Preparing for Lent: Do not look for the devil

Do not look for the devil around every corner and on every doorstep. If you do that, you will find him. Fascination with the devil, either in forms of curiosity or defense, opens oneself up to the influence of the devil.  

Remember, temptation comes from three main sources: the devil, the world, and the flesh. Do not flatter the devil, or yourself for that matter, by thinking that the devil is the sole thorn in your side. 

It is far better, far more efficacious, to live a life rich in merit and full of sanctifying grace than it is to constantly worry about demons and devils.  Too often reactionary Catholics, upon learning that they have practiced superstition of some kind, careen from embracing superstition to attempting to actively fight the devil, without the proper spiritual discernment or preparation. 

Our culture is seeped with images, activities, and superstitions that could open us up to the influence of the devil, the world, and the flesh. How often does a Catholic learn that a practice of theirs, or an entertainment of theirs, could potentially lead one down the wrong path? 

For myself, I learn more about the expectations of Almighty God often. And, I comfort myself in that I cannot be mortally held accountable for the things I did when I did not know. For a sin to be mortal, the sinner must know and will to commit the sin of grave matter. An example from myself, when I was young, I did not know that Yoga could be spiritually dangerous. It was merely a form of relaxation and exercise for me. I took a class at a college campus, and as I was taking the class I began to realize that Yoga was a form of spirituality. Then, I did some research on it. I realized that Yoga could be spiritually dangerous. So, I stopped doing Yoga.  If there was sin when I exercised using Yoga, it was not mortal because I did not know. 

Recently, I saw a post online saying that an unnamed exorcist stated that a company curses its religious products before sending them to customers. Although exorcists are usually unnamed for their protection, I have never heard this claim before. Aside from that, I am not fearful of curses. Living a sacramental life, frequenting the sacraments and Holy Mass, should suffice. If you know for sure something is cursed, then by all means, contact a good and holy priest for advice on what to do. 

Looking for the devil gives the devil power over your thoughts. How often have you listened to a song or watched a movie, then thought about that for days later? Worrying about what the devil might do can subconsciously control your thoughts and fill you with unnecessary anxiety more easily than a catchy song can linger in your mind. 

Do not think that this post is to discount the devil. He exists. He is smarter than us. He is stronger than us. He is openly opposed to all that is good, beautiful, and holy. We should not flirt with the devil. We should not antagonize the devil. We should not draw attention to ourselves. 

We should frequent the sacraments. We should live simple, good lives. We should seek to performs meritorious actions. We should do penance in reparation for sin. We should seek to know, love, and serve Almighty God above all else and in all things. 

A Hope of Reading

 My oldest little boy is five and a half. He can read words at a second grade level, but he has a habit that interrupts his fluency. When reading, he will often say, "What's this?" before reading the word. I find it quite cute, but I wonder how long the habit will last. 

My little girl is four months from her fourth birthday. She wants to read, but lacks concentration for any serious lessons. She will often answer my son's "What's this?" with a word she thinks should go next. Then, in a condescending childish way, say, "I told you that you need practice to read." 

My little five year old will read to my little three year old and my little nearly two year old whenever they ask. If he truly doesn't know how to read a word, he will ask me how to say it. 

Sometimes I get nervous about teaching my other two children how to read - do I really have the talent to teach children to read? I taught at least three of my younger siblings how to read. Yet, I still wonder. I think it is the possibility that they will not enjoy reading that actually bothers me. 

I can teach my children how to decode. I can even teach them how to comprehend. We read to our children daily, and many times a day. But, what will happen if they grow up not loving the process of reading? 

I remember when I first encountered someone who truly did not enjoy reading. I was surprised. With such a text-rich environment, one must read often. Yet, this is not the same as enjoying the process of reading. Then, I pondered, what would I even do with my life if I did not enjoy reading? 

My nephew, who is a year old, has a congenital heart defect that caused him to have an emergency surgery about a year ago. Something that my family chuckled at was while his mom was quickly packing things they would need to be confined to a hospital for several weeks, his dad gathered something like 14 books to bring with him. Both his parents are avid readers, but they did not get through all 14 books while he was hospitalized. 

I hope my nephew, and my children, enjoy the process of reading. I hope all my nieces and nephews love reading. I hope they are like my husband and me and my brother-in-law and sister. I hope they have well-loved books in every corner of the house. I hope that as they get older, they ask for more books. I hope they find the enjoyment of learning. 

