the end of the world

According to Harold Camping, head of Family Radio Broadcasting Network, tomorrow we will experience judgment day.  The media is loaded with mention of the end of the world with billboards boasting the fearful day.  To me, that is precisely what this propaganda is all about ~ filling vulnerable people with fear and calling it the rapture, however, rapture is defined as ecstatic joy.  Remember, fear is the opposite of love.  I have been hearing a variety of songs, facetiously hitting the airwaves, performed by artists such as REM and Skeeter Davis, to remind us to beware of the doomsday, subtly planting the seeds of doubt and fear of our existence after May 21, 2011, and especially October 21, 2011.   Another predicted date of dread is December 21, 2012.  Notice loads of 2s and 1s. 

I suppose I am finding levity in this latest quest to prepare the world for our end of days and chuckle when I hear how dramatic some have responded by clearing out their bank accounts and refusing to responsibly pay mortgages and such.  Hmmm...  I am not a prophet and will not predict such occurrences but I doubt we will meet our maker tomorrow as a whole.  Some of us will indubitably end their existence on earth tomorrow as it is inevitable the circle of life begins and ends at some point, but all of us at once is not gonna happen, folks. 

I propose we take this opportunity to look at what brings fear in this situation and turn it around in the form of ending the world as we know it in little ways.  Let's find the small stuff that we can improve upon within our hearts and do something positive to end a bad habit, way of thinking or behaving, and fill our lives with a little more love and kindness.  Compassion is cool.  We can all find one little way to improve our old life tomorrow, and then let's find another way on Sunday, and continue until we are filled with bliss and share this with one another, until it extends throughout the universe and then, yes, we will have an end of the world, and a brighter, shinier and joyful world it will be. Take a little more time to pray to our spirits and most importantly, thank our Lord for all His blessings.  Gratitude is great. 

As fear is polar opposite of love, let's love more.  Tell those you love that you do.  Live life as if it were your last day on earth and be aware of how wonderful the world is.  Laugh.  Don't sweat the small stuff (and it's all small stuff.)  Breathe in, breathe out.  Make a point to practice random acts of kindness.  Try a little tenderness. Get involved.  Hold your tongue.  Illuminate.  Kiss a fool.  Hug yourself.  Let go of all fears and fill your heart with love, for when it comes down to it, love is all we need.  Have fun and be happy. Just for today.  xo 



longevity

We never know what paths we will follow in our time here on earth, but I do know it will be filled with a plethora of surprises and moments that take our breath away.  Some of these moments will be sorrowful and many will be of pride and awe-inspiring.  That's life, folks!  We have to take one day at a time in order to experience all that we are here for.  These past weeks were an emotional roller coaster as we lost two amazing men who succumbed to cancer ~ my buddy since third grade, Joe Mondlak, and our friend, Ken Jones, cowboys 'til the end.  Both men filled our world with fun and laughter and have left a hole in my heart by their demise.  Joe had the gift of gab and could chat for hours on end and Ken always had the best sense of humor and an eternal smile on his face, which always included that cheshire grin.  He was a true cowboy and loved being in the southwest and rode horses and his beloved Harley.  Now he can hit the heavens hard.  Both guys fought their battles as long as they could and when it was time, they gracefully went on to higher ground. I  was given a strange sign, for when they passed on, I noticed lights in the form of a rainbow on two separate nights and believe all is well up in the heavens.  Farewell, my friends...until we meet again. xo

Melissa ~ John ~ Carrie ~ Robert ~ Jason Mielzynski

As the yin and yang of balance play out, our emotions took on another form in the surprise celebration of my younger brother, John and his darling wife (and my buddy) Carrie, as they were given a party by their kids, Jason, Melissa, Robert, as well as Vanessa, Joe and Kathy, to honor their longevity as a couple.   25 years!  They were mere babes when they got together 30 years ago and are still going strong. A true testament that love conquers all in this thing called life.

Amie Grzesik (Illinois State University) and sister Melanie

We celebrated many collegiate graduations this weekend.  This is the final path the young ones take on their scholastic journey.  Sometimes it seems forever when you endure the endless tests and writing papers galore, but when they receive that diploma, the sense of accomplishment holds no bounds.  As the speakers mentioned, it is a family effort for the parents and recipients; and the sense of pride in the eyes of the parents is undeniable.  As my friend Greg Gale shared a quote by Rudyard Kipling, "for the strength of the Pack is the Wolf and the strength of the Wolf is the Pack."

