The Pat and Barb Verly family and their 5 children, in laws and grandkids along with many prayer warriors have been drawn together by John's cancer... sharing daily for 8 months started this blog- Family Soul Story - Our faith, family, farm and now our cancer journey called HEALING have colored and deepened our world. WE continue to share and depend on the support of our prayer warrior community, that has lowered us into the Lord's presence for His healing!
Reflecting on the last year- dad and I at prayer on the porch/Waiting for Pat to have shoulder surgery- prayers for patience and healing
Little Birdie will be 11 months old in a week! She is a delight to her family, and gets around and crawls right up to her loving grandpa, Pat, and stands by his leg so that he can put her in his lap. I am currently in a waiting room as Pat is having his left shoulder repaired... many prayers surrounding him and the farm family stepping up to handle things. It is great that the farm kids have the next 5 days off!
Such a fun sight to watch the calves frolicking in a new area at sunset last evening... last summer they laid some cement in this area, so it is nice to scrape clean and put fresh bedding and out of the picture are a line of 3 calf huts that the calves can lay in in case of rain or cold. The weather looks wonderful ahead! Thank you, Lord!
Gathered at the farm for Joy's 4th birthday supper and enjoying the show that the baby calves were putting on as they frolicked to and fro!
Pat was over at the farm early, and now is in surgery here in town. Thankfully it is his left arm, and as we drove in our prayers were for "quick and complete healing."
A funeral mass for a young woman on Wednesday of Holy Week, allowed me to join Mary at the foot of the cross in my prayers. For the unexpected death of a wife and mother and for hubby today. I am concerned about how I am going to do with this as he is unable to use his arm or hand at all for the first week and then only minimal. Much prayer for patience on both of our parts.
As I was reminded - today is the last day of the life of Jesus - tomorrow he dies on the cross, and his mother follows him down the way of The Cross with a broken heart with many swords of sorrow piercing her Mother's heart!Danielle Rose - A mother's song get the kleenexes handy for this one! "I held your body in my arms when you were born and later when you died." Not quite the words but the sentiment of her realization of God made man in her arms as a newborn and God made man brutally crucified/killed for mankind.
In touch with Hallel by email as she and The Community is praying for Pat. Hallel is in France so it is 7 hours ahead of us and they are in the midst of their Holy Thursday prayer! Each hour is filled with very powerful scripture and prayer as they share in the Passion in very deep and powerful ways. As Little Sister Alma reminded us yesterday - We pary that the surgery goes well - he is with Jesus in his week of suffering! Such a reminder to unite this difficult time with Jesus.
Working on my cross for my Easter tree - I ponder the last year, and my blessing of my 6 months over a growing season on the farm with my Deacon father is something that I will cherish always and wanted to capture with our prayer time on the porch each day at 3p - dad arrived here almost a year ago on April 16th, and then passed away modeling a "natural death" on hospice on October 23rd.
I smile as I add this and that from our shared time of doing the work of prayer each day.... Dad always commenting on the clouds in the sky, watching the white cars and trucks on Hwy 59...."There is a big white one... look at that!" Chickens joining us on the porch while we prayed. Very interested with the cows and calves came up and ate the grass in the paddock in front of our barn. The flag blowing in the wind, and my kitty joining us in prayer - Jahosephat/Fatty! I would be barefoot and rub him while we prayed. Sadly Fatty disappeared this winter after about 7 years of him being my kitty... we are not sure but he was mighty fat and a cayote comes to mind. Sigh. Both Fatty and my dad gone seems like insult to injury. It will special to add him to my picture. I will share with it is finished - my JOY to have this keepsake of my time with dad on the farm!
I get so excited to do my annual cross and butterfly for my Lilac branch brought in to put out Easter leaves and tiny lilacs ahead of the ones outside. My Easter Tree holds years of special blessings as I rejoice in the Lord's touching my life year after year.
My butterfly this year will be devoted to our first Verly Christmas Camp on January! It was wonderful and culminated when "your family fills up the Church" from a friend as we posed in the back of church after 8a mass! My greatest delight is that gift of sharing Faith/Family/Farm as a family - soon we are to welcome out 31st member - our 20th grandchild on May 12th in Washington.
The leaves are bursting forth... new life on the horizon of Easter as we now follow after Jesus down the narrow path as he carries his Cross and then is nailed to it tomorrow. How can we forget the scourging, mocking, crown of thorns... then on his wounded flesh to lay that heavy cross... so impossible to go there!
