Family Resources for Summer 2020
Summer Resource #4 – July 13, 2020
Summer Resource #4 – July 13, 2020Summer is halfway gone, which is both hard to believe and easy to believe at the same time! We hope that you and your family have been able to make the time to be together to celebrate the gift of each other and the ways that God’s love and mercy is alive and present in family life.
We have had many beautiful and hot days in NE Ohio, which is a time to think about wearing our summer hats. Retired Bishop Anthony Pilla of our diocese gave a national address to Catholic Charities leaders from throughout the United States. He described the four hats that we all wear interchangeably on any given day. The four hats are:
- Consumer hat – is this a good deal and can I save money?
- American citizen hat – what does it mean to be a citizen and a member of our community?
- Political affiliation hat – what political party do I affiliate with and why?
- Religious hat – what does it mean to be a Catholic and live my catholic values daily?
Thanksgiving and the 4th of July are civic holidays that are examples of times when all of these hats align without conflict (mostly). These holidays are celebrated by people of all backgrounds with room for many rich expressions that bring families together.
Bishop Pilla went on to ask this key question: If you are identifying which hat is your first and most important hat that you wear every day, which is it? If our religious hat as Catholics is our first and most important hat, it will inform the other hats by helping us to reflect on how we live as consumers, on what it means to be an American and a member of the human family, and how we will practice our political values and choices. Similarly, if our consumer hat or political hat are number one, those values will inform the others, thereby diminishing our Catholic faith.
Bishop Pilla concluded by saying the following: “While it is hard to serve the poor and those most in need, and I thank you for doing so to assure their dignity, we must always remember that it is much harder to be poor and to suffer the indignities that come along with it. As Catholics, we must always remember and serve others with hearts full of compassion, especially when others have forgotten the wisdom of compassion.”
Parent Web Gem:
https://henrinouwen.org/read-nouwen/free-daily-meditation/
Henry Nouwen was a priest and a mystic whose life focused on serving those with special needs. He was a prolific writer whose reflections have inspired countless people around the world. Click on the above link and sign up to get a daily reflection that can be read in less than a minute. Here are a few examples of Nouwen daily reflections that can feed your soul.
We need friends. Friends guide us, care for us, confront us in love, console us in times of pain. Although we speak of “making friends,” friends cannot be made. Friends are free gifts from God. But God gives us the friends we need when we need them if we fully trust in God’s love. Friends cannot replace God. They have limitations and weaknesses like we have. Their love is never faultless, never complete. But in their limitations they can be signposts on our journey towards the unlimited and unconditional love of God. Let’s enjoy the friends whom God has sent on our way.
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Where is God? God is where we are weak, vulnerable, and dependent. God is with the poor , the hungry, the handicapped, the mentally ill, and the powerless. God’s love is manifest in suffering.
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A Choice Calling for Discipline – When we look critically at the many thoughts and feelings that fill our minds and hearts, we may come to the horrifying discovery that we often choose death instead of life, curse instead of blessing. Jealousy, envy, anger, resentment, greed, lust, vindictiveness, revenge, hatred … they all float in that large reservoir of our inner life. Often we take them for granted and allow them to be there and do their destructive work.
But God asks us to choose life and to choose blessing. This choice requires an immense inner discipline. It requires a great attentiveness to the death-forces within us and a great commitment to let the forces of life come to dominate our thoughts and feelings. We cannot always do this alone; often we need a caring guide or a loving community to support us. But it is important that we both make the inner effort and seek the support we need from others to help us choose life.
Sign up to receive daily Nouwen reflections at the website above to nourish your life and your faith.
Strong Catholic Family Resources:
https://nfcym.org/programs/strong-catholic-families/leader-parent-resources/
The Strong Catholic Families website has many free resources for parents and families to help you nurture and develop the domestic Church of your home. It includes video’s, print materials, parent resources and family resources to support parents in your central role of living and sharing our Catholic faith in families.
