used' by God. We have to be really silent to listen to his requests. Kindness is like snow. It beautifies everything it touches. There are immeasurable acts of kindness to be performed. It would be impossible to list them all. You just have to keep your eyes open and think of others before yourself. Always think: what could I do to make this person's day a little bit better? If you do that, you will spread so much joy around you, and in return, you will be filled by joy. God can never be outdone in generosity. Whatever you give to others, He will give you back twice more. 

There are many classic random acts of kindness such as paying for the person behind you in line or giving someone a compliment, but I want to provide you with a list of 11 random acts of kindness that require no money whatsoever and maybe you have never thought of.

     

     1.  Write a letter to someone who has been a star in your life, and might not know it.
     2.  Talk about what you are grateful for and encourage others to do the same.

     3. PRAY for the person behind you at the lunch counter.

     4. When someone does or says something rude or offensive, assume he is having a bad day and respond with compassion.

     5.  Find ways to help others avoid embarrassment.

     6. Tell your parents you love them and appreciate them. Call your grandparents and do the same. Send them pictures of good times or events you have attended.

     7. Donate blood.

     8. Let another person take the closer parking spot. Smile and wave.

     9.  Print and frame a good picture you have taken of someone and give it to them.

     10. Ask a friend about his day/how he is doing. Actually listen.

     11. Smile, smile, smile! Even if you are having a bad day... (Thanks for this one, Kylie!)

And if anyone asks you why you are being so kind, respond with: I am a Christian!

4. Don't ask: How can I help?  but rather say: let me help you with that.

So many times in my life I have realized that the people who have made the biggest difference are not those ask me: "Do you need help with that?" (which is an extremely kind thing to ask) but the problem is that even though I did need help, I feel too embarrassed to accept the help, so I just say: nothing, I've got it! Maybe the person was being totally sincere and wanted to help, but the last thing I ever want to do is bother them.  The people who always make the biggest difference are those who have said:  "oh, I see you're overwhelmed, let me help" and they start helping. Even if I tell them: no, it's OK! They continue helping. It's hard to be so assertive, but it makes you a star. Jesus didn't ask us if we wanted us for him to die on the cross for us. He just did it.

With that in mind, we should also be extremely open to help others in times of need, and following Mary on her example of saying yes. A couple of weeks ago, my really good friend's mom passed away. Two days before, she asked me if I could please send her the number of a specific priest because her mom was very sick and wanted a priest to give her the last rites. I sent her the number. And I told her that if she needed anything, that she should call me.  The next day, she called me in the middle of the night crying, telling me that they were scared her mom did not have enough time to live and that they needed a priest, she asked me to please send one to the hospital. Of course I said yes, and I frantically called all the priests I had saved as contacts on my phone and that live in the area. After calling around 10 and getting no answer from most of them (3 answered and said they either weren't able to drive this far or just weren't available), I called my parish's emergency line.  They said they would call back whenever they got a hold of a priest. I waited for more than half an hour while my friend was on the phone crying asking if I had found a priest, because even though she wasn't very religious, her mom was and that's all she wanted. I got really impatient and called 3 other churches. I mean, there had to be a priest available! Every church I called asked if I was a parishioner (no) and asked for my name and the family's name and a long list of questions, then they told me they would call back. As I called yet again another church, a priest answered. Little did I know that this call would make me never ask what can I do ever again, but rather let me do. I was distraught as I started talking, and I started explaining the situation. He did not let me finish, but rather just said: I'm on my way. Don't worry. I just need the hospital's room number. I gave it to him and he hung up. I called my friend and let her know a priest was on his way. Her sigh of relief brought me immense joy. I asked her if she wanted me to be there with her. She said no, that it was ok. I hung up the phone, and my mom told me we should go to the hospital. I just told her my friend had said no, and she just replied with: she needs you. We are going. So we went to the hospital and prayed in the chapel. I then texted my friend and told her we were downstairs. She asked me to please go up and she was so happy I had shown up. She just didn't want to bother me. The priest had already shown up and left (how prompt!). We stayed with her for a while and then returned home. The next day, I got a text message at 4 in the morning with the two most painful words anyone could ever hear: "she died." I unfortunately did not see the text until the next morning and called her. She cried, while I was completely silent, All I could think to say was: I'm sorry. And I love you. There really wasn't much more I could say. Because she had seen it was ok to ask for my help, she told me if I could please help arrange a memorial at the church that I had called earlier to find the priest because they had really liked him, and wanted him to celebrate the funeral mass if possible. I said yes, of course, even though I had no idea whatsoever how to even arrange something like that? I told my mom who unfortunately has had a lot of funerals to arrange and she told me that she would drive me to the church and we would figure it out. We did, and they gave us paperwork. The priest was there and he was extremely willing to perform the service. The service was beautiful. We later found out that this priest was married but his wife and son passed away in an accident. This is why he was willing to help so fast. He had felt what it was like to be in that position. He is a star. He said yes to God and yes to everyone around him. He is ready to help instead of asking if he can help. 

