A Vacation and a Pilgrimage - The Ynostrosa Way - And an Air Compressor

 Hello out there!

A couple of weeks ago, Jim and I headed to Galveston, Texas. This was the first vacation he and I had been on since July of 2018. We have gone to visit our family, gone to watch our grandchildren play sports, etc. but have not just picked a location and our own agenda since that summer. We stayed home for our 40th, 41st, and 42nd wedding anniversaries - We needed to celebrate the gift of so many years together and we did! We had such a good time! 

I like to make sure everything is in order before we go anywhere overnight; fridge cleaned out, no dishes in the sink, trash cans empty, house neat, no dirty laundry, plants watered, etc. I also do a last minute walk through making sure the thermostat is turned up in the summer and down in the winter. I leave the the ceilings fans on during the summer, make sure the lights are off, coffee pot unplugged and spritz Holy Water throughout each room! Jim knows how I am and waits "kind of" patiently in the car! Once I'm buckled in and we've backed out of the driveway, we say a prayer for safe travels and hit the road!

 We left at noon on Saturday, right on schedule! We enjoyed the drive, the scenery was beautiful and we were ready for our adventure! We checked into our hotel about 8:30 pm that night. On Sunday morning we got dressed and went to the 11:00 am Mass at Sacred Heart Church in Galveston. We walked through the doors, dipped our fingers in the he Holy Water, made the Sign of the Cross, genuflected and knelt down to pray. The church was full of families, and we were truly blessed by the entire Mass. At the end of Mass, before the priest and deacons processed out, Father Jude thanked the families for bringing their children to Mass. And then he said, "Let the children come to me. Do not prevent them. The kingdom of God belongs to such as these." (Matthew 19:14) That really touched my heart! 

We went to lunch at Fish Tales and sat by the window where we could see the beach. One of the waitresses pointed out that the dolphins were jumping in and out of the waves! It was an amazing sight! We shared an appetizer - egg rolls filled with crawfish and some other stuff - really good! Best clam chowder I've ever had! Jim ate shrimp cocktail.

We went to the hotel, changed clothes and then walked on the sea wall along the beach. That night we went to the Fisherman's Wharf and sat by the window that faces the harbor and were able to see some ships and tugboats. 

On Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday we worked our plans around daily Mass at St. Mary's Cathedral Basilica. Mass starts at 12:10 pm and they pray the rosary before Mass beginning at 11:30 a.m. We really enjoyed praying the rosary before Mass and everyone was so welcoming. Each day was a blessing! Daily Mass helped make our trip all the more special. 

I'm hitting save because Jim stuck his head in the back door and hollered that he needed my help. 

I'm back...after helping him relocate an 80 gallon air compressor from his shop, around to the opposite outside wall. When I walked in the shop it was hanging from a hoist in the air. I pushed the dolly below the air compressor and Jim lowered it. We strapped the compressor to the dolly and we pushed, pulled, prayed and moved it to the new location without any injuries! I'm sure we'll both be sore tomorrow! And that is another reason we need to go on vacation more often! And also why I'm going to have a large glass of wine while we sit on the back porch tonight! 

I'll try to share more of our vacation memories next week! Hope you enjoy the pictures! The first picture is of the upper part of the sanctuary at Sacred Heart Church and the picture below it is one of the outside pictures of the church I took. We drove around Sunday night and looked for St. Mary's Cathedral Basilica so we would know where it was the next day. The pictures I took Sunday are of the steeple with the statue of Mother Mary and the bell tower lit up and the picture below is of the stained glass window above the front door, The Agony in the Garden. Peace, love, salt, and light! 

And as always,

Peace and blessings to you and yours,

near and far, wherever you are!

Bye for now, Sharla

 

Peace, Love, Salt, and Light!

 Hello out there!

It's been way too long since I've written a story for my blog! I hope you all are doing well!

Jim and I went for a walk this morning. There was a cool breeze in the air and the birds were singing. Jim and I always start our walk praying the Divine Mercy Chaplet together. We also pray the St. Michael Prayer and the Guardian Angel Prayer. After that, Jim speeds up and I continue on at my own pace! I kept praying and the words that came to my mind were, "Peace, Love, Salt, and Light" in that order. I prayed some more and asked God to help me be a peace maker, to be loving and kind, to never let my faith lose it's strength or flavor, and to be a light in the darkness. 

Matthew 5:13-16

"You are the salt of the earth. But what if salt goes flat? How can you restore its flavor? Then it is good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot."                                                                      "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Men do not light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket. They set it on a stand where it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, your light must shine before men so that they may see goodness in your acts and give praise to your heavenly Father."  (Saint Joseph Edition of the New American Bible)

A quote from St. Mother Teresa

"Let us always meet each other with a smile, for a smile is the beginning of love."

I'm going to close with a story I shared three years ago - Full of salt, light, and laughter!

The following blog post was written on August 4, 2022:

I went for a walk earlier this morning and was praying the rosary. Today is Thursday so I prayed the Luminous Mysteries of the Rosary - The Mysteries of Light! I will share a post from April 2017 which includes all the prayers and the scriptures for this beautiful rosary.