Scripture: “I give thanks to my God at every remembrance of you, praying always with joy in my every prayer for all of you, because of your partnership for the Gospel from the first day until now. I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1: 3-6
Movies and Essential Conversations: There is much to be enjoyed by family members of every age when watching the movie, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, together. The main character is a writer who is doing a magazine article on Mr. Rogers. It is based on the true story which included that the writer’s father was dying and the family did not know how to have a conversation about his impending death. Mr. Rogers says, “Death is something that many of us are uncomfortable speaking about. But to die is to be human. And anything human is mentionable. Anything mentionable is manageable.”
This simple wisdom rings especially true for parents for having conversations with your children about death. By having conversations about a topic that is uncomfortable for so many of us, we are giving our children a great gift that will serve them and us when we need it most.
I am reminded of this due to the recent and untimely deaths of young people from our parish as well as our family experience when our 23 year old son Vincent died suddenly 20 months ago. In the pain and anguish of that moment, our children were able to draw upon the many conversations that we had along the way about death and its meaning. Learning how to think about death and how to have conversations about death is difficult at any time, even more so when children and families don’t have the tools because they haven’t had those conversations.
By having conversations about death and dying with each other and with our children along the way, we are opening the door for their mentioning their thoughts and fears which can in turn lead to managing them as people of faith. When we embrace the amazing gift of life and the truth that nobody knows the day or the hour when we leave this world, it can lead us to value each other more and to treat each other with kindness and dignity every time we are together.
Peace be with you from your St. Ambrose Community, where Jesus Christ is everything to us.
Summer Resource #3 – June 26, 2020
Father, Creator of all, thank You for summer!
Thank you for the warmth of the sun and the increased daylight.
Thank you for the beauty I see all around me and for the opportunity to be outside and enjoy Your creation.
Thank You for the increased time I have to be with my friends and family,
And for the casual pace of the summer season.
Draw me closer to You this summer.
Teach me how I can pray no matter where I am or what I am doing.
Warm my soul with the awareness of Your presence
And light my path with Your Word and Counsel.
As I enjoy Your creation, create in me a pure heart
And a hunger and a thirst for You.
Amen(Ignatian Spirituality)
The Holy Father’s Intentions for the Month of July 2020
Our Families: We pray that today’s families may be accompanied with love, respect and guidance. (See also Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network )
This week’s Family Resource is centered on Faith at Home. Summer is filled with the possibility of families spending more time together especially in these very challenging times. It can offer unique opportunities for family conversations that do not revolve around school, sports schedules and so on. Make it a “Summer Resolution” for your family. All it takes is a willingness to try and commitment to creating a new routine. Begin to enjoy the blessing of being together as a family.
Conversation Starters about Faith:
- My favorite Bible story is____________because____________.
- I know God listens to my prayers because_______________.
- What is one time in my life when I felt as if God really cares for me?
- The best thing about being Catholic?
Conversation Starters about Family:
- My favorite family story is?
- The best thing about being a member of this family is?
- What is your favorite family activity to do with a family relative and why?
Parent Web Gem
“Dusting off the Family table” by Intentional Catholic Parenting
intentionalcatholicparenting.com/dusting-off-the-family-table-ep-22/ttp
Check out other great resources:
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/gentle-catholic-parenting-podcast/id1436126880
For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name.
~ Ephesians 3:14-15
A Prayer for Children of God
Dear Lord,
I thank you for the gift of my child.
I pray for my child to know great care
And support from those around them.
May they be encouraged by family,
Friends, and teachers.
I pray you will help my child learn well
And flourish.
May they discover their unique talents and Gifts.
Give them a passion for the world around them.
May the show Your love and care to everyone
They encounter.
Amen
Physical Activity and Fun
Create a Paper Crane, a symbol of World peace.