5. Never miss an opportunity to tell someone how much you love them, how important they are, or how much they mean to you.
If you love someone, tell them. You have no idea how long you have them on earth for, or you have no idea if something will change. Let people know they are important. We all need to hear that once in a while. Not all of us have our purpose in life set out and clear. If you think someone is cute, pretty or nice, tell them. Tell them everything good about themselves. Why keep it in? Some of my friends will make fun of me sometimes because I fall in love with people way too fast (Their personality, way of doing things, their smile) and I am not afraid to tell them what I love about them. I will stop them and tell them: Your curls are so cute, they match your personality! Or, you have been a great help to me, I love you! Sometimes I worry that I will come off as weird or stalkerish even, but I have never had a bad encounter my whole life by doing this. I remember so well all the genuine compliments I have received in my life. I remember being told my hair was pretty by a girl in my class, that my purple converse were cool by a stranger in the street, that I was pretty by a lady from my church. These compliments have never left me, they have a special place in my heart. 

Past examples of stars

Around two thousand years ago, there were three Magi. They wanted to receive The Real King into the world.  They did not know how to get there, so they followed a star. The star of Bethlehem. another example is Veronica. She wiped the face of Jesus when he was carrying his cross. She wasn't just a bystander, he took action and helped brighten the way. Simon of Cyrene was another star. We should all aspire to be Veronicas, to be Simons! Let's be stars and help others reach the truth! There are so many people that have been stars in the past such as Pope John Paul II, Mother Teresa, and billions more. That's our goal.

Present Examples of stars

There are many stars right now. We can follow their example to become like them:

*Kylie Meyers (Check out smileyforkylie on facebook) - She is what greatly inspired me to write this whole blog post. She spreads kindness and love every day amidst her great suffering. She's really young, and has captured so many people's lives.

*Pope Francis

*Matthew Kelly
*Malala
*Parents, role-models
*Priests everywhere
*Volunteers, doctors, nurses,teachers, school counselors, kind hearted people
*Taylor Swift. (Seriously, check out what she does to help people!)
*You??????

Lets all try to be stars to others this Lent. Help others carry their cross, sanctify yourself in order to reach God. Lets all be bright in the darkness. It is  not easy, but it is not impossible. 

Love always and be loved,

Steph

The Weekly Saint- Catherine

Lent ended, and I decided to keep posting on this blog, even if it is just once in a while. I have realized it helps me realize everything that I am grateful for and everything that God is making happen in my life.
I also decided to start a new thing on the blog. Every week or so, I will be posting about someone that I think is doing an extremely good job at life. Someone that is well on their way to sainthood. I am calling it "The Weekly Saint".

This week, I want to talk about my friend Catherine. Fist of all, she is probably the best person I have ever met. She has made me grow so much closer to Christ and she makes me feel like I am extremely important every single second I am with her. The thing about her, is that she is always thinking of others and what others want 24/7, and she never thinks about herself (which gets to be extremely overwhelming for her) but she will always notice is there is something wrong going on with you or if anyone is feeling sick or sad, she will be the first one to notice and take care of it. She always has a smile or a kind word to offer. She is just an all-around incredible and talented person and I really really hope she can see that, because that's all other people see in her, an outstanding person.I truly believe that God sent her into my life to teach me a handful of lessons. He is definitely using her for big things in life!

Secondly, she is extremely close to God. She has such a special connection with him that you can literally see Jesus acting through her with her acts of kindness and love. I had the pleasure of being her roommate for one semester and she would basically remind me to pray every night and invite me to mass or prayer groups all the time, even when I was feeling discouraged she would make sure I attended. She would visit the Eucharistic chapel several times a day, and after mass, she would go and pray in there for a while. Even though I never told her, I was always a little bit jealous of her super-strong connection to God. She would pray to him in the chapel for long periods of time when all I could do was pray for 5 minutes...

