CowPi Journal

Community is like a large mosaic. Each little piece seems so insignificant. One piece is bright red, another cold blue or dull green, another warm purple, another sharp yellow, another shining gold. Some look precious, others ordinary. Some look valuable, others worthless. Some look gaudy, others delicate. As individuals stones, we can do little with […]

“Excuse me,” said an ocean fish. “You are older than I, so can you tell me where to find this thing they call the ocean?” “The ocean,” said the older fish, “is the thing you are in now.” “Oh, this? But this is water. What I’m seeking is the ocean,” said the disappointed fish as […]

Meaining of grace: It is a touch of truth that lets you see the world in a new way. It is a gift that can only be felt when you are open enough to accept it.

I do not like this quote from Blake. It has become an irritation to me like a burr under a horse’s saddle. The idea that “my flesh is a prison” is a negative attitude about the body. Who said the body was bad? Doesn’t the Bible say that the body is a temple? I understand that Blake is alluding to the fact that the body is the cause of a great many sins due to its impulses and urges. I can even see how the body is a limit or a boundary to many things, such as the complete union of a man and woman.

I dreamed I had an interview with God. “So you would like to interview me?” God asked. “If you have the time,” I said. God smiled. “My time is eternity. What questions do you have in mind for me?” “What surprises you most about humankind?” God answered… “That they get bored with childhood, they rush […]

Awakening begins when a man realizes that he is going nowhere and does not know where to go. — Georges Gurdjieff

I randomly opened up the Catechism of the Catholic Church this morning. It opened to an old bookmarked page on God’s grace. I found this paragraph comforting in light of my current mood. 2005 Since it belongs to the supernatural order, grace escapes our experience and cannot be known except by faith. We cannot therefore […]

The truth that many people never understand, until it is too late, is that the more you try to avoid suffering the more you suffer because smaller and more insignificant things begin to torture you in proportion to your fear of being hurt. — Thomas Merton

A journal entry of mine about depression inspired Mea at ignispati to write about hope. Yesterday, I stumbled upon this poem about hope from an old French poet while looking for something else. How apropos… I AM, God says, Master of the Three Virtues. Faith is a loyal wife. Charity is a fervent mother. But […]

My sixteen-year old daughter is a junior at the high school where I teach. It has been a cool experience to have her there. The other day, the school’s chaplain, Fr. Scott, told me that when he hears the song “Heaven” by Live, he thinks of my daughter and me. Talk about a lump in […]

James Lipton asks the following ten questions at the end of the TV show Inside the Actor’s Studio. These questions originally came from a French series, “Bouillon de Culture” hosted by Bernard Pivot. (Prompted by Steven) What is your favorite word? Muy bien What is your least favorite word? Formaldehyde—It smells bad too. What turns […]

When we are crushed like grapes, we cannot not think of the wine we will become. — Henri Nouwen Last week, I posted a journal entry about how I felt “the weight of darkness looming at the edge of depression.” Today, I think I have crawled, then walked, to a relatively safe distance from that […]

An excerpt from Henri Nouwen’s book, Can You Drink the Cup?: “Can you drink the cup that I am going to drink?” When Jesus brought this question to John and James, and when they impulsively answered with a big “We can,” he made this terrifying, yet hope-filled prediction: “Very well; you shall drink my cup.” […]

In Henri Nouwen’s book, Can You Drink the Cup?, the cup of life is a cup of sorrows and a cup of joys. It is a cup of blessings. The cup is your life. You are asked to drink it. Drink it to the bottom. Drinking the cup is not a heroic act with a […]

This was inspired from a radio commercial… One man took a blank sheet of paper and wrote out a plan for his whole life. He signed it and offered it up for Jesus to bless. Another man took a blank sheet of paper and signed it. He offered it up to Jesus for Him to […]

Hung Thanh Le© Okla. Dept. of Corrections Please pray for a stay of execution for Hung Thanh Le. He is scheduled for execution on Thursday in Oklahoma. Regardless of your position on capital punishment, there seems to be some issues within this case. To quote Amnesty International: The trial was riddled with prosecutorial misconduct. The […]

Why do we kill people who kill people to show that killing people is wrong? — seen on a bumper sticker (Comment: Have you ever spanked your kid for hitting a sibling?)

I am their father, says God. Our Father who art in heaven. My Son told them often enough     that I was their father. I am their judge. But I am especially their father. He who is a father is above all a father. Our Father who art in heaven. He who has once […]