Tag: awesome

Some fun

We went to the Priests versus Seminarians basketball game tonight. It was at Rice University, in their basketball gymnasium, and the place was pretty close to sold out. This was the seventh year of the game’s history, and I was beyond excited to be there for it this time. Ever since I first heard about it, I wanted to go. This year, I finally made it happen.

Essentially, as I understand it, it is both a fundraiser for and awareness-raiser for St. Mary’s Seminary in Houston. It let’s people know about the seminary, while also raising funds for it in a very fun way. The current seminarians form a basketball team to play a single game against local priests, those who have already gone through seminary, be it at St. Mary’s or elsewhere. The first two years, the priests won. The next four years, the seminarians won. Tonight, the priests won. And not by only a few points.

The final score – and yes, that was a big lead, given how they started with a 7:1 follow at the end of the first quarter.

No, they were nothing like the March Madness games my husband had me watching just recently. Not even close. These are priests and future priests, not upper teenagers trying to get into the NBA. We were not here for mad skills, but for the fun of seeing seemingly very serious folks do something very fun and, well, normal. The first quarter ended with a combined score of eight points. These were not exactly future pros here – they definitely discerned rightly in their vocations (and in a career that makes a massive difference in a good way in society, so a big thank you to all of these guys for that!).

Seeing them play at all was already a treat. When they had really warmed up and the pressure was on in the second half, though, it was actually a very entertaining game as a game. It was just extra-impressive at that point, given that some of them, as my husband pointed out, did rather look as though they may never have played basketball [or any other sport, for that matter] a day in their lives. At least, not in their adult lives. Again, sports aren’t exactly their focus in the post-seminary life.

Nonetheless, it ended up being very fast-paced and exciting by the last quarter. At every point throughout the game, the whole place went wild, anyway. When points were happening so quickly near the end, it was like a constant up and down of screams and cheers. Plus, everyone cheered for everyone. Sure, folks cheered especially for their local priests or old fellow parishioner, but they all still cheered for every point. And like it was the greatest basket ever made. It was hilarious, really, and totally wonderful. And they actually played a good and athletically entertaining game. It was not hilarious because they were being funny. It was simply hilarious that everyone was on the same team, while officially having two separate teams. Plus, Inhave never before tonight seen a basketball game where no one gets angry… where everyone plays with authenticity… It was… awesome.

At the end, they all did a group picture together and were hugging and having a great time with each other. They really were and are all on the same team.

Also, being Catholic, the invocation at the start was the coolest thing I may have every experienced with prayer. The priest says, ‘Let us pray,’ and the entire population did the sign of the cross in synch, and most of them said a hearty “Amen” to go with it. It was like choreography for the masses. Very, cool and slightly spooky in the best way.

Thank you, God, for this blessing tonight. I am so grateful to have been present for such a wonderful event. Help it to continue to grow vocations in our local society, and help me to be a part of that. In your name, I pray. Amen.

Post-a-day 2024

That Jacket

Tomorrow, I get to wear my brotherā€™s pirate jacket, and I am thrilled(!).  At long last, I am granted not only the occasion, but the permission and the ability to wear the jacket, and it looks mighty fine with the ensemble, I dare say.

My brother bought it at this cool resale shop called Lucy in Disguise, in Austin, Tx.  When my mom had asked him what he had paid for the jacket, he said that it was ā€œa billā€.  I thought he was just being funny, saying that he had handed over some bill of cash money, and the change came back to him, because he didnā€™t really remember what heā€™d paid for it, or because he was thrilled at having spent so little on it, that it was a five- or ten-dollar bill, maybe even a twenty.  However, as their conversation continued, I quickly discovered the term as being a vernacular synonym for the hundred-dollar bill.  That my brother would have paid such a price for something like that meant that it must be, it necessarily was outstanding.  And, truly, this jacket it.  I envied him for it from the first time I saw it.  I donā€™t even really love pirate-y things.  Yeah, theyā€™re cool, but I donā€™t ever want or need them.  But this jacket was like (the cheesy tie-in of) treasure to me.  It is just that wonderful.

And I finally get to wear it.  Yippee! šŸ˜€

Post-a-day 2017

A Normal Life

People regularly tell me how amazing they think my life is.  Almost every time, I am somewhat incredibly surprised at the statement – to me, my life is normal.  There’s always someone who has been to more places, done more things, been to better places, and done better and greater things than I have.  If anything, I feel as though I am coming up short to the declarations people make about the awesomeness and greatness of my life, my experiences, and my accomplishments.

However, something that always seems to happen when I receive these sorts of comments/compliments, is that I find a need to live up to them.  That is, I feel I need to do more, better, good, to do more exciting things, and to make my life more worth envying.  Recently, as I have noticed this fact, I’ve begun to wonder if it is not a wonderful thing that people make such compliments and comments about my life.  For, in their doing so, my life becomes more amazing.  I certainly want to do all of these things that I end up doing, however something like fear combined with laziness tends to hold me back from seeking them out, until, of course, I have the encouragement of what feels like duty to make these people’s feelings justified.

Though, even still, my life remains the same in terms of how it feels – normal.  Sure, I have done this one really cool thing recently, but the overall is still very average, plain, and normal.  It even makes me wonder if I can ever measure up to what I view as an amazing life worth envying.  No matter what I accomplish, where I go, or what I learn, will things always seem normal to me, and not worth truly being envied by others?  Will my life never really seem awesome and amazing to me?

I don’t know, of courseā€¦  It’s just a question I’m throwing out there, thinking on for myself and my life, wondering where it might lead me next.
Post-a-day 2017