Jim ~ Nicole (Columbia College Chicago (with honors) ~ Karen Payne

Bill and Brittney Lutz (Joliet Junior College)



Donovan ~ Colin Shively (Columbia College Chicago) ~ Steve

Cody and Karen (ultimate Bulls fans)

And while all this was happening, our beloved Bulls came closer to winning the championship by defeating the Miami Heat last night.  Their perseverence and team efforts led by the amazing MVP Derrick Rose, left the fans breathless. 

I offer a shout out to Amanda and Greg for their accomplishments as well. 

Life is a highway ~ keep riding it with gusto; and when you arrive at your destination, count your blessings, and forge ahead with your head held high.  Happy trails ~ God bless you all. xo

happy mothers day

When you are a mother, you are never really alone in your thoughts.  A mother always has to think twice ~ once for herself and once for her child.  Sophia Loren

There is no way to be a perfect mother ~ and a million ways to be a good one.  Jill Churchill

There is only one pretty child in the world and every mother has it.  Chinese proverb

A mother understands what a child does not say.  Jewish proverb

God could not be everywhere, and therefore he created mothers.

May your day be filled with lots of hugs and laughter. 

Happy Mothers Day! xo



rainbows



Sometimes life can be unkind and we experience more than our share of difficult challenges, heartache and uncontrollable situations.  Mother Earth has been devastating families with her unnatural natural disasters and some days we feel helpless and fearful.  In the Bible, after the great flood, God promised he would always give us a symbol to comfort us in dire straits.  He offered us the rainbow as a guiding light of hope.  May officially arrived and brought with it many rainbows.  Warmer weather and sunshine are with us, our Polish Pope John Paul II has been blessed and beatified, the icon of evil, Osama Bin Laden has met his demise thanks to the command of our country's leader and the bravery of our Navy Seals, and on a more personal scale, the first day of May brought  many of our loved ones together to shower our family with joy.  The love that Mike and Margarita share for each other will bring forth our little rainbow, Dillan, in  a matter of weeks.  The hope of brighter days fills our hearts. 

Our special day was held at the historic Mason Sabika in Naperville, with their famous brunch including tapas.  Margarita prepared the invitations, flower arrangements and helped to fold all the ribbons on the napkins, which made for happy bonding between us. 

We played a few games and mingled with friends and family.  The weather cooperated so people could enjoy the blooming gardens.  My sister, Kiki, won the prize of homemade scented teddy bears made by my niece, Melissa, when she had the most items in her purse ~ 110.  We always kid her about how heavy it is and her response is "it must be my ipod."  LOL   Now we know she has more items in her bag than Mary Poppins! 

The generosity of everyone who attended was overwhelming and the happy couple kept talking about how blessed they are ~   Mike kept going back and forth to Aunt Diane's table to offer his thanks to everyone sitting at that table for the presents they showered upon them.

It was heartwarming to rehash the celebration in our home later that evening with Mike, Margarita and Anthony; and just hearing the joy in their voices made me realized God is truly bringing us hope and happier days.  Darcy, Colin and Kristina pitched in during the day to help things go smoothly, Robin's daughter, Jackie, saved my voice by coordinating a few games, and Steve did a superb job of being the photographer, collecting close to 400 pictures.  Of course I already shared a fourth of them with my beloved facebook buddies.  :)

Keep the faith and fill your days with sunshine, lollipops and rainbows! xo

our little easter bunny

Baby Dillan is on his last trek into our hearts and open arms.  Only two more months until we can hold our blessed bundle of joy!  He is already making himself known to the world as evident in Mama's protruding belly.  At this time, he is 16 inches long and weighs at least 3 pounds (like a head of cabbage.)  During the final trimester, baby's eyesight is developing as his eyelids will open and begin to grow eyelashes.  His brain and human feeling begin to significantly develop.  He is sensitive to light and last week when Margarita was relaxing in the sunshine, Dillan began to kick and move around.  His hands are fully formed and fingernails are growing.  Baby can cry and open his eyes, and his testicles will descend this month.  He may be sucking his thumb.  His hearing is completely developed at this time and they play music and sing and read stories to him.  He can turn his head side to side and his arms, legs and body are beginning to plump out as needed fat accumulates underneath his skin.  He is moving around alot with somersaults and kicks which is a good sign that baby is active and healthy.  It is beneficial to show affection by caressing the belly.  Brain waves show rapid eye movement (REM) sleep which means baby may be dreaming.  Branches of lungs are developing and his hair is getting thicker.  Dillan's head and body are now proportioned like a newborn.

