7 Quick Takes Friday (Vol. 106)

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Remembering My Dad I’ve been going through hundreds of thousands of photos, letters, cards, and many things have reminded me of years gone by.  One of the best examples of reconciliation and redemption has come through my relationship with my father, James Lester Niermeyer.       

     Only God could have brought about the necessary transformation in both of us, so that we could be there for each other in the last few years of his life.  It’s been hard to me to have a box of his things from high school football and college which I don’t personally want to keep, but which I don’t want thrown away.  I’ve been in tears a number of times when I see symbols of what he worked so hard for and wonder if all of the pain and suffering he went through in life was worth it. 

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A Man of Faith One blessing of having a blog is that people who knew my dad years ago have contacted me and told me what impact he had on their lives.  I know that my dad’s true worth had little to do with his successful career, large homes, luxurious vacations, expensive cars, or corporate accolades.  I have some measure of peace knowing that he is finally where he knows he is appreciated and loved for who he is, not what he does. 

     Lord, thank You for our fathers.  Please give us the courage to learn from their wisdom as well as their mistakes.  Guide us in seeking Your will above all else, so that we may one day join those in Heaven.        

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What’s Left I guess it makes sense since it’s been less than six months since my grandmother passed away and still under a year since my mom sold the family home that I’m sorting through many boxes, yet again.  The things I’m hanging onto (though there are lots of them) are: photos, letters, cards, and journals.  I have boxes and boxes of pictures, journals, cards, and letters from high school, college, my time studying abroad in France, dating Kevin, as well as recent years.  I know that others in my family would have gotten rid of many such things, but I’m grateful I rescued them.  I firmly believe that God can make something beautiful from the scraps, pieces, and fragments of our lives, and I trust He will help me use what memories I have and lessons I’ve learned to bring others closer to Him. 

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Girls Day Out Last Sunday was an answeredprayer for a dear friend of mine who won’t be with us much longer.  She wanted a day out with her closest girlfriends to pick out a dress, find the perfect shoes, relax, have fun, and enjoy quality time before she goes.  We had a blast, and she was given her requested a day out with the girls, something she had hoped for a while ago when she discerned her vocation and knew she’d be a different kind of bride.  It’s hard for me to think that my dear friend and sister in Christ will be leaving and not coming back.  Michele Morris, the director/actress who wrote the original play “Teresita” based on the life of St. Teresa of Avila and her own discernment process, is performing one last time in Richmond, then she’s moving on to a new life in a cloistered monasteryin Carmel, California.   

   

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Final Performance If you are nearby and able, I hope that you will join us for the final performance of “Teresita” on Sunday June 23, 2013 at 3:00pm in the sanctuary of St. Benedict’s Church.  The one woman play written and performed by local actress and prayer warrior Michele Morris is quite an inspiration to Christians.  There is no fee or reservation necessary.  A love offering will be taken up to assist Michele with her dowry, the remaining things she needs for her entry into the Carmelite Sisters by the Sea on August 6, 2013.  I have seen the play many times, and I guarantee you will be entertained, edified, intrigued, and given hope by this performance and this woman of God.

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Les Misérables I finished reading Les Misérables this week.  Yes, it’s another classic that I’ve only just read in its entirety for the first time.  I loved it!  I’ve read a lot by Victor Hugo in French (as it was one of my majors in college), but I thoroughly enjoyed the masterpiece in English or in some parts franglais, as we say.  It brought back memories of my time in Paris to read the book and watch the movie. 

     More than anything else, the chef d’oeuvre has reminded me that Our God is God of many chances.  We are given so many opportunities to redeem ourselves and others in this life.  Actually, the first two relationships I thought of after watching the movie were with my two sisters.  I’ve felt awful that I wasn’t the big sister that I thought I should have been for them, but God’s shown me, in part through the book and the movie, that there’s still time to make amends.  Just as was the case with my dad, there’s room for reconciliation, vulnerability, honesty, healing, and closeness deeper than has been there before.

    

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The Good We Do This week a friend got in touch with me to tell me how work that God prepared her to do last fall has been coming to fruition.  I find it so easy to see the Holy Spirit at work in this woman’s life.  I am grateful that the Lord has seen fit to give her a glimpse of the impact she has on others because she is so hard-working, compassionate, and caring.  It’s encouraging to know that when we are open to God and the promptings of the Holy Spirit, He works in mysterious,powerful ways often without us even realizing it. 