To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his Blood, who has made us into a Kingdom, priests for his God and Father, to him be glory and power forever and ever. Amen.
Behold, he is coming amid the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him. All the peoples of the earth will lament him. Yes. Amen. Rev 1
Yes, there were times when the jet streams would cross each other and we would see a cross in the sky while we did our chaplet and our rosary. I am loving how this is coming together!
I would do it over again in a minute. It was such an amazing gift to me to share these last 6 months with the help of hospice with my father! How we loved to spend morning and evening in prayer along with our 3p porch time with our beads traveling through our fingers! Dad is buried now with the rosary that he prayed with each day. It just seemed right for him to have it still!
I had to pay the 10th Station a visit yesterday... Jesus is stripped.
12 years ago Susan came home after discerning out of a new order in The Cities. She got a key to go in early to do her morning prayer and holy our before mass in the dark church. She always sat by the 10th station, and I thought it was the fact that it represents "humility". "No, mom, it is because this is the last row with a kneeler and then people cannot see me cry." In a sense it did represent a deep place of humility and questioning where the Lord wanted her.
A few months later thanks to Archbishop Naumann in KC - The Community of the Lamb, whom she had met while studying in Rome, came to the inner city poor part of Kansas City, Kansas to open their first foundation in the U.S.! Hallel's prayers were answered! And she told us in front of the altar to Our Lady of Guadalupe that she would be going to France to join our Amazing Community of the Lamb and bless our lives richly with their prayers and example of a life lived for Jesus alone - their beloved spouse!
The birthday girl last night joined her two girl cousins, Evangeline and Josephine at 4 years old! We love our groups of cousins and they love to spend time with each other. JoJo will be coming to share Easter with us and her family - sharing The Easter Vigil and Easter Sunday on the farm! It should be a warm sunny Easter! Sharing familytime of the farm is sunny no matter what!
God parents, John and Bobbi, gifted Joy with her own apron Joy loves to make cookies and cakes with her mom most every day! It is her imaginary friends birthday every single day! Her brothers and sisters count on fresh baked yummies every day after school!
Joy's bakery brings lots of JOY to her family!
Grandma's purse was emptied a few times by my little namesake, Birdie Barbara!
Checking out Godmother's blanket... She is at home here after coming every Sunday for our wonderful brunch after sharing mass together. Then those special gatherings to celebrate like Joy and her grandpa, Larry yesterday.
On April 19th Mary will be 15, and May 1st Rose will be 9! The girls tend to come in the spring on the farm! Tomorrow is not only Good Friday this year, but also our Nancy Anna's birthday. It has been on Good Friday a few times before over these 38 years... never on Easter. But we do call her our Easter girl and now joined by others!
Sharing Paul's 4H records - something to see and a lot of dedication and hard work and humor!
Mary is a kitten lover like her mom ahead of her! As I wrote in Joy's card... they are very lucky farm girls to have almost all the farm animals in baby form. Soon pigs will join the goats and kids, cows and calves , kitten and puppy and ducklings, chickens and baby chicks... Mary will be kidding out her goats any day now. Her goat farming is happening!
Dad and Brother Victor today! Basically sharing that we are all called to do "small things with great love for Jesus!"
What I would say here is that I find so much each day with all that The Church gives us in The Word, Sacraments, sacramentals - like The rosary and chaplet, and the Saint for that day, Our Lady walking with us, holding our hands, or holding us close to her Immaculate heart pierced with all the swords that we face in our suffering. So richly filled with more than I can ever truly share or comprehend fully! Overflowing is His unconditional LOVE and forgiveness!
Jesus, how I love you and long to die to self so that you may live in me and use me to your honor and glory. Be with my Most Cherished Cross as he is having surgery to repair his strong hard working shoulder. May it heal quickly and completely, and give us the patience to serve and to trust. Jesus, we trust in you. Amen
What JOY! Hallel's first home visit in 3 years to the farm, and sharing prayer with my father on the porch! Dad had not seen Susan/Hallel for 12 years since she had left for France to join her Community of the Lamb!
Joined by the cherished relic of Blessed Solanus Casey. My parents rushed it to be used to pray over John when his brain cancer was growing back - in the center Aisle at 8a mass in October of 2009! John is cancer free and the new John!
I know that my dad is smiling as his chair is now very important in Pat's recovery! Thanks to dad's lift chair which his kids gifted to him at his 90th birthday and he used faithfully for 6 years until his death... Pat is sleeping well at night and that will be huge in his healing. Thank you, dad and I know you are praying for your beloved farm! Bless-bless, Barbara
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