  We are excited for baby Dillan's arrival and will celebrate our happiness with friends and family next week at Meson Sabika to shower Margarita with our good wishes and help begin her journey as a mother.  It will be fun to be together for a happy occasion and indulge in their famous brunch, play a few games, play 'catch up' with one another, and share stories of motherhood, labor, delivery and all the delights of having a newborn.  This last trimester is the most challenging as baby dominates Mama's womb, so enjoying all the cute little baby things might make the journey a little more pleasant to endure.

Happy Easter and Alleluia! xo



polish easter traditions

Our Lady of Czestochowa

The celebration of Easter among Poles and Polish-Americans is an elaborate occasion shared with family and close friends.  One week before Palm Sunday, housewives stopped baking bread through the fear that the bread they baked thoughout the rest of the year would spoil.  Not until the Holy Week did they start baking.  In some parts they began to do so on Good Friday and in others it was not permitted to bake anything at all that day.  If any housewife violated this ban, the entire village would be in danger of a long drought, which could be repelled only by throwing the pots and guilty housewife into a pond.

 The celebration of Easter is preceded by Holy Week, which begins with Palm Sunday.  Palm branches and twigs commemorate Christ's triumphant entry into Jerusalem.  After the festivities, palm leaves were used for magic rites, such as conjuring up storms and consecrating women at childbirth and sick domestic animals.  The original palm branch is replaced by a willow or raspberry branch, and is decorated with ribbons, flowers and leaves.  It is believed that swallowing a willow catkin from a branch consecrated by a priest would bring health, and a palm branch placed behind a holy image until the following year would bring the inhabitants luck.  The church bells that had resounded from Palm Sunday onwards fell silent on Holy Thursday.  Rattles and clappers took their place.  Fires were lit at crossroads so that wayfarers and poor people could warm themselves.  Meals were also placed at these spots so that they could nourish themselves ~ and together with them the good spirits of the house.  On the morning of Holy Thursday, the vestments are changed on the miraculous icon in the chapel of the Pauline monastery at Jasna Gora in Czestochowa.  This is one of the most important sites of the religious Poles, and has been venerated as a national shrine since the 14th century.

Pisanki (elaborately designed Easter eggs) are made during Holy Week.  The baking of breads and pastries is an art among Polish housekeepers and special confections, such as the famous Babka, are prepared for Easter, as are lamb-shaped cakes and lambs molded from butter.  Along with various cured meats, sausage and ham, these items are arranged in a large basket and taken to church on Holy Saturday for a special blessing.  These blessed foods constitute the basis of the Polish Swieconka or Easter Meal.

On Sunday morning, the table is set with the best linens, china and finery.  Featured foods include colored eggs, cold meats, coils of sausages, ham, yeast cakes, pound cakes, poppyseed cakes, other pastries and in the middle of it all, a lamb-molded cake or a lamb made of sugar or butter.  This symbol commemorates the resurrected Christ.  In olden times, no cooking was permitted on Easter Sunday, so the Poles evolved the tradition of not serving warm meals on that day.  Among the favorite foods is cwikla (grated horseradish and red beets), home-made pickles, marinated mushrooms and other delicacies.  Sharing a blessed boiled egg with one's relatives continue the following day, on Easter Monday.  On this day, many Poles and Polish-Americans celebrate a very ancient Slavic spring tradition called Smingus-Dyngus or the custom of sprinkling or pouring water on one another. 

Swieconka is the traditional blessing of the food to be eaten on Easter Sunday.  While the tradition varies from region to region and village to village, it is a tradition dear to the heart of every Pole.  Today, this blessing takes place in church on Holy Saturday.  All the items are placed in a wicker basket that is sometimes lined with an ornamental cloth or traditional folk fabric.  The filled basket is then covered with a linen cloth which should be white, but can have a colored crocheted or embroidered design.  The basket is decorated with sprigs of boxwood (bukszpan), the typical Polish Easter evergreen.  Polish Palms which are created from dried flowers, can also be used for decoration. 

