One of the 56 butterfly sculptures, part of the Wings in the City exhibit www.wingsinthecity.org, is on display at the Jewel Box in Forest Park. We have been living in St. Louis since 1995. We visited Forest Park on many occasions such as going to the annual hot air balloons race, to the museums or just driving around the park. Yet, last weekend was the first time we went inside the Jewel Box at Forest Park. From the outside, it has an appearance of a neglected greenhouse. Once inside, it is so beautiful and inviting. The place was set up ready for a wedding. We did not know that the Jewel Box was available for rental for special events.
Ok, TOTA, what about the title "The little church mouse in the Jewel Box"? During the week of March 21 – 25, I went to Mass in the morning, then to work and then back to church with my husband for the Parish Mission. I just thought the title, “The little church mouse in the Jewel Box” was sort-of perfect for this post!
My husband started calling me “a little church mouse” when I began going to 8:00 Mass on Wednesday and Friday mornings. Last week two Vincentian priests, twin brothers, visited our parish and presented a week long Parish Mission entitled “I Could Have Done More”. Starting Monday, March 21st thru Thursday, March 24th, at 7:00 p.m. each evening, the priests celebrated Mass with a homily focused on different theme for each night.
The theme on Monday was our trust in God when we pray. The priest told a story about the people in a small town gathered to pray for rain during a drought. Almost all the town people came to the church, including a 10 years old boy named Billy. After an hour of praying, the Lord answered their prayers and the heavy rain began pouring. Little 10-year old Billy was the one person carried an umbrella. No one trusted in God like little Billy. They prayed but in their heart and mind, they were not true believers!
On Tuesday, the theme was learning to rely on God’s wisdom and power. We are a “quick fix” people, always expecting instant relief. We need to remember that God acted in His own time, not according to our schedule. Forgiveness was the theme on Wednesday. Forgive those who offended us was sort-of easy, the hardest part was forgiving our own mistakes. We often are too harsh on ourselves to the point where we could not move on. The sacrament of reconciliation was offered after the Wednesday Mass. 
(On Wednesday evening, when the priest started reading the Gospel, I began to question whether he was reading the same Gospel from yesterday. Then I realized that I heard the same reading from the morning Mass. And I thought the priest was confused because of his old age. It was I that was confused!) Thursday was the last day of the Parish Mission. The theme was to have a peaceful mind and heart. To achieve a peaceful mind and heart, we must not only forgive those offended us but also pray for them. We also must not be vengeful (like saying, “I forgive you but I hope God will get you!”) This is the hardest part and I don’t know if I could ever achieve a peaceful mind and heart!
One of the 56 butterfly sculptures, part of the Wings in the City exhibit www.wingsinthecity.org, is on display at the Jewel Box in Forest Park. We have been living in St. Louis since 1995. We visited Forest Park on many occasions such as going to the annual hot air balloons race, to the museums or just driving around the park. Yet, last weekend was the first time we went inside the Jewel Box at Forest Park. From the outside, it has an appearance of a neglected greenhouse. Once inside, it is so beautiful and inviting. The place was set up ready for a wedding. We did not know that the Jewel Box was available for rental for special events.
Ok, TOTA, what about the title "The little church mouse in the Jewel Box"? During the week of March 21 – 25, I went to Mass in the morning, then to work and then back to church with my husband for the Parish Mission. I just thought the title, “The little church mouse in the Jewel Box” was sort-of perfect for this post!
My husband started calling me “a little church mouse” when I began going to 8:00 Mass on Wednesday and Friday mornings. Last week two Vincentian priests, twin brothers, visited our parish and presented a week long Parish Mission entitled “I Could Have Done More”. Starting Monday, March 21st thru Thursday, March 24th, at 7:00 p.m. each evening, the priests celebrated Mass with a homily focused on different theme for each night.
The theme on Monday was our trust in God when we pray. The priest told a story about the people in a small town gathered to pray for rain during a drought. Almost all the town people came to the church, including a 10 years old boy named Billy. After an hour of praying, the Lord answered their prayers and the heavy rain began pouring. Little 10-year old Billy was the one person carried an umbrella. No one trusted in God like little Billy. They prayed but in their heart and mind, they were not true believers!
On Tuesday, the theme was learning to rely on God’s wisdom and power. We are a “quick fix” people, always expecting instant relief. We need to remember that God acted in His own time, not according to our schedule. Forgiveness was the theme on Wednesday. Forgive those who offended us was sort-of easy, the hardest part was forgiving our own mistakes. We often are too harsh on ourselves to the point where we could not move on. The sacrament of reconciliation was offered after the Wednesday Mass. 
(On Wednesday evening, when the priest started reading the Gospel, I began to question whether he was reading the same Gospel from yesterday. Then I realized that I heard the same reading from the morning Mass. And I thought the priest was confused because of his old age. It was I that was confused!) Thursday was the last day of the Parish Mission. The theme was to have a peaceful mind and heart. To achieve a peaceful mind and heart, we must not only forgive those offended us but also pray for them. We also must not be vengeful (like saying, “I forgive you but I hope God will get you!”) This is the hardest part and I don’t know if I could ever achieve a peaceful mind and heart!
2 comments:
Nice pics
Glad to hear from you, LG. Trust all is well with you and the family. Hope things are working out for you after the moving.
It is wonderful that you and QQ were able to get together.
If you are ever in my neighborhood, lunch/dinner is on me at the .99 cents menu coffee shop - haa haa
Have a good week :)
TOTA
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