Starvation

Brianna Smith - 8th Grade Student:

It seemed like a good idea at the moment, fun actually. I know , I know ... one might think of starving yourself for 24-hours undesirable, but I thought of it as an opportunity to show how committed and “to your word” someone could be.

Surprisingly enough, I was nervous about the whole agenda, yet I still thought that I could power through it easily. The day of the event came like a bomb, fast and without warning, but I knew I was ready for it. With shaking hands I packed my snack for the next day, a sandwich, crackers, water, and chocolate, of course.

I arrived at school the next day ready to repeat my daily routine and prepare for the last meal that I would have for the next 24 hours. My heart raced with excitement and passion, but like everyone else in my class, I did not yet understand the meaning of the word “fasting” or “starving” and what they symbolized. While trying to come up with a decent definition of the two in my brain, I saw no words, but pictures.

As I tried harder and harder, I stumbled on a thought, or a vision you might say, that maybe these important but miss-understood meanings cannot be put into words. Maybe they had to be experienced or seen with the tenderness of your heart. The vision I portrayed in my head was not that of friends or of family wanting to eat after a long day, but of people that I do not know. These people looked starving or impoverished; they looked dirty and wet. There was a woman standing and two children beside her who looked to be about two or three years of age. The woman was looking straight at me, but where was I? I looked at the woman who had been, what seemed like, staring at me. She looked scared, hungry, and betrayed. Betrayed by the people that God himself said were her brothers and sisters.

The woman and her children were turned down by people that pass by them everyday and knowingly ignore them . But at the end of everyday the woman will pray for all her brothers and sisters, even the ones that pass her by everyday and don’t even turn to smile. She will pray for others who are sick and suffering because she knows that someone out there has it harder than she does. Someone out there is waiting for food just like her and is praying for their brothers and sisters as well.

There are millions of people that starve for days or weeks at a time. The words “fasting” and “starvation” don’t have a word definition, but can be defined by images of hungry faces, bodies, souls. One might not think of starving themselves for 24 hours as desirable but neither is living on the street, having a disease because of mal-nutrition, or even living in a shelter with no family or friends.

Fasting or famine means a lack of something, everyone can say that they are lacking respect or lack of talent. But some children who are born on the streets do not acquire respect, they do not acquire talent. The average person sees over 50 100 ads about helping the homeless, needy, or starving everyday. How many of us act on them, no one knows. We can change that we can start a new and better era that helps their brothers and sisters in times of suffering. We cannot change our world if we do not show that we want to change our world. It all starts with a little donation of time, prayer, and the gift of giving. So what does starvation mean and what does fasting mean? Each means people who have a lack of respect from their people and are spiritually, mentally, and physically starving. I will power through this; I will support my brothers and sisters. No matter what race what religion what country what cost I will be proud to no eat and witness slightly what it is like to live where and in the state that our distant family does.

Every time I stopped and thought about going to the fridge or the pantry to grab something to eat I stopped. I saw, in my head the faces of starving children and finally I knew where I was, I was among them I was with my family I was with my friends, and just for a moment I felt their pain I heard their cries.

At the end of our experience we were flourished with food of all sorts. For a moment I was ready to scarf down every ounce of food on the clean tables, but I stopped and looked at the food as if it disgusted me to highest extent, but what really made my stomach curl was the thought of knowing that I was given this for free. We, the students, did nothing to deserve it. Nothing. Of course we gave up food for a day, but how does that compare to someone who lives in huts with no clean water and not even a roof over their heads. We did nothing, but they, our brothers and sisters did everything. By fasting we lived a a day in their lives, but I could never imagine having that experience stretched over a lifetime.

“Pain doesn’t hurt if it’s all you’ve ever felt.”
-Jim Pathetine

A Doubt Shattered By Grace

Gary Dey - parishioner:

As a convert this former Baptist, now Catholic had an experience with our Lord that sent chills down my spine. It was 3:00 a.m. in the morning when I felt compelled to go directly to the adoration chapel at St. Joseph Cathedral. Why I was to do this, only our Lord knew.

As is customary, our Lord asks that some always be present with Him in the blessed sacrament, but to my disbelief, the room was empty. Upon entering and kneeling, I thought, Okay, so what? Even though I was newly Catholic and entering the church, I had challenged, as Paul had suggested, every position of our faith … Paul had nothing on me! I couldn't see how our faith could really have all the mysteries or how Christ could be alive and present 24/7 in the chapel? I thought to myself, this must be a place where old people go to get away from other members of the family.

WRONG!!

As I mentioned, I was alone and kneeling, thinking that surely our Lord had time to hear all of my pressing issues. So I began to pray for many things: family, friends, health, finances, youth, our priests, the Pope, my sins …. you see, I said there were many things I had to pray for.

I asked myself how this monstrance with the wheat cracker or bread thing in it could be getting the full picture of my life? How stupid it woud seem to an outsider that I was praying to this golden circle, which the Church claimed to contain the Lord.