                  

Check out Jen Fulwiler’s tradition of 7 Quick Takes Friday at her tremendously popular blog Conversion Diary.

7 Quick Takes Friday (Vol. 93)

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My Prayer for Our New Pope: 

Lord, thank You for watching over the conclave and guiding the cardinals by the ever-present gift of the Holy Spirit as they discerned who our next pope should be.  Jesus Christ and Blessed Mother Mary, keep your servant Pope Francis focused on the Will of the Lord above all else.  Give him the courage to carry out the tenets of the Catholic faith which protect and respect the dignity of human life from conception to natural death.  Make him a bright light and lasting inspiration for priests and laity as we do our best to live, teach, and preach the New Evangelization.  May his deep prayer life and joy in serving the Lord be an example for us all!  Amen.

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Such a Cutie!  After waiting what I consider to be a long time before getting to meet my new nephew—three whole days after he was born—last Saturday afternoon, I got to meet the little peanut and hold him for a while. Ezra, our youngest nephew, is my sister Mary and Jordan's first child. He is so flipping adorably cute! I asked to hold him as soon as we came in, and then I held him again for a bit before we left since he was just asleep in his swing so I scooped him up for some more cuddle time.

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Now It’s My Turn!  It was kind of funny when my mom and I went over the first time I got to meet Ezra.  Jordan greeted us at the door holding the swaddled not-so-little (10lbs 13oz natural birth) newborn.  I gave his proud papa a hug and congratulations, then scooped up the little guy the second I got the go-ahead.  My mom kept giving me jealous looks and making comments about how I was getting to hold him more than she did.  I told her she needs to ask to hold the baby or just scoop him out of the swing when he’s fast asleep.  She was so busy cooking, doing dishes, laundry, and such to help my sister and her husband that she forgot to make time for the best part of all, snuggling up with her grandson.  It’s hard raising grandmas these days!   

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From the Under Five Crowd I always hear a number of hilarious things in a week, many from the little people in my life.  Here are a few of my faves from recent days: “Do you want me to hold the Earth up with one hand or two?”  “The spring is coming up soon.  I saw a purple flower.”  “It’s my turn to count.”  I feel a poem could easily come from these quotes or maybe a dialogue for a children's book or maybe the lyrics to a country song or... 

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We’re Just Sayin’ Kevin gets me laughing quite often.  There are many reasons why LAUGHING TOGETHER is the perfect acronym for what’s most important in our relationship!  His sense of humor is one of the reasons I fell in love with him to begin with.  While telling me about his work day, he commented that his supervisor had complimented him on “making it happen.”  My response: “That’s about right.  You spend your day making it happen, and I spend mine keeping it from happening.” He works in a call center where it’s important to make things happen.  And for my regular paying jobs, I nanny and substitute teach—where I have found it’s often most essential to keep things from happening, such as: major outbursts, serious injuries, mid-morning meltdowns, whining, tattle-telling, potty accidents, objects from nature used as weapons, hard to mop up sticky messes, teasing, pinging off the walls, coloring on the walls… you get the idea.

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A Rare Gem Thursday evening, I found out after driving all the way home that my sister Theresa had arrived at my mom’s.  They were planning on watching a movie, and my mom said to come on over.  We had a fun evening.  I’d never seen or even heard of Moonrise Kingdom before then (and since they started the movie before I got there, I still haven’t seen all of it), but what I saw was quite entertaining.  The two kids in it who fall in love are quite endearing, the supporting cast has lots of adults you’ll recognize and laugh along at/with, and it’s a good, very entertaining story.  
     I would have to say that my absolute favorite part of the movie was a real life scene that was inspired by watching it with two people I love dearly and find very amusing.  After making a comment about dysfunctional families, my mom said that the main family in the Moonrise Kingdom movie wasn’t that dysfunctional.  My sister and I looked at each other and burst out laughing.  My mom (definitely a rose-colored glasses kind of gal) was completely serious which is why Theresa and I were in hysterics.  It’s always nice to know that we still put the fun in dysfunctional.       
     