Thirdly, Catherine has been sick for three years. She has "been struggling with severe symptoms since [her] senior year of high school. From extreme fatigue, bad headaches and brain fog to vision problems and dizziness every time [she] stands up. Much of the past two years have felt more like surviving than living. Not only has it been hard living a life that is anything but "normal," but [her] symptoms have been and continue to be diagnosed, re-diagnosed, misdiagnosed, claimed to be curable by some doctors while incurable by others, constantly resulting in further frustration and fear. “Is it ever going to end?” is sometimes a heavier cross to carry than the physical suffering. Where is God? Why is He allowing this? These are the questions I have been asking since day one. I thought He wanted me to be happy…But through much prayer, grace, and encouragement, I have been able to see that He has been by me the whole time, waiting for my permission to help me carry my cross. When I finally gave Him permission, I thought He would take the whole thing. “Here’s my cross, Jesus! Take my suffering and my pain, take it all! If I knew you were here all of this time, I would have handed it over sooner!" (Catherine's website). Even though she has been sick for so long, she is an incredible source of hope, guidance, and happiness to others. She continues to love every single person ans treat them like true children of God. 

Catherine recently stated a website of encouragement for anyone that feels like they are running out of hope. Her reflections are some of the best things I have ever read. Each one made me cry like a baby. I invite you guys to go check it out.

http://iamwithyoualways.wix.com/hope

I have seen Catherine make so many people smile, feel loved, feel wanted, bring them closer to God, that I am sure she is a little saint on earth. She is extremely special to me and I cannot wait to re-unite with her soon!

Dear God,

Please help us all strive to be your good and faithful servants. Help us love you with all out hearts, with all out might, with all our soul. Help us be holier every day, to raise our heads and hearts up high and to rejoice in your love. Help us be saints. Everyday. Help us be holy, pure, and more loving.

Amen. 

Mom

Happy Feast of the Annunciation! Did you know that it is celebrated on March 25th because it is exactly 9 months before December 25th? I didn't know that. Anyway, We just finished reading Paradiso in Literature class and I thought the prayer from St. Bernard to Mary was amazing so I wanted to post it on here. I'm going to start praying it because it is one of the most beautiful things I have ever read. Dante was such a good poet, he rocks at praising Mary. He states that she is the source of so much hope, love, and faith. The following is from the Allen Mandelbaum translation:

"Virgin mother, daughter of your Son, more humble and sublime than any creature, fixed goal decreed from all eternity, you are the one who gave to human nature so much nobility that its creator did not disdain His being made its creature. That love whose warmth allowed this flower to bloom within the everlasting peace--was love rekindled in your womb; for us above, you are the noonday torch of charity, and there below on earth, among the mortals, you are a living spring of hope. Lady, you are so high, you can so intercede, that he who would have grace but does not seek your aid, may long to fly but has no wings. Your loving kindness only answers the one who asks, but it is often ready to answer freely long before the asking. In you compassion is, in you is pity, in you is generosity, in you is every goodness found in every creature. [I plead] with you, through grace, to grant [me] so much virtue that [I] may live [my] vision higher still--may lift it toward the ultimate salvation" (Alighieri 31. 1-25).

I'm not going to lie, but a tear definitely came out while reading that in class, but I just fell in love with that book. If you ever have the chance to read The Divine Comedy, I really recommend it. Especially in Paradise, the language is go beautiful and full of christian theology.

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Day 21 of Lent

• "Live for others jar" I got Haley, a girl in my communications class. It was really strange because she never misses class but she missed class today. I am going to write her a message and put it in her mailbox along with some candy. I couldn't place it in her mailbox today because it was one of the busiest days of my life! I went to class, then delivered newspapers, later I went to a student government meeting and after that I went to adoration and then a Marian dinner and then to women's ministry group. It was good though.
• Positive experience of the day- I got a letter saying that I got accepted into my college's Rome program which means I get to study abroad for a semester! Also, we had to give speeches in my Communications class today and names were picked out randomly, and I didn't get picked, so that means I have to go next class, but that gives me more time to study. Yay.
• Good Deed of the day- Hold the door open for someone. Well that one was extremely easy. Everyone at this school holds the door open for everyone, so that one was not a big deal at all.
• 3 Things I am grateful for:

1. Acceptance Letters
2. My new awakening friends
3. Sleep

• Prayer intentions- for a family that lost their two little daughters in a car crash, for haley, for everyone I promised to pray for, and for more vocations to the religious life.