“Peace I leave you, My peace I give into you” John 14:27
s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/lpress-craft/files/ocf-files/family-files/craft-july.pdf
Technology Tip
Great resources for finding different apps for different purposes for your child to explore. They will promote interactions, as well as enable them to explore their interests and be creative.
www.commonsensemedia.org/social-media/is-there-any-social-media-thats-good-for-kids
8 Simple Ways to Celebrate Sacred Time as a Family
Even with hectic schedules, it’s easy for families to grow in faith together by celebrating the sacred in eight simple and routine activities.
1. Teach your children to start each day with prayers.
A good prayer to teach them is a morning offering…
O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of
Mary, I offer you my prayers, works, joys,
and sufferings of this day, for all the intentions
of the Sacred Heart, in union with
the holy Catholic Church throughout the
world and the communion of saints.
Amen.
2. Put a saint-of-the-day calendar on your breakfast table.
For more in-depth information, pick up a copy of Voices of the Saints for your family. Reading the passage of the day gives you the chance to teach your children important lessons about holy people whose example we can emulate, and it also conveys a sense that our days have meaning and worth.
3. Celebrate ethnic holidays and feasts—even if it’s not your ethnic group.
My German mother-in-law always made shamrock pancakes for her children on St. Patrick’s Day. The growing number of Hispanics in the U.S. is enriching our culture with traditional feasts for Our Lady of Guadalupe, Our Lady of Charity, and Los Posadas. There are countless ways to spice up the calendar year with special celebrations. They convey without words that all the days are special. The whole year is bathed in holiness.
4. Make birthdays special.
Celebrating a person’s birth is a central way to convey a sense of time’s sacredness. The point of celebrating is to convey how much you cherish this child, and straightforward and simple are usually better than elaborate, as expressed through “things.”
Find a time to sit together with your child and share a special message just from you. It might be about the day he or she was born, about how much you were looking forward to having this child. Or mention traits of this child that bring you joy. If you do that early in the day, I’ll bet the rest of the day goes well, no matter how many kids show up for the party.
5. Make more of your time in the car together.
Do yourself and your children a favor and abstain from asking questions in the car. Instead, sit and listen. Your children may not talk to you—especially if they’re with their friends. But pretend you’re the disinterested chauffeur, and you’ll hear an earful.
If you’re alone with your children, let them take the initiative. You can ask something leading: “Have you got any questions about life that are on your mind?” Then sit back and listen. Your listening attitude can draw your children out. The more listening you do, the more you’ll find out, and the closer you’ll become.
6. Create a quiet area or room in your house.
Find space where there is no TV noise or other distraction. This area can be a place the kids do their homework, a spot where you can have a quiet and serious conversation or just daydream. With all the noise of modern life, times of relative quiet can indeed be sacred.
7. Celebrate the night before the first day of school.
Set aside the night before school begins as story night. Each person has to tell at least one story from the previous year about him- or herself or about the family. Here is a chance to solidify connections and gather strength before beginning the adventure of a new school year. It gives everyone the chance to calm down and switch gears from summertime ways of living.
8. Make Saturday night special.
As the week segues from business-as-usual to the restful experience promised by observance of the Sabbath, mark this special time with your children by helping them switch gears. You can prepare your family to get more out of church by shaping what goes on in your home during the hours beforehand. There’s no one set formula. Find a routine that works for you; then be faithful to it.
Summer Resource #2 – June 12, 2020
“Loving God, we give you thanks for the beauty of summer. Let us join with other creatures in emerging from winter darkness into the full light of the season. May love emerge in us as well, giving rise to praise for you and for the gifts of your creation. Help us to weather the storms that hit without warning and do damage to heart and soul. Turn our faces towards the sun and let joy be the mantle we carry throughout this blessed time. In your holy name, we pray.” Amen. (Sadlier.com)
This week’s Family Resource comes at a time amidst an additional flurry of energy that can leave us confused and challenged even further. However, it also comes at the end of a week filled with many beautiful days to rejoice in God’s creation: clear and sunny days, blooming flowers and fully green trees, growing fruits and vegetables, the Strawberry Full Moon, the flyover of the ISS/Dragon on a starry evening, cool and creamy ice cream and so much more.