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My Sisters the Saints on Virtual Book Tour Can women with very different lifestyles focused on doing the Lord’s will above all else be companions, true guides, and sisters for women of today?  Absolutely!

     This book illustrates the truth of the adage that you should choose your friends wisely because you will become like them in some interesting and unexpected ways. 

     The six saints most prominent in Colleen Carroll Campbell’s life and spiritual memoir are holy women also very dear to me: Teresa of Avila, Thérѐse of Lisieux, Faustina Kowalski, Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein), Blessed Mother Teresa, and Our Mother Mary...To read the rest of the review, click here.  To check out other stops on this virtual blog tour, click this.     

  

Check out Jen Fulwiler’s tradition of 7 Quick Takes Friday at her tremendously popular blog Conversion Diary.

Help Save Aquinas and More!

     Since February of 2010 one of the awesome companies for whom I have been writing and posting my reviews of their books, movies, and music is Aquinas and More.  If you go to their Tiber River review site, you’ll see Top Reviewers, and I’m one of them.  There are many reasons I have written and posted 52 reviews for this company over the past three years.  Here are a few more reasons to help save their company from closing. 

 What makes Aquinas More special?    

If we aren't, with your help, able to raise the funds we need, several unique services we offer will vanish from the Internet because we are the only Catholic site that has them. Here are a few:

• ·         Registries for seminarians and military chaplains - we've sent over 7000 items to Catholic military chaplains to distribute to their flocks
• ·         Our Good Faith guarantee
• ·         No Chinese products - It's been our commitment from the start and over 200,000 orders later, it still is
• ·         Imprimatur information on books

A Message from President of Aquinas and More Ian Rutherford

Dear friends,

I ask you first to pray for our campaign. We will be praying the Saint Michael the Archangel prayer daily for this endeavor. Will you pray too? Second, please take a moment to visit our “Aquinas Angels” site, where you can read more about what brought us to where we are right now and what our plans for the future entail. You can visit the site at: http://www.gofundme.com/aquinasangels

I want you to know that if we don't reach our goal, your Angel donation will not be processed. It's as simple as that – it's all-or-nothing. We will not be benefiting from any support until and unless our goal is reached. And if we don't reach it, Aquinas and More will likely shut down. So, our next step is in His hands. If you choose to join us, we have different levels of support, and will be "giving back" for your generosity.

I also ask you to please help us spread the word about our “Aquinas Angels” . With the relationships we've built over the years, I firmly believe this is a “We” Campaign. We can't succeed without your help!

If you would like the work of Aquinas and More to continue, if you have had a positive experience with us, please share our story, our site, and your story out there with others you know.

Aquinas and More is truly not just a Catholic store. Aquinas and More is a way of life for myself, for my wife, for my ten children. 

We are unabashedly and authentically Catholic in all that we do – our policies, our products, and our outreach projects. You know the value of our Good Faith Guarantee.

As part of the Year of Faith, we are called to deepen our faith, believe in the Gospel message, and go forth and proclaim the Gospel. That is the essence of Aquinas and More. Giving to our “Aquinas Angels” Campaign means helping to build and restore an authentic Catholic culture. I know in my heart that there's nowhere else out there where you can find such a ministry and mission – a living and serving, Catholic approach to shopping. I'm willing to put myself out there like this to keep it going.

We would be honored and grateful if you can become an Aquinas Angel for us and help us reach our $250,000 goal.

Oremus,

Saint Michael the Archangel,
defend us in battle.
Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil.
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray;
and do Thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host -
by the Divine Power of God -
cast into hell, satan and all the evil spirits,
who roam throughout the world seeking the ruin of souls.
Amen.

The Wonderful Wizard of Ha's

     Somewhere over the rainbow, there’s a group of Christians having a whole lot of fun creating hilarious programs that will have you and your whole family laughing out loud.  My husband and I have never heard or seen a Veggie Tales song or DVD we didn’t like.  Of course, some are fresher in our minds than others, while certain silly songs and clever twists on Bible stories are forever ingrained in our minds and likely to creep into our conversations. 