Awakening

I am so sorry I have not posted anything for the past few days, but I went on a retreat, and they took away all of our phones and electronic devices. It was actually a really good rest from all the technology and just had time to focus on God. The retreat was so much fun and it brought many graces to me!

The program is called Awakening, and many college campuses have it around the United States. Basically, there are a lot of things I cannot talk about because it would ruin the amazing retreat for people who have not attended yet because it is so full of amazing surprises. I usually hate surprises, but the surprises that were encountered in this retreat were phenomenal! There are definitely things that I can talk about though. For example, they divide the whole retreat into families. You have a mom, a dad, and gophers, who basically go for anything you ask them for help with. There were different talks and activities, skits, adoration, praise and worship, and confession. At first, I was a little annoyed that we could only spend time with our 'families' and didn't really get to know anyone else in the retreat but in the end it ended up being really great because I ended up becoming really close to a lot of the members of the group.

Highlights from the retreat include-

• My friend Catherine told me that every time you go to a retreat, you receive a certain grace from God, and that you should specifically ask him for one. Well, at the beginning of the retreat we had adoration and I prayed and asked Jesus for the grace to trust him. A few minutes later, I went to confession. After telling the priest my sins, he thought for a long time and asked me: "What should your penance be? I can't think of the right thing!" I just looked at him, and he was in silence for about 30 seconds. Then, he told me: ok, go back out there in front of the blessed sacrament and pray to Jesus, and tell him that you trust him. I WAS IN SHOCK. I told him what had happened a few minutes earlier and he told me: "Well, God loves filling you with his grace. It's a grace!" I was overwhelmed and so happy, I couldn't believe what had happened.
• On Saturday night, we had affirmation time, where everyone in the 'family' told each other what was great abut one another, and I was really surprised about what people noticed in me that I would never notice otherwise. It definitely boosted my confidence as well.
• My right kidney started hurting Friday night and I was really scared that I would have another kidney stone during the retreat. I prayed so hard to Jesus and ask him to please not let it happen, but that I trusted him. I was in pain for the whole retreat and that made me upset because I could have had a much better time that what I did, but the pain didn't increase so that was amazing. Also, my 'mom' in the group kept asking me if I was alright, and she was very sweet and supportive. Even thought I thought we wouldn't get along at first, it ended up being great.

So overall, I learned that we are all part of the mystical body of Christ, and that you never know how many people out there are praying for you! We should all also pray for others every day because it can have a significant effect in their lives. 

If you are a college student, I really encourage you to go on this amazing retreat! You won't regret it! Also, a really cool thing is that once you attend, you can help at any other Awakening retreat in the nation! Pretty great, huh?

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Day 20 of Lent

Wow, Lent is halfway over. I need to step up my game! I am confident the rest of lent will be extremely fruitful though.

• Live for Others Jar- I got my cousin, Ricardo. How weird is that? Out of a 1100 people, I pulled out someone in my own family. He is actually my favorite cousin because he is so sweet and caring. He always remembers about my family and makes sure to keep in touch with us. Today, I could not go to mass because I had a newspaper meeting, but I prayed a rosary for him, and messaged him on facebook telling him how much he means to me.
• 'Good Deed A Day'- Tell someone how much they mean to you. There is a senior in my communications class that is really good at giving speeches. She is so pretty and extremely sweet. A couple of weeks ago, I wrote her a note and told her that she was really good at giving speeches and that she was also very pretty and nice. She found my number somehow and texted me saying that it meant a lot to her. Today, I stopped her and told her that she was amazing and a role-model to me and I think she really appreciated it.
• Positive experience of the day- today we had 4th day, where we meet up after the retreat and look at pictures and share all the positive experiences that happened. It was really fun. I also had a newspaper meeting and Mary, the Business office manager was really nice to me and helped me with a speech that I have to give tomorrow.
• 3 Things I am grateful for:

1. Retreats
2. Water
3. Warm temperature

• Prayer intentions-  for my Child Development teacher, whose grandson just miscarried, for the lunch lady who I promised that I would pray for her because her mother is really sick, for my grandmother, that I have the ability to give a good speech tomorrow, for my cousin, and for all the members of crusader awakening6 and 7. 

