Random Comments for August 16th

I got my boots back. Two pair, the ones to the rear, needed to be resoled.

We are so blessed to have an easier way to heal our souls than to drop them off at the shoe repair store and wait for them to come back in a week or two. Confession is available anytime for those who look for it, and is a lot cheaper than getting one's boots re-soled. All it costs is our humility.

But the soul free from sin is a wonderful thing, freed from the weight and guilt of sin; once again walking in friendship with God.

Elvis Presley died 30 years ago today. Please pray for the repose of his soul. I can't forget the day he died because on August 15, 1977, the Feast of the Assumption, the day before Elvis died, one of my brothers was the victim of a truly random act of violence which nearly killed him. He continues to suffer physically from what happened that day, and I am sure he suffers in other ways as well.

God can make good come from everything. This incident shook my family tremendously, but it was also the event that started me thinking about a medical career, and probably was the seed of a vocation to the priesthood for another brother. In a way, this was God's wake up call to our family - a brutally personal reminder that we are mortal creatures that are destined for Eternity - provided we start knowing, loving, and serving God.

Speaking of vocations...

Aaron, one of the 'Adopt a Seminarian/Religious' folks, has gone to join the Franciscans. See pictures HERE - OOPS LINK NOT WORKING...I WILL TRY ADDING THIS LINK LATER. Please keep him and his order in your prayers.