     Whenever we hear Bible readings at Mass that remind us of stories covered by this ace team of very inspired personnel, we look at each other and smile.  On occasion we’ve been known to whisper to each other and laugh.     
     The Wonderful Wizard of Ha’s is another hit DVD from the Veggie Tales gang.  After a long, rather exhausting week, I knew Kevin and I would need something to make us laugh, so I asked to borrow this DVD we hadn’t yet seen from the family for whom I nanny.  Make no mistake; though Kevin and I don’t have children of our own, we still have a small collection of Veggie Tales DVDs and CDs at home.  We just don’t have this one nor had we seen it before. 
     This parody of The Wizard of Oz written to tell children the story of the prodigal son cracked us up.  Two of our favorites plays on the original work had to be “Follow Old Yellow McToad” and “Ohioans and fifers and mares, Oh My!”  Trust the creative geniuses behind Veggie Tales to come up with a memorable, kid-friendly version of the parable of a wayward son. 
     For more information about Veggie Tales, check out their online store here.  For specifics about The Wonderful Wizard of Ha’s DVD, click here. 
     Here are my reviews of a few other of our Veggie Tales faves:

King George and the Ducky

Dave and the Giant Pickle

Rack, Shack, and Benny    

7 Quick Takes Friday (Vol. 75)

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It’s Not Over: Keep Praying! So after a very heated race and a slew of really annoying robo-calling campaigns, the elections are over.  Now more than ever, we need to be grounded in prayer, lifted up in love, led by the Truth, and infused by the Holy Spirit.  The fight isn’t over; it’s now been rekindled.  Hold on to Hope: God’s still the one in charge, and He’s always on the side of love and life.  Not some of the time, but all of the time.

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Still Singin’ in the Rain The best part of showing Vivi "Singin' in the Rain" is that now she knows where I get many of the songs I burst into at random during the day.  Her eyes got wider each time we got to one she recognized.  She laughed and commented, “That’s funny!” when we got to this memorable scene: 

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Thoughts on Kids & TV When I was nannying for “my two little guys,” I didn’t watch TV with them.  I’m not a huge fan of having the TV on all the time anyway as it’s hard for me to focus on people or other things when it’s on, so I left it off.  We had lots of fun, educational things to do to fill our eleven hour days.  The one time I brought over a DVD for them to watch it was so they could see my youngest sister’s dance recital numbers. 
     One set of parents made a comment to me when I came in to the pediatric care unit at the hospital to visit their son that there wasn’t a whole lot else he could do besides watch DVDs while hooked up to things (like I would judge them for letting their son watch DVDs at all, much less while confined to bed in the hospital). 

     For the record, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with children watching some TV and some movies.  I don’t like it being on all of the time and have read plenty of research as to why limiting TV viewing especially for young kids is important for their intellectual, speech, and social development. 

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Children Will Listen & Watch I love to read, as many of you already know.  One of the things I enjoyed most when growing up was having my parents read to me.  One of the highlights of working with children is reading to them and seeing them get really into the story.  I’ve brought a number of books my mom kept from when we were little over to share with Vivi and her sisters.  It always makes me smile when she asks for one of the books by name or, at random, recites a line from one when something that is said or seen makes her think of it.  The funniest one random recite recently was from Dr. Seuss’s Green Eggs and Ham which she fondly refers to as Sam-I-Am.  She looks up at me all of a sudden and says firmly: “You let me be!”  I cracked up knowing where she’d gotten it from and that she was just recalling the line not telling me to leave her alone.  Her "go away" or "I’m not interested" is still the same as most toddlers: an emphatic NO to anything I say.   

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One of Those Nights I had trouble falling asleep last night, though, I was definitely tired.  After a couple hours, I got up and read for a bit.  I woke up having horrible nightmares this morning, but I still had a hard time getting out of bed after only three hours of sleep.  I said something to Jess about my plan to go right to bed when I got home not thinking about it until I got to my car that to a mother of a toddler and twins, who also works full-time outside of the home, that was probably along the lines of the adult version of a “NanaNanaBooboo!”  Trust me.  That’s not at all how I meant it.  I don’t wish sleep deprivation on anyone.

