A Short Entry day...

This may be a short entry … or not … A head cold is not the best companion to think and to create a story line, no matter how limited it may be.

It had been a while since the last time I was visited by this very unwelcome companion; had forgotten just how miserable it could make you feel...

As you may be aware of, The Other Box has a weekly radio broadcast www.blogtalkradio.com/theotherbox (you can check all entries at this address) which comes to life every Sunday night at 18:30hrs, Eastern US Time (Greenwich -5).  The idea behind it is to do some readings from the blog, have a little bit of music and some comments. Well… since this is done through the computer, we are at the mercy of several hands of fate… the internet connection, the telephone line and the computer itself. And when all this is working, then I come down with a bad head cold… like last night; the last couple of minutes were given over to some music because the dreaded “sneezes” came on … Well, as it is commonly said: “The Show Must Go On”. We actually look forward to making it a 1-2 hour show starting in January… Check in and listen, I think it will grow on you… More folk are listening; the number grows a little each week.

Like always, there are those moments in which the mind is a total blank (no comments, please!!) and the thing to do is to just start the writing process and see what comes out. Well, as you can probably tell, this is exactly what is going on at this moment. Almost like one of those older gas engines, where the starting process had to be fueled by a hand operated choke pull … When it actually begins to cough and sputter, the choke is eased back into a regular mixture position and the engine purrs on… Wish it was that easy to get this one going… 

Last night I watched the Guadalupana for a while. This is the yearly pilgrimage to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico, which takes place every year during the eve of her apparition to a humble Indian laborer by the name of Juan Diego. She has become the Patron Mother of the Mexican nation, and has been named as Mother to the Americas by Pope John Paul 3^rd in one of his visits to Mexico. I had the opportunity to visit the Basilica in Mexico City some years ago. It was a quiet morning, mid week, and the place was relatively empty.

Usually, when one enters such a large empty space (it can hold several thousand people) the feeling is that of being a little lost. Yet, on entering this particular church, my eyes were immediately drawn to the far wall; the place where the original “sarape” or Indian cloth worn by Juan Diego over his own clothes, was resting. This is the cloth on which the image of the Virgin Mother appeared; it is amazing that this piece of cloth, which normally would wear out within 20-35 years of being made, is still in an almost pristine way. It has been some 500 years since the event took place, according to historians; it happened in the year 1531. And we have to consider that during the first 100 years, the cloth and image were not protected at all, it was in exhibition in a chapel where people could visit it and actually touch it. 

Since we, smart and skeptic human beings we are, want to explain everything away in a scientific manner, many tests have been done to this piece and no actual answers have been found … that is, answers which explain this in a way that might be acceptable to those science types.  What have they found so far?  It does date to the period in question, the pigments that color the figure are not recognizable and the stars on the cape the Mother is wearing actually represent the skies as they were in those days (December 1531). Then, there is the left eye. According to studies done by ophthalmologists there are some figure representations within it, impossible to have been made by human hand.

Religion is a very personal topic; each one of us will believe, or not, according to our rearing and to our own experiences in life; in commonality, each religion has a set of Primary and one or more set(s) of Secondary Deities and within these, each individual follower usually will choose one or two to whom his or her prayers are said. No one can expect to impose his or her religious views and beliefs on someone else … even though this is exactly what we have been trying to do since the beginning of modern times, to the detriment of peace and understanding. And at the cost of a few lives along the way.

All I can remember is that, much as I had felt during my visit to Our Lady of Fatima’s church in Portugal, a feeling of peace and calm came over me. It could only be described as a sense of “secure comfort”; I felt at home and when my turn came to kneel before the shroud and spend a few minutes in communion with the Mother, it was as if there was no one else around; that nothing would be able to break this incredibly peaceful and private feeling… Perhaps this was the result of my early school years, when I was trained by Marian brothers; the love of the Virgin Mother was instilled in me; it is not easy to get away from your early training.  And, to be honest, I am not sure I would want to be, for there is a large degree of comfort in this feeling.

After what I have traveled, seen, lived and shared during these 65 years (and, granted, others have a much richer and more varied story to tell) I have come to accept and believe, by choice, in the Holy Trinity and on the Virgin Mother; It would be impossible for me to explain the far too many moments and periods of my life during which, had it not been for Their presence in my heart and spirit, the end results would have been much more drastic and negative that they actually were. So, every day it is a prayer of Thanks I offer; for all we are and all we may have.

Head cold??? Bah! My eyes are about to close and the top of my forehead is getting heavier and stuffier by the second so, I guess it is time to go…

Be Well … Be Back!!!

Final Notes:

• Pray for those who are fighting an illness which may take them away from their loved ones… Every request is heard, and counts!!
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• Any comments please send to otherboxp@yahoo.com
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