What is the purpose of life?

 At the beginning of every philosophy class, out professor ask us a question to answer for ourselves and then share with the class if we would like to. Today, he asked the most difficult question. "What is the purpose of life?" I have asked myself this questions several times during my relatively short life, and my answer depends on how I'm feeling that day. Some days, I feel like there really is no purpose, like everyone just wakes up and goes to work, tries to make money, survive, and that's the end of it. Some other days though, I feel like the purpose of our lives is to become the best-version-of ourselves to help others achieve happiness and ultimately go to heaven. Suffering is necessary to become the best-version of yourself.

A lot of people in the class answered that the purpose of life is to be happy. I totally disagree with that. I believe that being happy is our greatest desire, and we will only fully achieve that when we are in Paradise, but I don't think God just created us to be happy. God created us because He is great. It is because He is good that we are, that we exist. He did not create us out of necessity; He did not need us. He did not create us out of justice; he owed us nothing. It is to his sheer love that we owe our existence. Therefore, I believe that our purpose is to love with all of our soul and help others reach happiness so that someday too we can be in Paradise. Can you Only Imagine what heaven will be like? It's going to be the most beautiful sight in the world. 

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Day 13 of Lent

• Finally finished the 'Live for Others Jar'. It took me about 2 hours to finish writing down names and cut them up.  I feel so proud of it though! Today, I picked out Madison. She went to my high school and she was class president and probably one of the most popular girls in school, or so I thought. I had a conversation with her senor year and she said that she had really lost all her friends and didn't know what to do with herself. I told her that we should be friends and hang out, but we never really did because, well, she's a lot "cooler" than me and we have different personalities, but I kept being kind to her. Today, I offered up mass for her and practiced the good deed of the day on her.

So many names to write out!

What the finished jar looks like

• Good Deed of the Day- "Call Someone on the phone to let them know you have been thinking about them". So I was a little nervous about this one because Madison and I weren't close friends so it would be a little bit strange just calling her, but I had courage and dialed the phone. She didn't answer, but I left a message saying: {Hi! I thought of you today and was just calling to say hey and was just wondering how everything was going for you in college and to tell you that I miss you and hope you are having a great day.} I'm pretty sure she heard the message, but she didn't text or call back. I just hope it meant something to her and it at least made her smile. 
• Positive Experience- I lost my geometry notebook and I was looking for it the whole day and was really worried because it has all the notes I need for the year in it. I prayed to St. Anthony, called my brother to look for it at home, and looked everywhere in the room. Later, I had a weird 'vision' (aka remembering where you left something) so I went to look for it there, and there it was. It was such a good feeling of relief!
• 3 Things I am grateful for-

1. My Philosophy professor, he is amazing!
2. St. Anthony
3. Colored pens

• Prayer intentions- For a girl who asked for prayers on Facebook, for all the mothers considering abortion, and those who have no one to help them with everything. 

Real Friends

Real friends are the hardest thing to find. In our lives, we meet an incredible amount of people, but will probably only encounter one or two real friends in our whole lifetime. True friendship takes hard work. You have to be willing to love another person with your whole heart, overlooking their imperfections, be willing to do anything for them, show them your love by acts of service. It's not easy. 

If you hosted an amazing and huge party, which of your friends do you think would like to go to it? Probably all of them. What about if you were having a not-so-fun party? Less friends would attend. Now, what about if you were having a really hard time with something, how many of them would be willing to talk to you on the phone and comfort you? You could probably count them on one hand. What if you were really sick and throwing up all over, which one of your friends would be willing to sit next to you, hold your hand, and pray with you until the pain goes away? Any of them? I know I have one friend that would be willing to do that. She would be willing to do that out of love for all humans and for her immesurable love for Christ. I learned so much from that friend. I learned that you have to think of your friend before you all the time in order for it to be a true friendship.

We shoud try to be 'real friends' with everyone we encounter. Mother Teresa said: "Love until it hurts. Then, love some more."  We should give our all to everyone. Imagine how the world would change!  I learned what true friendship is by someone showing me that you have to put others first 100% of the time, listen to them, be their comfort, and always love them. Jesus is your true friend. He always thinks of you before he thinks of himself. He gave his WHOLE life for you. But are you a true friend to Him? Would you be willing to give up your whole life for him? Hmmm.