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Vocation Discernment and Encouragement This is the title and theme of a reflection I wrote inspired by Kevin and I attending the ordination Mass for 18 new deacons in our diocese last Saturday morning.  Ongoing discernment as a couple and encouraging our friends with their discernment of religious vocations have been two major aspects of our spiritual journey over the past few years.  

 

 

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Silent No More: These are some of the bravest individuals I have met.  What tremendous courage it takes to speak the truth after spending so much time believing and living out the lies!  My experience last spring with members of Silent No More who came to the 40 Days for Life vigil. 

Head over to Conversion Diary, to read Jen Fulwiler's wonderful tradition of 7 Quick Takes Friday.

The Way DVD

     I’d recommend The Way to anyone who is seeking answers, enlightenment, understanding, and isn’t afraid to take a look at the tough questions in life: What am I moving towards? What am I running from? And why?

     I expected the movie to be about major religious conversion, but it’s not. Actually, the movie only loosely touches on the religious and spiritual implications of the Camino and the many Christ-centered pilgrims who set out to make the trek each year. In a sense this makes the film more accessible to the masses (pun intended) instead of a good fit mainly for the Catholic parishioners in the pews.

     The Way is a thought-provoking, humorous look at how a physical journey is every bit as much about a journey inward as it is about reaching a particular destination. Having read the book Hiking the Camino: 500 Miles with Jesus by Dave Pivonka, T.O.R., a while back, I was somewhat familiar with the ancient pilgrimage trail when I heard about this film.

     What I didn’t realize ahead of time is that this movie is a family affair. Not to say it’s the right choice for a family movie night if you have children under thirteen, it’s not, but the rich heritage, tradition, and strong family bonds explored in the film seem best acted by those who really do have a father/son relationship. The Way is directed by Emilio Estevez, dedicated to his grandfather, and stars as the lead Martin Sheen, the director’s own father (who was named at birth Ramon Gerard Estevez).

     The film was shot in France and Spain, where the el Camino exists and still attracts millions of pilgrims. The cinematography is quite beautiful which is immediately evident to the viewer even if the main character in the film neglects to take notice of or slow down to appreciate it.

     Four very different people from different countries, professions, and with widely varying reasons for hiking the Camino end up bonding as they each strive to overcome the challenges of the trail, which often prove to be more obvious and less treacherous than the emotional minefields within themselves.

     The special features and behind-the-scenes definitely enhanced my appreciation for the movie and the collaborative effort in making it as well as going cross-country on a bus tour to promote it.

     I wrote this review of The Way for the free Catholic book review program, Tiber River.  I receive free product samples as compensation for writing reviews for Tiber River.

7 Quick Takes Friday (Vol. 56)

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Inconceivable!” On Tuesday this week when I went to noon Mass at the Pastoral Center, Fr. Wayne Ball gave a great homily beginning with a quote from his favorite movie, The Princess Bride: “I do not think that means what you think it means.” 

     Fr. Wayne Ball spoke about how the Scripture readings for that day weren’t interpreted or meant the way people thought they were at that time.  The Lord wasn’t saying that the earthly cities and kingdom mentioned would remain untouched, always protected, and out of the enemy’s reach forever; He was saying that the Kingdom of Heaven would never be destroyed.

     Fr. Ball was quite amused when I came up to him after Mass and exclaimed: “Inconceivable!”

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Religious Freedom Again, the quote: “I do not think that means what you think it means” from The Princess Bride fits perfectly.  For centuries, religious freedom has been one of the most important liberties protected by our constitution.  The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has provided a number of clear reasons why and explanations of how Obamacare policies and provisions infringe upon one of our most important liberties.  I invite any who are serious about protecting religious freedom for all to check out these articles and this information. 

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Health and Human Services are best governed by God and those who intend to protect the health and respect the dignity of human life from the moment of conception to natural death. 

Judie Brown, president of American Life League, issued the following statement:

    “This is indeed a sad day for the people of this once great nation where liberty has always been equated with freedom of religion, freedom from oppression, and freedom of speech. The government's draconian healthcare law denies so many rights that the true result is yet unknown, but surely liberty has been trounced in unbelievable fashion.

    Let us pray for our nation. We must remember in these dark days that, while we are proud to be Americans, our primary loyalty is to God, not man and surely not the government. Civil disobedience appears to be one of the few options we have, and we say bring it.”

