The other day while waiting to be seated at a restaurant I noticed a couple walk in. I was intrigued by the young woman because she had a wad of hair stuck to the back of her dress. I wanted to pull her aside to inform her, but couldn’t think of an opening statement. I practiced in my head, “Excuse me, but you have a nest of hair on the back of your dress.” Of course I did not say a word, but I wondered how and why this happened to her. That image never left me, and now I wonder if I’m being punished for being a busybody because my hair is not only falling out but it’s actually shedding.

Dr. Google

It started about two weeks ago. I noticed a lot of hair on the light-colored tile floor of my bathroom. When I brushed my hair after washing it, the brush was covered with so much hair! Immediately I made a virtual consultation with Dr. Google. Sure enough, this is COVID-related, so I’m suffering from an episode of telogen effluvium. It’s several months later, but I’m still being affected by  the aftermath of this virus.

When I color my hair at home I usually make a big mess. It’s inevitable that I get color on either my arms, under my right thumbnail or both. The last time I colored my hair, all of my nails had this dark pigment. I knew it was not the hair dye, so, again, I asked Dr. Google for help. Yep, now I’ve developed melanonychia. Turns out that this, too, is from COVID. Both of these side effects are not life-threatening. All will return to normal in six to nine months, and eventually all my hair will grow back.

Halitosis

The latest side effect  is offensive; I suffer from this strange smell living in my mouth. I know it’s there because when I brush my teeth, it seems to activate something and the stench is stronger. I asked Mike, “Have you noticed if I have bad breath?” He smiled at me and said, “Yes, I was going to say something, but I didn’t want to upset you.” The masks, which I loathe, are now my constant companions; and now I respect the six-feet of distancing requirement.  I’ve become a prisoner of my own bad breath. I’m still researching if this has anything to do with COVID. I suspect it has to do with something in my intestines, so I called my primary care physician to make an appointment with the gastroenterologist. Evidently, due to understaffing, the appointment is not until the end of November and that’s just for a consultation!

Chewing gum does work for bad breath, but it’s only for a few minutes. I’ve never been a fan of chewing gum because I don’t know what to do with the chewed-up gum. I would never discard it on the ground or spit it out while driving. So I wrap it into an old receipt and keep it in my purse until it ruins the bottom of my handbag. One of my biggest pet peeves is seeing gum on the sidewalks. Chewing gum is resilient and it develops a second life when the weather gets really hot. It finds its new home on the bottom of your shoes. You can’t get into your car with this adhesive on your shoes; it has to be cleaned off. For this reason Disneyland does not sell any sort of gum on its premises.

Remaining Faithful

On Tuesday I have an appointment to see how many antibodies I have left from the virus. I’m praying about which steps to take next. Despite these setbacks I have chosen to remain faithful; nothing is going to get me off track with serving God. All testings are designed to make us draw closer to Him. Even though I lament about this situation, I have no anger or blame for what I’m enduring. If God was with me during the worst part of COVID, He is with me through these minuscule problems. Something beautiful always comes from overcoming serious trials in our lives.

Drawing Closer To God

If you give up because you believe that you can’t take it any longer, you are missing the biggest blessings that God has in store for you. Blessings are part of the reward and you must learn to go through these everyday battles, knowing that you are being prepared for the war. As Christians we are going to experience persecution; in each battle we are being built up to fight whatever the Devil throws our way. With each victory comes the confidence to remain steadfast in your trust and to remain faithful. You can choose to crawl into a hole and wait for the storms to pass, or you can rise up and face the attacks. Job lost his family and all of his many possessions; he was in complete disarray. But one thing set him apart from the rest of us: he never cursed God. In his anguish he experienced so much emotional distress that his wife suggested that he should curse God and die.

Job had an ear to hear God; though he heard the negative voices, he shut them out because he remained faithful and trusted that God would see him through. We must take into account that Job was an extremely wealthy man, but because of his faithfulness he received twice as much has he had before.