Long-distance relationships are hard to keep.  I was talking to my friend today, and she told me that she never imagined that she would drift away from some of her best friends in highschool now that she is in college. She thought that they would be best friends forever even if they lived so far away. I asked if she ever took the time to call her friend on te phone or text them constantly. She said no, that being away is hard because you don't go through the same experiences so there is a lot less to talk about constantly, and that's what made them drift apart. Of course. And that is what makes us drift apart from Jesus. Whenever we don't talk to him constantly (prayer), our relationship weakens. We should talk to him constantly, about everything that happens.  My other friend, Gabby once told me that we should treat Jesus as if he was actually our best friend. To tell him jokes, to tell him what makes us sad, what we are excited about, what our plans are, what we are worried about, EVERYTHING! She used to take laffy taffys into adoration and read Jesus knock-knock jokes. At first, I thought it was a little strange, but after a while, I really envied her relationship with Him. I wanted that! So I started telling Him jokes too... And I'm pretty sure He did laugh because I'm 100% sure God has a sense of humor.

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Day 10 of Lent

-It was really hard not to eat meat today because it was friday. I was working at the burger place the whole day and all I wanted to do was eat a burger. It was so hard to eat a veggie burger, but the sacrifice was totally worth it!

-Positive experience- My dad took me to the movies, and we watched two. We saw Orange County and Labor Day, they were both really good. I loved spending time with him because I never do that often, but I love him so much. 

- What I am grateful for- 

1.My Dad

2. Cath

3.Movies

- Prayer intentions: for all the lonely people in the world, for the people in prison, everyone who has lost hope, everyone with cancer, a safe trip back for my mom, my sister, and my brother.

God Places People In Our Lives For a Reason

Sometimes, we feel like the world has defeated us. That's when we go to Jesus and ask him to help us through. He can't really come down and give us a hug, but he sends people our way to fill us with comfort and fill us with his grace.

So many times, I have asked God to help me feel his presence, and he usually responds by sending someone else to carry out his message. One time, I was at a retreat having adoration, and I asked Him to let me feel him, because I needed him in that moment.  Seconds later, I felt a hand on my back praying over me. I was overcome with joy. I imagined Jesus placing his hand over me and telling me: "I am here!"

A couple months ago I prayed to God to please send me someone who would understand. At the end of the conference, I approached a girl to tell her that she had read really well during church. She said her name was Ashley, we talked for about 5 minutes, and I learned that she was actually not my age, but had already graduated from college, and at the end of our short conversation, she said: "If you ever want to talk or just need a friend, we should go get coffee or something!" BOOM. God answered my prayers. Well, I didn't know he had until now. 

Today, I had a fantastic day because I spent my afternoon with Ashley. I had added her on facebook and looked at her posts but didn't really talk to her or anything. Two weeks ago I started feeling  like I really needed to talk to someone, and I immediately thought of her. I messaged her on facebook and asked her if she was still willing to meet up. She said of course, and invited me to go to mass with her and then to have coffee. I went to mass and it was beautiful. Later, we went to get frozen yougurt and we just had a really good conversation. She is a complete gift from God and she told me exactly what I needed to hear at this moment. God sent her to me at the exact moment that I needed to hear it, and I am in awe of how amazing He is. I love you Jesus! Thank you for spending an afternoon with me! Ashley gave me a book because she said I would really like it. I am really looking forward to reading it, and I will report back about it. It's called "I believe in Love" - A personal retreat based on the teaching of St. Therese of Liseux (Who actually happens to be my all-time favorite saint! How cool is that?)

Now... Let's talk about Day 7 of Lent

- I pulled out a name from the jar and I got a girl that I did a mission trip with a couple years ago. I know she was struggling with some things, so I'm really happy I got her today. I messaged her on facebook and asked what she was doing and also offered up mass today for her. 

- Good deed a day- I visited someone who was lonely (My Grandmother). I spent some time with her and she was extremely happy to spend some time with me. I always wish I could spend more time with her, but it's hard because she is sick. I will go back tomorrow.

Three Things I am Grateful for today-

1. Ashley

2. Frozen Yougurt

3 Beautiful churches