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Local Spiritual Enrichment Opportunities Kevin and I have been praying extra for the teams in formation and the candidates who will attend the following upcoming weekends put on by members of our parish for members of our parish: Christ Renews His Parish retreat for Men July 21-22, 2012 and Christ Renews His Parish retreat for Women August 4-5, 2012.  For more information and to register, click here.

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Calling Catholic Men! Another opportunity for Christ-like transformation is fast approaching.  The next Cursillo Men’s Weekend in our area will be held, July 26-29, 2012, at Church of the Sacred Heart in Petersburg, Virginia.  The team members who have been in formation for several months are making their overnight retreat tonight (June 29, 2012), and would appreciate your added prayer cover.  For more information or to register for this very moving “short course in Christianity,” check out the national websitehere.  To register for the July Men’s weekend in Petersburg, Virignia, contact Pre-Cursillo coordinators: Mike and Jane Walsh at Precursillo09@yahoo.com

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Why I’m back to reading YA novels As I’ve mentioned previously, I have a YA manuscript I’ve been working on for a number of years, and I’ve gotten the nudge to get back to it recently.  Because in order to write well you need to read well-written books in that genre, I’ve found myself back in the teen section of the library.  This means I’m reading YA novels in addition to a number of nonfiction works that I will be writing book reviews on for my blog.  Delving back into the teen scene via YA novels has already given me some exceptional ideas for how to take my manuscript to the next level while at the same time reminding me how morally depraved many popular works of fiction are these days.

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Vocation Discernment Yes, I realize I’ve mentioned this often lately, but that’s because it’s been on my mind and heart frequently: please pray for Kevin and me and all who are discerning what major steps to take in their lives.  Lord, please help us to be open to Your Will, to set time aside to listen for Your still small voice guiding us to the Truth.  Keep us focused on You, above everyone and everything else, so that we may say, do, and become better vessels for Your love, healing, Truth, joy, hope, peace, compassion, and gentleness.  Amen.

 

Head over to Conversion Diary, to read Jen Fulwiler's wonderful tradition of 7 Quick Takes Friday.

    

        

TV Allowed, But Only for Special Occasions

Not too long ago, I found myself watching Stuart Little the based-on-the-book movie starring Hugh Laurie and Geena Davis with the two elementary school boys I was babysitting.  I have to say my favorite part was watching Hugh Laurie be a sickly sweet and concerned father to a young boy and a talking mouse.  It’s been years since I read the book by E.B. White.  My mom and a number of other people are fans of the popular TV show House, but I don’t particularly enjoy watching Hugh Laurie play a bitter, rude, sarcastic, pompous, jerk of a doctor, brilliant though he may be.    
     
Now before people think that I am all for kids spending hours in front of the TV instead of playing games, reading, doing their homework, building with Legos, playing outside, and arts and crafts, let me put in my disclaimer: when I was nannying for my two little guys, we didn’t watch TV during the 11 hour days that I had them. 
     
The only time I turned the TV on so we could watch something was when I brought over the DVD of my sister Theresa’s dance recital, so they could see the numbers she was in.  A few times I’d brought them with me to her dance classes and/or dress rehearsals, and they’d really enjoyed them, so I figured it would be fun for them to watch. 

     
I can still remember driving to Theresa’s dance class one day with Jack riding in the backseat when I told him we were going to see Theresa dance.  From a very early age he was quite vocal, so upon hearing this, he began chanting “Teesa Dance! Teesa Dance!”  When I told him that it was likely my mom would also be there to watch the class.  He responded with an enthusiastic, “Trishamommy?!” which is what the boys called my mother, aka the grand-nanny. 
     
On the way home from a very lively dance class with the subsequent loud music and repetition, Jack was pretty riled up.  The whole way home, he chanted, “Teesa dance! Teesa dance!  Boom, boom, boom!” He inserted a: “Trishamommy” every once in a while for good measure. 

I viewed it as a good sign when the elementary school boys I was taking care of were confused when they got to come home from school and watch movies.  One of them had a fever and needed to rest, so their mom okayed a double feature for the afternoon/evening. 
     
