Tamales

For the Feast of Our Lady of Guadelupe, we held a Sapienta Saturday. Erin Mone was out of town that week, and so the planning of it fell to me. One area of high-concern is food. Usually we have volunteers who plan the meals, make them, and then bring them over, to help feed the brothers and the retreatants.

Since it was a feast day, and more than that, a great Mexican feast day, the Kitchen Master decided he would make a Mexican feast. The menu included: Tamales, Flautas, and other deliciously Mexican dishes. To feed the crowds descending Br. Gabriel Maria intended to make 200 Tamales and he planned to make them two days before the retreat on a Thursday. I was among those recruited to help prepare them.

For those who have never experienced a Tamale, it starts with a Corn Husk (don’t eat the corn husk) a type of dough is made called Masa, which is made of corn flour and chicken stock broth, the Masa is spread thinly on the corn husk and a meat is added to the middle and then it’s folded up. The finished product is stacked in a pot and steamed.

The hard part is to spread the Masa thinly enough on the corn husk. After a few failed attempts I figured out how to get the Masa to smooth out. I spent 5 hours in the Brothers’ kitchen making Tamales, it was quite an adventure. Br. Gabriel Maria and Br. Paul of Tarsis called me the “trooper” since I stayed longer than anyone else to help them finish up.

On Saturday I also found myself rolling Flautas to help get everything ready for the meal while figuring out songs for Adoration. Making Tamales was quite an experience. It was fun to spend time in the kitchen telling stories and learning more about the brothers.

The meal turned out wonderfully and it was great fun to watch the teens try to figure out how to eat a tamale.

The below video is a clip from Disney's Zorro starring Guy Williams. During the adventure of making Tamales Br. Gabriel Maria and I discovered we shared an affinity for this show, so we spent some time singing the opening title song. In this particular episode, the song sung directly after the title is one about Tamales, which was also sung. It's easier to explain if you simply watch it. Don't feel compelled to watch the entire thing if you don't want.

Sports with the Sisters

Every other week Eagle Eye is invited to play sports with the Sisters. When it’s warm enough, we play basketball on the court next to the convent. So far it’s been quite an experience. The sisters are exceptionally fast and agile for Contemplative nuns.

When it’s an even match between Eaglets and sisters, the teams are split Sisters vs. Eaglets. We never stand a chance. When you’re up against Sr. Eme “The Bullet” Domini, Sr. Theresa Marine Core, Sr. Perpetual Motion and “The Guardian,” there really is no hope. It’s better when they disperse the Eaglets among the teams.

The French sisters are my favorite to play with, as they don’t quite have a concept of the rules yet. Their moves consist of double dribbling, travelling and shooting the ball either all the way over the hoop or into the rim. They’re getting better though.

For those who aren’t up on basketball terminology, there are points in the game where the possession of the basketball is contested. When two players from opposite teams both have a firm grip on the basketball for 5 seconds or more someone calls “Jump Ball.” In a normal game with referees, whistles and coaches Jump Balls are solved by first giving the ball to whoever didn’t have possession to begin the game, after that it rotates which team takes possession. (I apologize for the poor explanation.) When you play with the sisters it’s much less complicated. It starts out with Sr. Eme “The Bullet” Domini insisting that we play by the rules of the game. Then “The Guardian” comes over and says, “It’s more fun when you arm wrestle for it.”

On one such occasion, “The Guardian” won and it was decided that Sr. Marthe Rachel and I would arm wrestle for possession. Sr. Marthe Rachel, is one of the girls I’ve known since I was 16. Sr. Marthe Rachel has been sweeping and chopping vegetables with the sisters for 2 years now, and let me tell you, she has very well-toned forearms. Long-story short, I was roundly beaten by Sr. Marthe Rachel and she won the possession of the basketball.

There are so many other stories about sports with the sisters I could tell, but for the sake of length I’ll cut it off there. Needless to say, I count down the days until the next time we get to play with the Sisters.

Eagle Eye Promotional Video

Field of Dreams

For a movie that is relatively nonsensical the screenwriter for “Field of Dreams” certainly got one line right. “If you build it he will come.” As a proud part of the sprouting grass roots of the St. John Summer Conference, this phrase stands at its base.

You could see it in several lights, the first being: If we build it, they will come— in reference to the abounding numbers of young people that will be attracted to the St. John Summer Conference. Another would be: If we build it, He will come— and in this case we’re not talking about Shoeless Joe Jackson. It’s a quest for the Holy Spirit to speak through the St. John Summer Conference.

This conference is bigger than each one of the members of the planning committee and so we entrust it to Our Lady, who cares for all things.

