Remember Pearl Harbor

As I approached the place, I felt my heart suddenly become like a heavy weight in my chest. I was in awe, and it’s still hard to tell if I was more awed at the place itself, or by the fact that I was really there. Perhaps it was what had happened there, more than anything else, though it had all transpired nearly 70 years ago.

This is it, I thought, this is Pearl Harbor.

In my mind’s eye I could just see Japanese bombers coursing through the tranquil Hawaiian sky, totally unexpected, dropping death from their bellies as the Americans below scrambled to return fire and save their fighter planes and warships from destruction. I heard the boom of the torpedoes and bombs, and the rattling of machine guns. I saw pillars of fire all around, causing sailors and marines to dodge out of the way. The sky was now black, unable to be seen beyond the great, oil-born clouds of toxic smoke.

So many had died that day, I’d reflected. So many, so young. So untimely.

This was Pearl Harbor; the Alamo of the Pacific.

Europe2013: The Cat Conundrum

[I wrote this draft in Seoul, Korea: ]

A couple months ago, just around the time when I picked up momentum, working toward my departure to Europe, I felt compelled to adopt a kitten. He was an apparent stray. I spied him one night, wandering around the cathedral. He was thin, but cute, so I took a picture of him as he looked up beseechingly at me  from the outside of a glass door. Before 24 hours could elapse, he was curled up in the back seat of my car as I drove him home. My entire family didn't take too long to fall for his demure, impeccably relaxed demeanor, and for a while all was well with our new kitten, whom I named Francesco, but called Franchie.

The trouble started when, one day not long after his adoption, we noticed he was limping, favoring his right, hind leg. I took him to the vet and discovered that, somehow, his femur had been dislocated from his hip, and that the only way to fix it was to have him undergo a simple yet (for me) expensive surgery. The doctor assured me I could have it done within the next six months, but, he warned, the longer I waited, the longer it would take Franchie to heal, due to the fact that the muscles in his leg would be weaker from lack of use.

I cringed at the thought of my kitten going through the surgery the vet described, as it involved cutting off the top part of the femur bone.While I was anxious about the surgery, I also didn't like the idea of Franchie walking around with a dislocated hip.

On the other side of things, I had an expensive trip to prepare for. As it was, I was already asking for backup money from my family because I knew that I wouldn't have enough in time. Paying for Franchie's surgery would mean spending half of my savings. While I felt I could probably make the sacrifice, I also felt it would be irresponsible and inconsiderate of me to spend money like that when I was already borrowing, and I couldn't jeopardize a trip with which many people were helping me, not only in terms of money, but in accommodation and transportation, taking time off work and making plans for my stay.

In short, I found myself agonizing over the situation for days. I received a bit of help here and there, and for three weeks I found myself waiting, hoping for some kind of miracle to fall out of the sky, because I truly felt as though there was some way around this problem. I found myself praying to St. Francis about the situation in spite of myself. I've always had a slight aversion to praying about small, personal things, as if God had so many big things to deal with, He wouldn't want to hear someone whining about a cat and a Euro trip. I swallowed my illusions, however, and started to say a short prayer everyday, reminded by St. Francis Church, which I passed on my way to work.

Meanwhile, I worked more; and I had to spend a lot of time away from home because I was house-sitting a house 30 minutes away. I eventually decided that, when I got the chance, I would take Franchie in and just pay for the whole thing myself, and trust that God and St. Francis would take care of the rest.

The night before I meant to take him in, I went home, and I was surprised to see Franchie sprint past me. I thought nothing of it at first, but when I looked again, I realized something was missing. I thought of how I'd been praying to St. Francis about the cat lately, and I asked my sister if Franchie was still limping. "Actually," she said, "he hasn't been limping, and he's been more energetic than he was before."

I observed him again and saw that she was right. I'd never seen him looking and acting so healthy before--not to mention the complete lack of a limping gait! I no longer had to worry about paying for the surgery, or about Franchie's health. So I thanked St. Francis for his miracle cure, realizing that God is okay with me (or anyone, for that matter) asking for small things in prayer. You don't need to be praying for the end of abortion or the health of someone suffering from diabetes to have a reason to pray to God or to ask His saints for help. They are always listening. We just have to realize that.

St. Francis, pray for us!

[I typed the conclusion of this story a month after I wrote it, and Franchie is still happy and healthy :) ]

Pro-Life Response: sexual purity vs contraception

Scenario: woman on Facebook pro-life age relates that, in spite of her poverty, she chose life. Someone commented on her story, saying that contraception is an option. I responded:

People can live in sexual purity.
If you don't have sex, you don't get pregnant, contraception or no contraception. We need to talk about sexual integrity in our lives, and the sacrifices we make for the sake of being able to save ourselves for the ones we love. Contraception doesnt require integrity, it doesnt require sacrifice. It doesnt make you a woman of character and courage.

