My patron St Luke today!!! He longed to show Jesus at PRAYER/LOVE! "The LORD is near to all who call upon him" Psalm 145/Hallel Psalm!

Spending a full morning with my parents here in their light filled peaceful home!

 My heart is full of so much that I am spinning with all that we have shared starting with mass with mom, and nurse visit and being amazed at my dad's sharpness, and in the midst conversations as I preached to the choir of all the blessings I am given on this journey!

What a delight to find St Luke Feast today as I read the readings last night before bed!  I love this from the Magnificat today:
Of all the evangelists he seemed most most concerned to show Jesus at prayer.   It is fitting, therefore, that the Church's prayer, the liturgy of the hours, draws mainly from Luke.  The Canticle of Zechariah (1:68-79), the Magnificat (1:46-55), and Simeon's prayer (2:29-32) traditionally said at night prayer, are all found in his Gospel.

I love to look at Luke as being huge on prayer, and that his prayers are used by me on a daily basis in morning prayer and evening prayer!  Prayer has become my life and to have my patron Saint so important in prayer.. gives me a deeper and more personal love and connection to him.  Father John prayed to the Physician Saint to intercede on the spiritual healing we all are in need of.

A spectacular display of fall as we came out of mass this morning in the rising sun!

My trip up was filled with combines at work in the fields... Pat says that they are hard at it and the corn is now dry enough to put directly in the bins so they are filling a bin a day!  The colors of fall were also a constant sight to behold as I traveled down the road from the farm to my parents even coming through the cities at rush hour was not tooooo bad... thank you, Lord!

Mom and dad's cute display in front of their house...

With prayer in mind how special was it to read the Psalm from mass today.. a Hallel Psalm of total praise to Our Lord!!  Psalm 145
"The LORD is near to all who call upon him,
to all who call upon him in truth.
R. Your friends make known, O Lord, the glorious splendor of your Kingdom."

Prayer is calling upon Our Lord throughout our days and lives!  How I do that with every beat of my heart and every breath that I take!  He hears all those prayers and he always listens to His Mother, so it is such a glorious gift to have her with me on my journey!  Part of our deep wonderful sharing today was how Mary brings us to The Church and no where else!

A blanket of leaves around their house... they have a lawn man hired who blows them across the road into the woods!  "It is a good thing that you have a woods across the street!"

 Sharing with them about how blessed we are to have The Community of the Lamb in our family!  "Yes, you are very lucky and blessed." from mom, and I know that she means it and understands that this radical life is powerful and yet a sacrifice for both Hallel and her family not to have her part of our day to day life!  Yet, her being in KC for another year is definitely much closer to having her being a part of our family.  With fake plans to go there for Christmas... that is a dream indeed.  Yet, we are not able to see her during Advent or Lent.

Lunch thanks to my brother Phil's Grill restaurant and our apples off the trees.  Together we are helping out, but mom doesn't want to give up her kitchen either!

It was funny when the nurse here visiting asked mom if she liked to cook..."Well, after 69 years, it gets to be part of my life and routine, but I wouldn't say that I like to cook.  If someone was in the kitchen doing it... I would love it!"  Yet it is part of that normal she is not willing to give up yet.

 Dad sharing with me that they drove to Stillwater, St Michael's for mass on Sunday in the snow storm!  "You crazy kids!"

Mom reading to me from G.K. Chesteron , Wisdom and Innocence,  about the windows of the 4 Evangelists we look through to see Jesus... Yes, am having mountain top experiences here, and it is a small slice of heaven!

Looking at Jesus and prayer through the window of St Luke the Evangelist is inspiring and uplifting and heart filling and I am overwhelmed by HIM!  I love the Mary that I can see and appreciate thanks to St Luke, but then to have St John's eyewitness account of Jesus giving Mary to us as our Mother at the foot of the Cross where they both were standing together... and he took her into his home!  Yes!  LOVE and my home is filled with Mary!  Mom and I were allowing our minds to ask; "Imagine what that was like!!!!"

I had just shared with mom that I had been thinking about grandson Luke on his feast day today, but also Evangeline Mary, who is named after ST JPII and the new Evangelization but also it should be her feast day along with the 4 evangelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John!

Happy Feast day Luke!!!  He loves to share his stories about his monster trucks and any thing else he can share!!!  Bobbi is a good sport and he takes advantage of that good listening!

Pat with the two youngest granddaughters in June.  Happy Feastday Evangeline Mary!

LOVE their grandpa Pat!!!
Hope to see our Evangeline for Christmas - more fake plans flying around!

I like it cool, so instead of turning up the heat... she bundled up to read with her special art work behind... "Nancy has asked for them." she tells me... her namesake

Lord, ST Luke takes me back to my confirmation day in a huge adult Confirmation at St Paul Cathedral in 1972 spring.  A new Catholic after the 13 of us had our first Communion on Christmas Eve 1971 in The Cenacle Convent in Wayzata!  Every day since has been a gift and St Luke blesses me more and more with each new year, but by far by his amazing Gospel and prayers that I say each day!  Mary comes to me through his words and stories of her humble life!   Jesus, we trust in you.  Bless-bless, Barbara Luke
(I have added Mary too!)  Barbara Mary Luke
http://familysoulstory.blogspot.com/p/the-amazing-story-of-13-becoming.html
http://familysoulstory.blogspot.com/p/my-most-cherished-cross-patrick-gerard.html

My dad in his jeans, suspenders and plaid shirt... they are doing fine for today... we take one day at a time at this point in their lives.  But I guess they are still kind of wild and crazy inside and decide to drive to mass in Stillwater in the snow still.  Yikes!  That is why I pray for them every day.

With a break from school... it sounds like Dave is learning about farming... Paul wrote this;
Helper Dave assisting with some combining and grain hauling today. Teaching him about farm safety, crop genetics, mechanics, and just enjoying life. He also was the “motivator” in the back of the herd as we ran the cows from grass to corn stalks. Busy day for this busy farm kid.

 Rose is a cat magnet as she waits to turn the cows into the barn after they came across the field from the pasture behind the farm!

Then across the road and on stalks til the snow comes!

 Pouring cement now that the weather is nice...

 Joy too!

 Ruth's beautiful home... getting some apples and beets for my parents.

I get warm and fuzzy inside when I see Ruth having the life she grew up with and how happy it makes her and her kids!  LOVE!



LOVE!!  Worth a second share... my mom loves it so much she is copying it to have and adore!