Polish Easter Foods that are most commonly placed in the Easter Basket for the traditional blessing and their symbolism have been provided by The Polish Falcons of America.

Bacon (Boczek/Slonina) Symbol of the overabundance of God's mercy on us.

Bread (Chleb) Home baked bread, the staff of life.

Easter Bread (Babka) A special round loaf, made of rich dough and raisins, and decorated with a cross, reminds us of Jesus, the Risen Lord, who, in the Eucharist, is the food of our earthly journey and the true bread of everlasting life.

Butter (Maslo) The butter should be shaped into the figure of a lamb or cross.  Dairy products are included to celebrate the end of Lent and the richness of Salvation which flows from the Death and Resurrection of Jesus. 

Candle (Swieca) The only non-edible item in the basket, the candle symbolize Jesus, the Life and Light of the World.  The candle can be lit during the blessing.

Cheese (Ser) A symbol to remind Christians of moderation.

Colored Eggs (Pisanki) Both colored and uncolored eggs, indicate hope, new life and Resurrection.  Because of their special meaning, it is fitting that the eggs to be blessed are decorated with symbols of Easter.

Ham (Szynka) This popular main dish is symbolic of great joy and abundance.

Horseradish (Chrzan) This represents the bitter herbs prescribed in the original Passover meal as a reminder of the bitterness and harshness of the life of slavery in Egypt.  It also reminds us of the bitterness of the Passion of Jesus, by which he entered glory.  Horseradish is often prepared with red beets.

Salt (Sol) Symbolizes wisdom and preservation from corruption, it is included to remind us that Jesus did not undergo corruption in the grave. 

Sausage (Kielbasa) This is an old Slavic tradition.  Its links remind us of the chains of death that were broken when Jesus rose from the dead as well as God's favor and generosity.

HAPPY EASTER (WESOLEGO ALLELUJA!) XO

blueberries

The blueberry is one of the few fruits native to North America.  For centuries, blueberries were gathered from the forests and the bogs of  Native Americans and consumed fresh and also preserved.  The Northeast Native American tribes revered blueberries and much folklore developed around them.  The blossom end of each berry, the calyx, forms the shape of a perfect five-pointed star; the elders of the tribe would tell of how the Great Spirit sent star berries to relieve the children's hunger during a famine.  Parts of the blueberry plant were used as medicine.  A tea made from the leaves of the plant was thought to be good for the blood.  Blueberry juice was used to treat coughs.  The juice also made an excellent dye for baskets and cloth.  In food preparation, dried blueberries were added to stews, soups and meats. 

North America produces 90% of the world's blueberries.  They grow from mid-April though October with the peak harvest in July, also known as National Blueberry Month.  Blueberries belong to the Ericaceae family, which includes cranberry, azalea, rhodondendron and heather.  They trive on acid soils, flower in the spring and are pollinated by bees.  Fruit occurs 2-3 months after blooms.

Everyone loves blueberries.  The health and nutrient benefits include vitamin C, fiber, manganese and antioxidants.  There are only 80 calories per cup of blueberries.  I always wanted to grow a blueberry bush and decided it's time.  I prepared a new section in my garden yesterday and have the perfect spot for my new addition.  My hydrangeas need acidic soil so I will keep the blue babies near each other.  I think a couple of morning glories would cover the unsightly electrical boxes without hampering the underground lines. 

Steve and I went to see a matinee of the Born to be Wild movie about our favorite animals ~ elephants and orangutans.  What a spectacular show, and the 3D effects make you feel as if you could touch the creatures.  This was definitely a moment that took my breath away. 

Know you what is to be a child?  It is to be something very different from the man of today.  It is to have a spirit yet streaming from the waters of baptism; it is to believe in love, to believe in loveliness, to believe in belief; it is to be so little that the elves can reach to whisper in your ear; it is to turn pumpkins into coaches, and mice into horses, lowness into loftiness, and nothing into everything, for each child has its fairy godmother in its soul.  Francis Thompson Shelley

We are always too busy for our children; we never give them the time or the interest they deserve.  We lavish gifts upon them; but the most precious gift ~ our personal association, which means so much to them ~ we give grudgingly.  Mark Twain

Life is beautiful and so are you...xo