God does not want us to worry about anything. If we can master this knowledge about worrying, our life would be free from stressful situations. Usually when we hear bad news about something that is out of our control, we panic and immediately want to take action. When I read about something in the news that is against my core beliefs, a spirit of  fear sets in; then after processing the negative narrative I calm down. My first reaction is always emotional, either anger or disbelief; but when the Spirit of God overtakes me, I’m reminded of Who is in control.  I have learned that when things are beyond my control, it does no good to dwell on them. If the bad news really affects me, I pray.

Worrying Makes You Sick

If your worrying is out of control, it can become so stressful that you can make yourself physically ill. Anxiety  is worrying on overload. It is a known fact that many chronic illnesses stem from stress. According to the Mayo Clinic, people who suffer from stress have a higher risk of heart attacks, high blood pressure, asthma, obesity, diabetes, headaches, depression and anxiety, gastrointestinal problems and Alzheimer’s disease.

When I was a young mother, my husband and I owned our company; I had to go to work while our children were in pre-school. Even though I worked part-time, I was obsessed with the fear of earthquakes, and worried about not being with my children during an earthquake. Praise God, I outgrew the fear of earthquakes as our children got older.

The Blog

This Blog was given to me by the Lord.  After months of prayer, the Lord spoke to me in a dream. I was instructed as to what to name it, and what the logo should look like. I worried that no one would read the Blog, or that it was uninteresting. I worried that the name “My Catholic Roots are Showing” was too long. I worried that the title of my Blog would offend non Catholics. My worries were real and I was scared to take on this responsibility. But when I started to write the Blog, it became a labor of love. The words poured out naturally, but that did not stop the worrying. Every morning the first thing I would do was look at the stats to see how many hits I had. The first years were dreadful and I thought of giving up. My worries always put me in a state of doubt. “Why am I doing this if it doesn’t make a difference?” was my constant self-talk. Then I heard from the Lord again. This time He was telling me to trust Him and to continue with the writings. I no longer worry about who reads or doesn’t read the Blog. I know that I have touched  people from all over the world. The seeds that I am planting through this Blog are springing up hope for those who need a word of encouragement. God wants me to share His good news from a Catholic perspective. I’ve lived the life of a Protestant so I know how many of them feel about certain dogmas within our Catholic beliefs. The saints are our examples of holiness and Mary is undeniably the Mother of God. We know how we feel if someone speaks ill of our own mother; imagine how the Son of God feels when His mother is a subject of scrutiny.

“A soul in a state of grace has nothing to fear of demons who are cowards.” St. Therese of Lisieux

Saints Who Suffered from Anxiety

St. Therese of Lisieux was a Carmelite nun. Her entire life’s mission was to serve God. She suffered from scrupulosity, in other words, obsessive compulsive disorder. This disorder was not abnormal among people of great faith. They believed that things that were not sin, were sin. These fears consumed their minds so much that they had to seek affirmation. In St. Therese’s case she would go to her sister, who was also a nun, or a priest for direction. But that affirmation did not last long and soon St. Therese would fall back into her anxiety. St. Therese finally overcame her scrupulosity by denying herself  from seeking affirmation. In her short life of twenty-three years, she was recognized for her wisdom and was declared as a Doctor of the Church. St. Therese is also known as the saint of little things. You can ask her intercession when suffering from anxiety. Catholics believe and benefit from the intercession of the saints even if they lived centuries ago.

.Hebrews 12:1  New American Bible (Revised Edition)

“Pray, hope, and don’t worry. God is merciful and will hear your prayer.” St. Padre Pio

Praying and Healing

In some cases it may take more than prayer to rid yourself of worry. Prayer will lead you to the right counselor or to a doctor who can help with anxiety. In no way am I attempting to minimize this condition; mental illness is real and should be treated professionally.

People who suffer from serious health conditions have a tendency to worry. Even if you have been given a certain amount of time to live, you can pray for a miracle. You can also be an example of grace to those who have no faith. With every breath you take, give God the glory. We touch so many souls when we are most vulnerable because we are in His hands of mercy.

My Prayer

Dear Lord, all the bad news of the world is in Your hands. I trust that You will guide all of us who suffer from worrying to a place of understanding. To those who have fear and doubt about the future, show them a sign of Your great love. Help us walk through this valley of darkness and shed Your holy light on us. Amen.