Announcement: 2022-2023 Academic Year

 I am excited to announce that I will be teaching with Scholé Academy this coming 2022-2023 Academic Year. I will be teaching Fundamentals of Mathematics (grade: adv. 6 or 7), Pre-Algebra (grade: adv. 7 or 8, and high school), and Well-Ordered Language (grammar) 1 (grade: 4 or 5). You can view the courses I am teaching and all the courses offered here. If you already know that you want to enroll for the coming year, enrollment has begun. 

About this school: This is a virtual classical school. There are actually three schools under the Scholé Academy umbrella: A Catholic school, an Anglican school, and an Orthodox school. The schools follow the principles of seeking Good, Beauty, and Truth in a restful and reflective matter. There are live virtual classes for the student to learn. 

Parents can choose a full enrollment, or they can enroll their child(ren) in the classes most beneficial for their individual needs. There are classes available for K-12, but most of the classes are 4th through 12th. Tutoring is also available for students needing more one-on-one attention. 

If this concept interests you, please browse the courses being offered!

70 Days Until Easter and 40 Days Alone in the Desert with Christ

Today is Septuagesima Sunday. In the older Roman calendar, this Sunday marks 70 days until Easter. In the New Advent entry on Septuagesima Sunday, it states the following:

Septuagesima is today inaugurated in the Roman Martyrology by the words: "Septuagesima Sunday, on which the canticle of the Lord, Alleluja, ceases to be said". On the Saturday preceding, the Roman Breviary notes that after the "Benedicamus" of Vespers two Alleluias are to be added, that thenceforth it is to be omitted till Easter, and in its place "Laus tibi Domine" is to be said at the beginning of the Office.  

 The countdown for Easter has began. Next Sunday will be Sexagesima, or sixty, and the following Sunday will be Quinquegesima, or fifty. These weeks before Ash Wednesday are a pre-Lenten preparation. In the Fisheaters Septuagesima Overview, the noted theme is man's fallen state and the mood is penance. 

The wonderful part of the older liturgical calendar is that it gives one time to prepare. One is not thrown into a liturgical season without warning. Ash Wednesday and Lent do not suddenly appear on the doorstep unannounced and unprepared for. I have a very good friend, who exclusively attends the Novus Ordo, who lamented to me that she has been in "penance mode" since the beginning of the year because she wants to be ready for Lent. She admitted that she did not properly celebrate Christmas because she was focused on her New Years resolutions and having a routine that would allow penance. This makes me so sad. 

As noted in the sermon at my parish today, this is the time to prepare for Lent. We should be thinking about our acts of penance and easing into them. We have just come out of a great season of joy and the Church, in her wisdom, preserved in the old calendar, provides us with a time of preparation so we can be successful in the season of Lent. 

Soon, starting on Ash Wednesday, we will be alone in the desert with Christ for 40 days. During this time of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving; that is, during this time of penance, we should strive to grow in holiness in abundance. We should seek to perform meritorious actions and works of penance. But, we should be reasonable for our age, spiritual maturity, and state in life. 

It has been said that a penance which become burdensome to others is not a good penance. A mother who spends a holy hour daily at the expense of her children is not performing a good act of penance. The expense should only be mortifying self, not mortifying all. The father who chooses to fast all day and becomes irritated and demeaning toward his family, or hangry as modern colloquial language allows, is not performing a good act of penance. 

This being said, giving up chocolate is probably not a very good act of penance either. Unless you eat chocolate in abundance, the act of giving up chocolate is a minor inconvenience at times. Giving up cream in your coffee is a minor inconvenience, and not usually considered a mortifying act. These may be good examples of penance for children and those just beginning to understand the spiritual life. 

Over the next several days, it is time to begin a self-examination of what penances can be undertaken during Lent. 

Some articles to read on the subject of Septuagesima are:

Septuagesima: The Time that the Land Forgot

The Dismissal of the Alleluia

The Forgotten Customs of Septugesima

Wait...You Homeschool?

It doesn't happen very often. Occasionally, we will hear, "Wait! You homeschool?" 

Maybe it is because we only have three children. Maybe it is because our oldest is only five. Usually, the astonishment is only instantaneous before comprehension washes over them and the question is shrugged off. 

My husband is a certified public school teacher. He has several certifications including Social Studies and English as a Second Language. He works as a teacher in a school district and we would have school of choice if we chose to enroll our children into school. 

Have we thought about it? Yes. We have. We actually enrolled our eldest in Kindergarten, but disenrolled him before the term started. 

My husband loved school as a child. It was his happy place. He loved being around friends. He loved the activities. He loved his teachers. He became a teacher partly because he loved school. 

I loved learning, but I did not love school. When I was in second grade, my parents pulled me from the public school and began homeschooling me. My parents were questioned about their decision to homeschool more than I have been. This is either due to a change in the times or the people we surround ourselves with. 