I knew this wasn’t their normal afterschool activity.  At one point, the youngest asked if all they were going to do while their mom was gone was watch movies.  I clarified that this was allowed only because one of them was sick and because their mom had said it was all right.  With that reassurance, he finished his homework, practiced piano, then he joined his brother and me for Stuart Little 2.   

Changing Sides

After reading Unplanned and being very impressed, I was certain I’d want to watch Changing Sides the documentary DVD made about how a pro-life presence changed the heart of a Planned Parenthood director. 

    
In much the same way that Unplanned included Abby Johnson’s thoughts and feelings about Planned Parenthood over the years, not just since she has changed sides, the DVD covers the span of her journey as well. It’s quite eye-opening and humbling to see the care and concern she had for women which inspired her to volunteer and later work for Planned Parenthood.

    
This documentary follows her emotional and spiritual journey as she struggled to decide which side of the fence she wanted to be on once the company’s bottom-line (it’s all about the benjamins) was made abundantly clear to her through pressure from her supervisors, being written up for the first time in her career, and once she left, a major lawsuit meant to silence her from telling the truth about what she’d heard, seen, felt, and experienced. Abby Johnson and the Coalition for life have come out with a book and a documentary. Guess who won the lawsuit?

    
Abby Johnson, the co-founders of 40 Days for Life, Shawn Carney and David Bereit, as well as Austin, Texas, Coalition for Life members are interviewed as is the lawyer, Jeff Paradowski who handled their case. The viewer gets a taste of what it’s like inside Planned Parenthood, a tense courtroom, the Coalition for Life office, as well as what it’s like for prayer vigil participants outside the abortion clinic.

    
I know (and so does Abby) that it was through the grace of God that her conscience was pricked, prodded, and shoved to face the truth about the company to whom she’d dedicated many years of her life. It was painful, but after assisting with an ultra-sound guided abortion, she could not deny the fact that she was taking part in the killing of babies. She could no longer get away from what she was told from upper management: the focus for Planned Parenthood needs to be on abortion because that’s where the money is.

    
You won’t want to miss the story of the dedicated Planned Parenthood supporter, volunteer, then employee-of-the-year who experienced a major conversion that has since led her to become a prominent Pro-Life Activist.

    
You can purchase this DVD here.

    
I wrote this review of Changing Sides for the free Catholic book review program. Tiber River is the first Catholic book review site, started in 2000 to help you make informed decisions about Catholic book purchases.  I receive free product samples as compensation for writing reviews for Tiber River.

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Quality Time With and Without Power

    Though the effects of Hurricane Irene have been obvious up and down the Eastern coast and hundreds of miles inland, Kevin and I had a nice Saturday.  We were able to get some chores and cleaning done early in the day.  We tuned in for a number of hours to The Weather Channel, which really is one of Kevin’s favorite channels to watch, and saw several different weather maps, patterns, warnings, alerts, evacuations, practical suggestions, recommendations, and predictions while we still had electricity and cable. 

     Actually it was long after my mom and a number of other people in our area had lost power that Kevin cooked us cheeseburgers and we watched one of our all-time favorite classic musicals: Singin’ in the Rain.  Ironically enough, we made it through dinner and the movie had just ended when we lost power and it stayed out.  It flickered on and off a number of times throughout the evening, but before then had always come back on and stayed on for a while longer. 

     I talked to my mom, and she was reading a good book.  My sister Theresa was allowed to come home a bit early from work.  I checked in with my sister Mary and her husband Jordan, and she texted me that they were fine, had no power, but were playing Boggle and she was winning. 

     Once it was lights out/candles on Kevin and I seized a good opportunity to make-out during the dark and stormy night.  Eventually we lit some candles and played a game of Scrabble by candlelight and flashlight.  I came away from the game with two observations: 1.) my husband looks particularly handsome in candlelight and 2.) he’s still a worthy opponent for me at Scrabble.

     We talked for a bit, prayed the Rosary together lying in bed, then soon turned in for the night.  Lord, thank You for the blessings You have bestowed upon us today.  Please be with those who have been or will be in harm’s way.  Lead us all to be open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit, so that we are there for our neighbors in need.  Amen.