On June 21, we will celebrate Father Day’s and the goodness of fathers, grandfathers, godfathers, like-a-fathers – those men in our lives who love us, lead us, support us and show us the unconditional love of our good and gracious Almighty Father. We especially honor St. Joseph, Jesus’ earthly father and patron saint of fathers. St. Joseph, pray for us.
We turn to our Father in gratitude. Especially during these times, we truly have so many blessings that can easily go unnoticed but “practice makes perfect” as we continually look for God’s grace. You will be in awe as you begin to recognize God’s Hand upon us and feel the sense of peace and joy that gratitude brings.
Parent Web Gem
“How to be an A.W.E.S.O.M.E. Parent” by Little Sprigs
We are all made in the image and likeness of God and now more than ever, families can learn more about each family member and celebrate the amazing gifts God has given each one. In this blessed time of summer, let’s rally around the most precious gift of our families. Very appropriate for these challenging days!
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-be-an-awesome-parent/id918253966?i=1000365788306 or you can go here for more information: https://littlesprigs.com/how-to-be-an-awesome-parent/.
Scripture: “So, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, walk in him, rooted in him and built upon him and established in the faith as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.” – Colossians 2:6-7
“The family that prays together, stays together.” This is an adage that withstands the test of time. Summertime, and especially this summer, is a perfect time to grow closer together as a family through practicing gratitude. Practicing gratitude is also a great form of prayer! Sadlier.com shares Three Ideas for Practicing Gratitude at Home:
Physical Activity and Fun
Keep a Nature Journal
cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/95641/00_Redesign_2019/Religion_2019/03_Rel_Downloads/Rel_Download_PDFs/REL_DL_FamilySummer_Kit.pdf
Take every opportunity to thank God for giving us our beautiful Earth to care for and enjoy!
Family Practices – Family Prayers to Pray Together
Sign of the Cross In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Morning Offering: My God, I offer you today all that I think and do and say, uniting it with what was done on earth, by Jesus Christ, your Son.
Grace Before Meals: Bless us, O Lord, and these your gifts which we are about to receive from your goodness. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Grace After Meals: We give you thanks, almighty God, for these and all your gifts which we have received through Christ our Lord. Amen
Evening Prayer: Dear God, before I sleep I want to thank you for this day so full of your kindness and your joy. I close my eyes to rest safely in your loving care. Amen.
Technology Tip: Gratitude Journaling
“Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings” –William Arthur Ward.
One idea to enjoy the positives of technology together is to blog, write or even make videos (such as Flipgrid) about the blessings in your life. With Father’s Day coming up, this is a perfect time to write about your Dad and share this blessing with him! In addition to mailing a note or card, you could also use Facetime, Google Duo, Skype, Zoom or Google Meet to send your love across the miles.
Summer Resource #1 – May 29, 2020
Heading into the summer raises an unusual question this year: How is summer different from what we have been doing the last 3 months as days and weeks blend together? We are all grappling with that question.
Saint Ambrose cares about you and your family. You will receive our Family Summer Resource every two weeks. We will provide you with relevant links, ideas, resources, prayers, and information to accompany you virtually and physically. At a time of uncertainty, we know this to be true: When adults look back at their childhood, the top two memories are how much love was in the home and how much time was spent together. We pledge our commitment to help God’s love grow in your family, and to help you use your time together in ways that bring joy and peace to you, your family, and to those most in need.