We played baseball with Father Nathan and truly lived the experience in childlike wonder. It’s a simple place, there’s the house, the baseball field and a small gift shop. But it was in its simplicity that we were able to truly enjoy the moment together.

It felt so good to swing the bat and throw the ball. In taking that time to be joyous together, our team has been strengthened. To be content to simply offer yourself to the Father through play—to offer whatever strength and agility you have in the service of the team. And together to pull each other to the goal of a finished and fruitful summer conference.

As we continue to plan the Summer Conference, I pray that each of us will be able to give of our talents the way we did on the Field of Dreams. That we may be totally given to the final product, but truly live the road leading to the Conference. Offering ourselves as we are, and discovering that between all of us and the Blessed Virgin, this Summer Conference will be wonderful.

Iowa Trip: November 14-16

Last weekend, Father Nathan spoke at a retreat in Ames, Iowa, home of Iowa State University. Consequently, Ames is only 15 minutes from where I grew up. When Father agreed to speak at this retreat, he handed the weekend over to me and asked me to arrange for him to speak to as many young people as possible while we were there. As the Ames retreat was a Saturday evening retreat with a Sunday afternoon talk attached to it, it gave me a few possibilities.

It became quite the adventure. With an outdoor Mass on Sunday morning with young adults from Des Moines, we began the day running. We had a great turn out and shared a lot of smiles as we moved logs and fallen trees together to create our Mass space. We came out of the cold wind refreshed and excited to move into the next stage of our journey, which was a talk given by Father in Ames followed by Adoration.

After Adoration, we headed to my house to play with my nephews and share a meal with my siblings. In my excitement to play with Roman and Judah, I don’t quite know what all we talked about, although I do know that we ate spaghetti. Roman has gotten so big since I left and he’s speaking so much more (if that’s possible.) Judah cut two teeth and is still a bouncing happy baby, who the girls were happy to hold while he slept.

From the family homestead we headed back to Ames where Father spoke to a youth group about Our Lady. I spent most of the time running back and forth down a hallway with Roman, giggling all the way. In between playing “chase” I gave a short talk about the Summer Conference as well as showed two movies to the teens.

Monday we went to the Field of Dreams in the morning and then said Mass for the Catholic Home School group in Iowa City. We had lunch with them afterwards and showed the promotional videos to them as well. And then we played a raucously wild game of pull up with the younger kids.

As you can see, we had quite a whirlwind weekend. The plan had been for the girls to stay with my brother and sister-in-law over the weekend. However, the week prior almost everyone had gotten sick, and three girls decided to stay back. I’d been sick the weekend before but felt better on Wednesday. Friday morning, however, I felt a little off and later developed a fever. You can imagine my distress, I’d been so excited to bring everyone to Iowa, and it looked like I’d have to stay back.

Luckily, my fever broke in the middle of the night and I felt a lot better Saturday, but under the guidance of my parents, I decided it might be better if we find a different place to stay over the weekend. I only had 2 hours to find a new place to stay so I called several people, my main contact being my Confirmation Sponsor (she knows EVERYONE). An hour after I called Rosemary, she got back to me with news that a lady named Regina had graciously agreed to take us in.

I called Regina and discovered a very open and giving soul. She told me how she hadn’t had anything planned for the day or evening, and so in the morning she’d asked the Holy Spirit what he wanted for her day. It was shortly after this prayer that my Confirmation Sponsor approached her to ask if she could take in 5 stranded eaglets.

Getting to know Regina was such a joy, as she shared her exuberance for life as well as told us stories. She was so gracious and welcoming to us, that we felt right at home with her for the two days we stayed with her. It was a true lesson in being open to the Holy Spirit and to humbly accept His plan.

For a detail-oriented planner, I’d had all my ducks in a row by Thursday, including a backup rainy-day location for our outdoor Mass along with directions to each. To change plans so suddenly on Saturday was an opportunity to grow as well as to love the ladies I’m living in community with. If we hadn’t stayed elsewhere some of them might not have been able to come, and it would have been a sad weekend without them.

It was hard for me to put aside my carefully laid plans and accept that the Father had different plans for the weekend. I admit, I had my moments where I did not acquiesce to the Father’s will as gracefully as I should have, but looking back on the weekend, I learned a lot. I’ve begun a beautiful friendship with Regina, whom I mightn’t have gotten to know otherwise and I discovered a little more what it means to live in community.

For someone discerning a vocation to religious life, it feels like a huge revelation. To put my community before my family, though hard, brought forth its own fruits. To submit my will in obedience to God’s, though not exactly what I had in mind, took me a few steps farther in trusting His plan.

It truly was a productive weekend, internally as well as externally.