Your will to be strong against temptation makes you a person of integrity.
A culture of integrity would reduce the number of little boys who grow up into rapists, because their mother and father taught them how to live well, respecting themselves and the people around them. It also helps us avoid "inconvenient" pregnancies outside of marriage, which would reduce even more "cause" for abortion and eliminate contraception altogether.

Do a little research.
We are being lied to every time someone says (sometimes out of ignorant concern) contraception is the answer to abortion. Contraception facilitates and even leads to abortion. Ever since contraception was legalized in the early 70s, abortion rates have soared. Many contraceptives are abortifacients. If a guy is asking you to use contraception, he in not showing love to you, and you are not loving yourself or your children. You are putting yourself at risk to abortion, breast cancer, blood clots, pain and anxiety, the abortion mentality when you are "surprised" by an "unexpected" pregnancy (if you were having sex, then you should not be surprised. Life finds a way) etc, etc, etc. what contraception is really saying is, "yes, have sex, for whatever reason, or lack of reason. Oh wait--" Just research. Look it up on the WHO and Planned Parenthood. Contraceptives are not the answer.

If you can't support yourself, then don't have sex. If you love someone, then give yourself to them in marriage, and whether you are financially stable or not, pray, hope, and make the struggle as a family. Depend on the grace and Will and design of God. Not artificial contraceptives (and of course not abortion). Those "easy answers" are easy in that they are available and seem to eliminate problems, but they are NEVER answers.

Contraception tells you the same lies abortion tells you: have sex without consequences; you aren't ready to have a baby; it's not really a baby unless...; there's little chance of survival because...etc.

Look at your body. Were you designed for artificial infertility? For fruitless sex? Do your organs correspond so perfectly with that of a mans so that you cannot have children? Does his seed go in search of your egg so that you cannot have children? Do post-abortive parents live in depression because the sexual act and the life of a child are not all connected, as God intended? Are love and commitment not possible and essential to raising a family and supporting spouses? WE are capable of life, love, commitment, and things we've never dreamed of before! Do not stifle your great gift of womanhood with contraception!

live as people of good character, because in the end, what a child needs most is guidance. And as an individual, no matter what situation a child is born into, they have the ability to make anything of themselves that they desire. Real parents don't contraception or abort, they give life and teach their children to live with goals and integrity. That is courage. That is pro-life and whole-life. Meet your struggle for greatness head on, and don't give up! God doesn't want you to give up :)

We are called to be lionesses--bold, daring, fiercely faithful, vigilantly protective. Your mates in life should be like lions, so that you can look up to them and they can receive you worthily.

And this lady who shared her story showed true courage in giving life in spite of her circumstances. Teach your child to have big dreams for her life.
Don't just be pro-life, be whole-life!
God bless you and your family. Praying for you!
Till lambs become lions!

Europe2013: I'm going to England, and nothing's going to stop me.

God has a knack for answering subconscious prayers--Or, perhaps, it's turned out that one of the things I've always wanted to do was already on His agenda for my life. It must be; I've been working toward this goal for almost 2 years. In just a few weeks, I will be on a plane to England. I will be going abroad. Taking my European tour, like a regular aristocrat.

A poor aristocrat, but a happy and satisfied one.

One of the big why reasons why m going on this trip is to prove something to myself. I want to prove to myself that I CAN. I CAN travel. I CAN go to Europe. I CAN visit friends I wasn't sure I'd ever see again. I can dream, I work, I can do.

With this blog, I don't want to just tell you about the interesting way In which I am trying to live my life; I want to tell you that YOU CAN, too. Don't be afraid to be more and do more. Don't be afraid to dream more--because it IS scary. Without really saying it, people are going to be telling you, "Don't do it. Don't work hard. Relax. Stay here. Don't leave me. Spend your money on things that will take you nowhere," and many times, you subconsciously listen to them. But you have to be strong.

It's important to dream, to let your sincerest desires rise to the surface of your mind.

Sometimes, there will be times when you might be made to feel selfish. Someone in your life might make you feel as though you don't have your priorities straight, because you chose to put time and energy and money into a personal project. When this happens, examine own conscience. talk to your friends. Your parents. Your priest. If you find that you have to do what you planned to do, and NOTHING is going to stop you, then that is a sign that you are following the right dream. Don't give other people the permission to take your dreams away from you.
For two years I battled through opposition I never could have anticipated--disapproval in important relationships, distraction, stress, money loss, medical bills--But all along I told myself one thing: "I'm going to England, and nothing's going to stop me."

I'm so close, and it's at this point where I know God has been there through all the uncertainty and anxiety, and that He seems to approve of this personal goal that I have set for myself. I grew and I learned, and I hope this post inspires you to dream big and never give up! Change is a part of life, so make your changes great and good, and never let anyone tell you that you can't make them happen.