Seven Levels of Intimacy: The Joy of Loving and Being Loved

My husband and I have enjoyed the mixture of wisdom, faith, enthusiasm, and humor Matthew Kelly uses in his CDs, books, and speeches, so I figured we’d probably like The Seven Levels of Intimacy: The Joy of Loving and Being Loved DVD version of the book I recently read and reviewed by the same title. We both give it a thumbs up!
    
Many of the general statements Matthew Kelly makes about human nature and relationships, vulnerability and humility are extremely accurate. Since he started his ministry at the age of nineteen, he’s observed quite a bit, read and experienced a good deal, and has gleaned from all three of these elements in order to fine-tune his talk.
   
In this particular DVD, he’s talking to a group of people at a Catholic Singles Conference. He adeptly weaves in the theme of cultural bias against people who are single, and why not to buy into it.      He also underlines some major misconceptions our culture promotes that cause trouble in our relationships. Three of the big ones Kelly spends time on are: 1.) Good relationships are based mainly on common interests. 2.) Understanding is what makes a relationship really work. 3.) In a good relationship, there is no conflict.
    
Kelly explains why good relationships are instead based on a common purpose which he defines as becoming the best version of ourselves and helping others become the best versions of themselves. He shows how it is acceptance and healthy conflict that make for strong relationships rather than understanding and the absence of any disagreement.
    
This gentleman from Australia is certainly a very experienced, well-polished public speaker. I might have to say in some cases that his CDs and DVDs are in some ways better than his books, which cover much of the same material. The technique of repeating, summarizing, and repeating again while giving a talk seems wise and effective, whereas laboring over the same points in a book as many times as you would in a speech seems sloppy.
    
Truthfully, the only problem my husband and I had with the DVD is that the sound quality was really bad. If Matthew Kelly weren’t such a good speaker, my husband, a former sound man for bands and studio owner, wouldn’t have been able to sit and listen to the background noise and interference on the DVD.
    
I recommend this DVD for singles, couples, consecrated religious, priests, and anyone who is interested in improving any and all of their relationships.
    
You can purchase this DVD here. I wrote this review of Seven Levels of Intimacy: The Joy of Loving and Being Loved (DVD) for the Tiber River Blogger Review program.  Tiber River is the first Catholic book review site, started in 2000 to help you make informed decisions about Catholic book purchases. I receive free product samples as compensation for writing reviews for Tiber River.

Bloodmoney: A Documentary narrated by Alveda King

BloodMoney is a documentary I would also classify as a nonfiction horror film in which the most gory graphic images are left to the viewers’ imagination while the cold, hard facts are given outright by scientists, lawyers, historians, and former abortion clinic workers. Far scarier than fiction are the accounts of blood, dirty instruments, infant body parts, cash-only for quick death transactions, and a long list of life-long side effects.

    
I don’t watch horror films. I don’t like haunted houses. I don’t enjoy being scared, frightened, or terrified, but I have a passion for uncovering the truth, even if it leads me to conclusions and evidence that is extremely disturbing.
    
This documentary on the high profitability of abortion clinics, the conception of Planned Parenthood and its current work, the scientific research showing when life begins, and the scientifically and medically verified devastating side effects of abortion is narrated by Alveda King, Martin Luther King Jr.’s niece. It’s quite fitting that she has taken a strong stand against abortion that is as radical to some as her uncle’s was when it came to civil rights.      There were a number of times watching this film that I cringed or gasped aloud, not usually because of what I saw, but because of the scientific, medical, historical, even legal facts given. Some of them I’d heard and read elsewhere, others I was learning about for the first time.
    
What affected me the most was hearing the details about the practices and business plans of an abortion clinic from a clinician who spent a number of years in the industry. She plainly described the many unregulated, immoral, unethical, and often even illegal tactics and procedures she, the doctors, and staff other staff carried out .
    
Also very powerful are the testimonies of women who have had abortions talking about the experience, some of them a number of years after having had the procedure, sharing about the physical, emotional, and even spiritual scars this supposed “quick fix” has caused them.
    
If you are just learning about the ways we are called to respect and protect human life from conception to natural death or you have been in the pro-life movement for years, this documentary will educate you, move you, and likely inspire you to prayer and action.
    
Watch the movie trailer here. Find out more about the film and/or order your own copy at Bloodmoney Film.