My husband and I both have bachelor degrees, graduate work, and teaching experience. My husband works at a school and I am a professional tutor. I work from home. We value education. We want to give what is best for our children. Right now, that is homeschooling. If that changes in the future, so will our approach to our children's education. 

We homeschool for a couple different reasons.

1. Our son barely made the cutoff for school. He was born in the middle of August. The district cutoff was September 1st. He was academically ready for school. He was social-emotionally not ready for school. He asked that he be taught to read. How could I say no?

2. The COVID-19 pandemic and the various unpredictable responses. We want our children's memories of their childhood years to be consistent and pleasant. Wearing a mask might be socially responsible in some circumstances, but it is certainly not academically important. We wanted our children to learn without being constantly reminded to wear a mask. I have heard some of the circle time songs and books about wearing a mask. We have masks that we wear in appropriate settings - I am not anti-mask. But, I do not feel comfortable elevating mask wearing to the same importance as learning letter sounds. 

3. We can control the pace and structure. When we have an off day, school can be reduced to snuggling on the sofa and reading our favorite stories. When we have a great day, we can complete a week's worth of lessons in one day. I can customize learning to our children's individual needs. As a result, my 5-year-old is doing first grade work. My 3-year-old is about to start reading. 

4. We can decide what they learn and when. It is February - Black History Month. And, all over Instagram, I have seen people arguing for and against critical race theory, teaching "real" history, and the trouble with whitewashing history. My husband is a social studies teacher. Our children are Hispanic. We understand the importance of teaching "real" history, but we get to decide when this happens based on their maturity and ability to handle it. And, we can learn about all people every month, instead of confining a group to a specific month. 

5. We get to spend time with them while they are still young. Little kids are hard, but they will never be little like this again. There is nothing we can do to slow time. Putting our children in school may be convenient for our careers or to reassure ourselves that the state will recognize their education, but is it what is right for them? 

We are keeping them home for now. We school for 2-3 hours a day. We school for 5-6 days a week (whether I want to or not). We touch on all subjects - from basic reading and writing to Solfa to Piano to art. We have done unit studies. We have had play-based lessons. 

Will we change our approach to education in the future? Maybe. We have discussed it. For now, though, they are home and thriving. 

Advent Preparations

 Can you believe that it is almost the new year? 

Are you excited for what a new year brings?

There are so many preparations that we make for the holidays and new year. Something that might fall by the wayside is the spiritual preparations for Advent and Christmas. 

This Sunday, November 29th, is the first Sunday of Advent. As such, it is the liturgical new year.  In the Eastern Churches, Advent is known as the time for the Nativity Fast - and Eastern Catholics and Orthodox Christians are already fasting. They begin their fast forty days before Christmas. In the West, we do not have the same emphasis on fasting as preparation today. 

In our secular society, Christmas decorations were on the store shelves before Halloween! The grand debate between many is Christmas music before or after Thanksgiving. Neither! Christmas music should be for the Christmas season. It is time for Advent music. 

It is time for penance and reflection. 

It is time for alms, fasting, and prayer. 

It is a time of preparation where we hear the voice in the wilderness cry: Make strait the way of the Lord. 

Need inspiration?

First, take a look at the Advent Guide for the Extraordinary Thoughts. 

Next, check out the Advent Overview at Fisheaters. 

Then, maybe read Around the Year with the Von Trapp Family.

Finally, listen to Advent music!

Primary sounds for M, A, N, S, E, and T

 Happy Thanksgiving. 

My five-year-old asked me if we were going to record a video today. I said, "Sure!" He was a little tired, but he was so excited to record our video. 

We have done these lessons several times. We will continue to review previous phonics lessons as we continue on our journey to learning how to read. Repetition builds confidence. 

At the bottom of the page, Ms. Akin wrote notes to the teacher. These are brief notes. They include the recommendation to go over these foundational parts slowly.  We are building masterful readers. Our goal is not to have our five year olds reading at a 3rd grade reading level. Our goal is to build a strong phonetic foundation so that our children can learn to read well. 

Phonics helps to decode the patterns of language. Once a child can decode words, the child can begin to work on comprehension and understanding. Follow Ms. Akin's advice: lay the foundation well. 

A quick phonics lesson for the primary sounds of M, A, N, S, E, and T. 

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 Links of Interest: 

Florence Akin's Word Mastery Course:https://play.google.com/books/reader?... 

Flashcards and Letter Tiles: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/P... 

My Blog: https://atouchofbeautylife.blogspot.com/ 

My TpT Storefront: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/S...