Parent Web Gem
“We make our habits, and then our habits make us.” It is easy to start new habits or to start to change bad habits, yet it is difficult to make the changes stick. Exercise centers’ busiest times are the first two weeks in January before returning back to the normal usage rate. What does brain science and research have to say about making new habits and changing bad habits? You will be surprised, encouraged, and happy to find out. This Hidden Brain Podcast provides wonderful insights into this exact theme, which can help you set your habits for the summer, and perhaps help others in your family to do the same. Terrific!
www.npr.org/2019/12/11/787160734/creatures-of-habit-how-habits-shape-who-we-are-and-who-we-become
Scripture: “You have already been told what is right, and what God wants of you. Only this: to do what is right, to love tenderly, and to walk humbly with your God.” Prophet Micah 6:8
Summertime and the 3 R’s
Summertime and the 3 R’s
What are your 3 R’s for the summer: Rules, Routines, Rituals? These provide structure and stability at a time when the pandemic has undermined both. Here are examples of the 3 R’s that will help your children thrive and help you lessen that feeling of being constantly overwhelmed.
3 Questions to Consider
3 Questions to Consider
At the beginning of each day, ask your child these 3 questions that are also good for us as adults: How are you feeling? What are your goals for today? Who can help you with that? These questions from PEP – Parent Education Program – help children take ownership for what they will do to make their day meaningful vs. seeking constant attention or entertainment from parents or other sources.
Family Practices - 4 B's
Family Practices - 4 B's
Practice the 4 B’s The pandemic has raised everyone’s anxiety levels. The 4 B’s – Brakes – Breathing – Brain – Body breathing exercises are designed for young people but are a great tool for adults too. Help your children learn how to calm themselves through breathing exercises which is a critical life skill for building resilience. If your child plays a sport they can apply breathing techniques to focus their attention and improve athletic performance. Check it out: omazingkidsyoga.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/4-bs-of-self-control-a-4-step-method-for-relaxing-tension-refocusing-calming.pdf
Physical Activity and Fun
- Exercise (virtually, outside, many forms) and have fun with your children.
- Play games and create your own adventures by doing ordinary things together. Consider two of NE Ohio’s most accessible and free gems: Reading and library trips – NE Ohio library system has received national awards for excellence. www.cuyahogalibrary.org You can pick up books curbside to nurture reading alone and together daily.
- Our MetroParks system is nationally renowned with options for walking, hiking, biking, golfing, fishing, playing and more. Check out your options at www.clevelandmetroparks.com. You can go to two parks a week without an agenda and bring your dog too! Enjoy the beauty of God’s creation while knowing that being outside at a safe distance is a good way to go during this pandemic.
- Celebrate Music and the Arts – sing, dance, draw, paint, color, sketch, act – in person and virtually. HAVE FUN LEARNING and doing things TOGETHER!!
Technology Tips
Take the time to set up a technology plan that helps you and your children to enjoy the benefits and opportunities while minimizing the risks and problems. Here are a few guidelines
- Set parameters for when phones and screens can and cannot be used. It is best to not have phones on or nearby during family meals or in bed at night (crabby teens and/or parents due to lack of sleep = harm to family life).
- Identify fun ways that you can enjoy technology alone and together. Teens are adept at finding and using technology in ways that adults are not. Enjoy that gift by asking them to teach you and show you what they are enjoying and learning. Be attentive to risks regarding the dark side of the internet and pay attention if you see an uptick in isolating behaviors whereas children interact less and less with people and more and more online.
THROUGH THE KALEIDOSCOPE OF CHANGE
I look for meaning, and the meaning I find is this: For every season of my life, God has a purpose. And if God has a reason, then I am free to go ahead and love, even though I know that camp ends in seven days, or graduation is only nine months away, or my next door neighbor may move in a year.
I will reach out and embrace friendship without fear of the risk that it soon may end, for through this friendship God wants me to learn, to love, to receive, to give.
I will allow my roots to cling deeply to the soil around me, even though I know that the deeper the roots, the harder it will be to pull them up someday.
And when things begin to change and God turns over the well-worked soil of my experience, I know that a new growing period is about to begin.
That’s how God works in this world, a world which never stays the same. (Anonymous)
Peace be with you from your Saint Ambrose Community, where Jesus Christ is everything for us.