Time went faster than I thought, and after about twenty minutes of prayer, I began to open my eyes and gaze directly at the monstrance. At first I thought I must be tired because, looking directly into the presence of our Lord, everything seemed real blurry. The best way to say it is that everything was out of focus. THIS WAS THE BEGINNING OF THIS CONVERT’S LAST DOUBT OF THE PRESENCE OF OUR LORD.

It happened suddenly - the out of focus monstrance began to take shape … not fast but just gradual. Then it happened, our Lord’s face appeared with the crown of thorns. WOW, I nearly fell off the kneeler, and my eyes could not believe the image which was before me. You see, I left one important part out until now. In my struggles with doubt, I was asking the Lord to show me something so I might even believe just a little.

Our Lord stayed present for as long as I looked upon his face. This must have been at least 15 minutes. I did not want to leave, and all I could think about was to tell my wife what had taken place. "Do I stay or do I go home and share this?" I asked myself.

I finally went home, not even realizing how fast I was driving. I went into the bedroom and told my wife this special grace with which our Lord had blessed me. Upon waking, she just smiled and said, “I’m not surprised.” She knew all along that our Lord was going to make all of his mysteries known to me in His time. YES HE HAS, and I have other graces to share sometime in the future!

God Bless.

Food Fast

Monica Miller - 8th grade student:

This year the whole eighth grade participated in the Foodfast. We better learned what temptation was. This foodfast was an extreme awakening for most of us. We learned how many people in the world suffer as we did. Many of these people live their lives like this from day to day. I learned how fortunate I am, and how I should better appreciate what I have, rather than realize what I don’t have.

Temptation settled in as soon as I got in the car on my way home. My younger brother and my neighbor were hungry, so we bought food. The many aromas of the flavors and seasonings filled the car. This hadn’t made me hungry yet.

Later, my family ate dinner, my stomach grumbled, but I ignored it and tried to do as many things as I could to keep my mind off of eating. The next morning, we had church. This was hard, not only for me, but also for my peers. Our stomachs grumbled loudly as we had sudden cravings of any food. The juice and water we had that day was substantial and made us less hungry. Our bodies fought against us when we fasted, but we continued, knowing the end was near.

During the day, we naturally could feel ourselves getting weaker and more tired. It was harder to concentrate in classes, but the harder it was, the more we tried to focus. At lunchtime, we watched the other kids go down for lunch as we sat in class and talked. We could smell the heavenly aroma of the cheese pizza being made earlier, then eaten by the others. We counted down the hours until we would finally have food. After the day grew shorter, we realized that, by the time we were finally allowed to eat, we weren’t as hungry as we were earlier, or thought we would have been.

I think this was a great experience and I recommend this awakening to the people that are doing it next, or are debating on it. This fast was about me, about learning to listen and follow Christ and his wills.

A Perfect Fit

Kristin Morris - junior high teacher:

For me, the best part about teaching in a Catholic school is being open about my faith and being able to incorporate religion into any subject I teach. Following my student teaching semester in public schools, I spent two years teaching 4th grade at a public school.

When I would come to school wearing my crucifix necklace or with ashes on my forehead after an Ash Wednesday Mass, I always got questions from the kids (and some faculty) about what I believed. I enjoy discussing my faith and am usually very open about my beliefs, but I was always a bit hesitant to answer the students' questions regarding faith because I worried my principal would come in as I was answering a question about Jesus or an angry parent would hear that I had answered a question and be unhappy with me.

I understand the separation of church and state and understand why I couldn't openly teach religion in a public school. Other teachers had told me that, if I was answering questions that the students had initiated, it was probably OK, even if those questions were about my faith. However, I always felt guilty and as though I might "get in trouble" when the subject came up.

All that being said, it is probably easy to see why I feel so comfortable teaching in the Catholic schools. I truly enjoy not only answering questions about faith, but being able to challenge students with questions about faith, morality, and religion. I can wear my crucifix and have ashes on my forehead and still be in the norm here at a Catholic school. It's been a very special experience for me to be open about my faith, and I am glad to have that opportunity to share that with students.

Out of the Mouths of Babes

Charlotte Braddock - kindergarten teacher:

Last year I was going through a particularly difficult time in my life. I was questioning everything, even if I should continue to teach. Then I received an answer from God in the form of a poem. It was written by the parent of one of my students and based on the word of God (Scripture). I am so thankful. This act of kindness meant more to me than this mother will ever know.

“Out of the Mouths of Babes” - based on Psalms 8:2

(A true story from Megan Barnes, as told by her mother)

Out of the mouths of babes we often hear,
The truth adults don’t always speak so clear.

So it came one day from my daughter, the “babe,”
The truth of Mrs. Braddock, from her mouth it came.

While searching ideas for a good teacher present,
I came up empty, so to my daughter I went.

“What’s Mrs. Braddock like?” I asked her to tell,
For I thought she knew her teacher quite well.

“I know what she likes, ‘ Megan said with a grin,
And she proudly announced, “She likes children!”