“The closer one approaches to God. The simpler one becomes.” St. Therese of Lisieux

I believe that eventually all prayer petitions will be answered. Yesterday I was busy doing laundry. I was putting away the wash when I noticed a lone ankle sock in the middle of the floor of my bedroom. I don’t invest a lot of money in socks and have paid the price for this. In 2019 when I was working for my daughter Sonja during the Christmas season, the socks I wore were quitters; they kept creeping down past my heels. I was miserable! During my break I walked over to Lululemon (brand name ) to purchase a new pair. For the first time in my life I paid $15 for one pair of socks. This was one of the wisest fashion investments I have ever made. I wanted to purchase more of the same socks, but I could never justify the expense; so I took very good care of this pair. A few months later one sock went missing. I wanted to cry, but instead I took apart all of the folded sheets and pillow cases in search of the Lulu sock. I also prayed to find it as well.  I have a drawer dedicated to lost socks in hopes that one day the partner will show up. When I found the Lulu sock on the floor I was suspicious of the find, but when I examined the sock, sure enough, it was the infamous missing sock. Furthermore this sock had been missing for more than a year and a half. I ran down the stairs and asked Mike if he put the sock there. “What are you talking about? And why would I put a sock on the floor?” he answered. “Then how did it get there?” I thought.

Being United

A Facebook acquaintance recently suffered a horrific car accident. Through the fault of a careless driver, a mother and small child crossing the street were killed. The man was spared with severe injuries  and several broken bones. This person is not serving God but is gifted in many areas of his life. He suffers from animosity and anger that stems from his childhood. Both parents were abusive and he has carried these wounds with him to this day. I noticed from a recent posting that he is questioning his life and why he was spared. In our journey to reach our Maker, we live a life with or without God. Sometimes God allows us to go through these trials so that we can turn to Him. God is the Master of all, and He has many ways to get us to turn to Him. Those who are gifted intellectually and are on the road to self-destruction, God will physically slow them down. In this man’s case he has no choice but to be patient with his healing. God is actually killing two birds with one stone. Physical healing takes self-control because even if you don’t believe in God, you start to question His existence or blame Him for the mishap. The Lord is also healing this man spiritually by keeping him bedridden.

The Encounter

I met this man years ago and recognized the void in his life. This was supposed to be a festive family gathering, but it was not festive for him. He intentionally ignored his mother and the stress between this man and his father was evident. But I also noticed that this person had a passion for life and he shared this love with his wife. In a short conversation he shared with me that his neighbors thought he was involved in witchcraft. I, too, recognized this dark side, but I answered, “Maybe they don’t know the true you.” Since that day I started praying for him. The Lord revealed his brokenness; now I understand why he is dabbling into the occult.

We All Want Answers

I remember when my brother Robert was first  diagnosed with cancer.  He and his wife were desperately looking for answers. They got involved in “New Age” and all that that entails. They were praying to some Hindu gods to heal him. This experience was so  real  that my brother and younger sister Norma levitated while in a state 0f nirvana. Our mother knew this was not of God and quickly reunited with the one true God. It took a lot of prayer to pull Robert out of this belief;  but then he finally surrendered. He was truly at peace when the Lord took him home.

My journey is not so different.  As a young, radical feminist I was transformed by the love of Christ. There is no turning back when you’ve reached this true spiritual pinnacle. God allowed me to experience life as a free spirit with so much passion in my beliefs. I’m familiar with life without God. In my case it was riddled with anger and a passion to make things “right” but it was my “right,” not God’s. So when I came to the crossroads of my life, I took the well-lit road. My decision quenched my thirst for the ever living waters.

The sock is symbolic of how God longs to unite us to Himself. I never gave up on finding the missing sock. God never gives up on us in our journey to find Him. There is great rejoicing when we are united.

I’m still baffled about the appearance of  the sock, but I’m elated that I have them back together again!

My Prayer

Dear Lord, You know of whom I have written this story. You know his name, You know his brokenness, and You know of his pain. This person is on the road to recovery.  Lord, speak to him in dreams; allow him to hear Your audible voice. Touch all those who are in the valley of decision. Clear their path and bring them into Your sheepfold. Amen.