Wow - this is my life - I'm in my office typing this blog post and one of my granddaughters runs in to tell me that there is an armadillo in Pa's barn! I jump up and grab my phone so that I can get a picture. I go outside and Jim tells me that the armadillo is over by his big toolbox. I slowly walk toward the side of the toolbox and take a picture! Two of my granddaughters are right behind me. Jim tells us he's going to catch the armadillo and let him loose in the field behind us. The girls and I walk towards the roll up door and wait. Jim puts on gloves and grabs that armadillo by the tail and turns toward us - we all run, screaming, out of the barn! Then we convince the girls to take a picture next to their Pa holding the armadillo before he let's it go! There is always some kind of excitement at Pa and Nana's Hacienda! If I wasn't writing about the Luminous Mysteries of the Rosary - this would be labeled as one of my "Redneck Posts!" I'll have to think of a great title!

Back to the reason I'm writing this post! I hope you enjoy the Luminous Mysteries of the Rosary!

Thursday, April 27, 2017

Day Five - Thursday - Praying The Luminous Mysteries of the Rosary

Good morning out there! I opened the back door to see why our dogs were barking
up a storm and a very cool gust of air blew in. It is 49 degrees outside at 8:54 a.m.
on this gorgeous sunny morning. The high today is supposed to reach 90 degrees.
You've got to love West Texas weather!
We are on day five of our "pray the rosary on a daily basis" schedule! Today we will
go over the Luminous Mysteries of the Rosary.
The following are the prayers of the rosary -The Sign of the Cross
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The Apostles' Creed
I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in
Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died,
and was buried; he descended into hell; on the third day he rose again from
the dead; he ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the
Father almighty; from there he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen.
Our Father
Our Father, who art in heaven; hallowed be Thy name; Thy kingdom come;
Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us, and
lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. Amen.
Hail Mary
Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women,
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for
us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
Glory Be To The Father
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
Hail, Holy Queen
Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our life, our sweetness and our hope,
to thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve; to thee do we send up our
sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears; turn, then, most gracious
Advocate, thine eyes of mercy towards us, and after this, our exile, show unto us
the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary!
Pray for us, O holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises
of Christ.

Let's get started!
1. Make the Sign of the Cross and then say the "Apostles' Creed."
2. Say the "Our Father"
3. Say three Hail Marys'
4. Say the "Glory Be to the Father."
5. Announce the First Mystery -
The First Luminous Mystery is The Baptism of Jesus -
After Jesus was baptized, he came directly out of the water. Suddenly the sky
opened and he saw the Spirit of God descend like a dove and hover over him.
With that, a voice from the heavens said, "This is my beloved Son.
My favor rests on him." (Matthew 3:16-17) 
 Then pray the "Our Father"
6. Pray (10) Hail Marys'
7. Pray the "Glory Be to the Father." Then pray the following prayer -
"O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, lead all
souls to Heaven, especially those in  most need of Thy mercy."
8. Announce the Second Mystery -
The Second Luminous Mystery is The Wedding at Cana -
His mother said to the servers, "Do whatever He tells you."...
Jesus told them, "Fill the jars with water." So they filled them
to the brim. (John 2:5-7)
 Then pray the "Our Father"
 Pray (10) Hail Marys'
 Pray the "Glory Be to the Father." Then pray the following prayer -
"O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, lead all
souls to Heaven, especially those in  most need of Thy mercy."
9. Announce the Third Mystery -
The Third Luminous Mystery is Proclaiming The Kingdom -
"As you go, make this proclamation: 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.'
Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, drive out demons. Without
cost you have received; without cost you are to give." (Matthew 10:7-8)
 Then pray the "Our Father"
 Pray (10) Hail Marys'
 Pray the "Glory Be to the Father." Then pray the following prayer -
"O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, lead all
souls to Heaven, especially those in  most need of Thy mercy."
10. Announce the Fourth Mystery -
The Fourth Luminous Mystery is The Transfiguration -
While He was praying His face changed in appearance and His clothing
became dazzling white. Then from the cloud came a voice that said,
"This is My chosen Son; listen to Him." (Luke 9:29, 35)
 Then pray the "Our Father"
 Pray (10) Hail Marys'
 Pray the "Glory Be to the Father." Then pray the following prayer -
"O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, lead all
souls to Heaven, especially those in  most need of Thy mercy."
11. Announce the Fifth Mystery -
The Fifth Luminous Mystery is The Institution of The Eucharist -
Then, taking bread and giving thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying:
"This is my body to be given for you. Do this as a remembrance of me."
He did the same with the cup after eating, saying as he did so: "This cup is the
new covenant in my blood, which will be shed for you." (Luke 22:19-20)
 Then pray the "Our Father"
 Pray (10) Hail Marys'
 Pray the "Glory Be to the Father." Then pray the following prayer -
"O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, lead all
souls to Heaven, especially those in  most need of Thy mercy."
12. Pray the "Hail, Holy Queen" after all five decades are completed.
13. Make the Sign of the Cross and say Amen.
I hope that you have been able to follow the steps and I really hope that you
have begun to pray the rosary! There is so much turmoil and hate in our world
right now. I truly believe in the power of prayer and I know that God will
answer us.
                                                            Ask, and you will receive.

Seek, and you will find.

Knock, and it will be opened to you.

For the one who asks, receives.

The one who seeks, finds.
The one who knocks, enters.     

  Matthew 7:7,8

And as always, 

Peace and blessings to you and yours, near and far, wherever you are!

Bye for now, Sharla