Amused as I was, my problem remained unsolved,
So I got specific with my question and resolve.

“Does she collect items or like certain things,
Like coffee, or chocolate or horse figurines?”

She appeared to be thinking, so I let her be,
Until finally she came with an answer for me.

“I know what she likes, out loud she thought,
“When we understand a new thing she’s taught.”

She mimics the motions and Mrs. Braddock’s face,
Of the times she discovers learning has taken place.

She smiles real big, mouth and eyes open wide,
Her hands fly up to show her joy inside.

That’s when my search for a gift idea ended,
And realized instead a thank you was needed.

I never got the gift idea I needed that day,
But I noticed the “gifts” Mrs. Braddock gave.

From the mouths of babes, this mom learned a lot,
Like what a “gifted” teacher the Cathedral has got.

You know you're a teacher when ...

Jenny Busby, junior high English teacher:

You Know You're a Teacher When ...

You look at people’s socks in public and feel the need to write out a uniform violation if you spot a logo.

Your 2 favorite days are the first and last day of school.

You can eat your lunch in under 5 minutes.

4 day work weeks suddenly seem longer than 5.

You can predict the weather according to the behavior of your class.

Amazing Grace

Leslie Verslues, parent:

I would like to share a story about my daughter, Grace Verslues. Many do not know that Grace was born 3 months premature. Weighing only 2 pounds, 2 ounces, Grace fought every day for many weeks just to breathe and stay alive. God was truly watching over her and gave her the will and strength to survive.

An article about her journey will be published in the upcoming March issue of CITY magazine. The recent "cool thing" about Grace is that she has been asked to be this year's March of Dimes Ambassador for the March for Babies Walk in Jefferson City. Yet, Grace is somewhat shy. In the past, Grace did not even want to show her classmates what her baby pictures looked like because hers were so different. She had tubes and a ventilator hooked up to her, and she was so tiny. And although Sam and I were the proudest parents in the world of her accomplishments of overcoming such obstacles at birth, she did not want to share her story.

Finally, Grace agreed to be the Ambassador. And within the past few months, she has had tea with the Governor and Mrs. Blunt at their mansion, was a public speaker at the March of Dimes Kick-Off luncheon, and recorded her own radio commercial promoting March of Dimes. She will also be featured in a KRCG television commercial. I think that is a pretty cool accomplishment! :)

My Cool Kid!

Patti Kempker, parent:

The coolest thing my son has done recently is explain parts of the Mass. Recently, my niece and her children came over to play on a Sunday – they do not go to church, at least not regularly. Her two girls were wondering why we were not home earlier in the morning, when they first wanted to come over. I explained that we had been to Mass and then we go out for breakfast. They expressed how much they would have loved to join us for breakfast, at which point I told them they would have to come to church first.

We went about our day and the children went into the basement “playroom” and I overheard them asking Nick why he had to go to Mass, what do you do at Mass, and what is so important about church. He proceeded to tell them about Mass and the different parts of Mass – singing, when to sit, when to stand, what the homily is all about and communion.

Because he will be making his First Communion very soon, he was especially elaborate about it. He explained about the Body and Blood of Christ and how we get to share God’s love through our receiving communion; what an honor it is to receive. He went on to comment about why they should really start coming to our church and how much they would like to receive communion.

He is really looking forward to it! As am I, although, it is another milestone he will be passing on his way to adulthood. I was, and am, impressed and immensely proud of my “cool kid”!

Sweet Pickles

Flo Minor - Junior High Religion and Mathematics:

One night, in my seventh year of teaching, I prayed to God, asking for a sign of guidance in my career.

A few days later, I was in the conference room speaking to Debbie Buersmeyer. Somehow, our conversation turned towards book orders, such as those sponsored by Scholastic and Troll. I explained to her, that my parents had divorced when I was in the first grade, and that my mother worked very hard to support us on her very limited income. Despite the financial limits, each month, when we would bring book order forms home, my mother would allow us to choose one book. At one time, I brought home an order form for a series of books known as Sweet Pickles. These books were part of a mail order program, where two books from the series would arrive each month. I explained how I had truly loved these books and would spend hours pouring over them, reading and re-reading them.

Debbie looked at me and exclaimed that she had my books. I told her that, that was impossible, as we had lived in Nevada, MO, at the time, and I had not seen those books since we moved to Columbia when I was in the 7th grade. She again, excitedly exclaimed that they were my books and even had my name in them. Again, I explained they couldn’t possibly be my books. But, she insisted and stated that she would bring one in to show me.

A few days later, she brought in one of the books. As I opened to the front cover, I was stunned to see my own name, in my own childish handwriting staring back at me. Debbie explained that these books had been in the kindergarten classroom 18 years ago, when the kindergarten program was started, long before I ever completed high school, college or began my teaching career.

In holding that book, my book, I realized that I had been given a very special sign and gift. That not only was my teaching a calling from God, but that my teaching at St. Joseph Cathedral was part of God's bigger plan for my life.