one of the best things Deacon Richard taught me

Out of the corner of my eye, I see a small flicker of color as my phone lights up with a text message. I pick it up and slide my finger across the screen to reveal a message from one of my friends.

So I think my grandma just had a stroke. Please pray!
I send back a response that I will.

Then I pause the song that’s streaming through my headphones, close my eyes, and fold my hands.

Two years ago, I would have never considered stopping amidst my work to talk to God. After telling my friend I’d say a prayer, I would have probably just put the phone down and let the request fade. But this was before a dear friend of mine taught me the importance of prayer- and more importantly, the importance of praying in the moment.

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I went to Catholic school for 12 years of my life. I was raised by two faithfully married Catholic parents and have always been surrounded by spiritual people. I had religion class all the way up through 8th grade and studied theology in high school. And then I chose my college because if its Catholic Campus Ministry (CCM). So yeah, I’m a Jesus Freak. And no, the concept of ‘prayer’ is nothing new to me.

I was raised praying for friends, family members, strangers, enemies, the president, classmates, teachers, etc. The list goes on. Every night before bed, my siblings and I would list off our special intentions and it got to the point where we wouldn’t even think about the words coming out of our mouths. In mass, it was the same idea. Father would say something about praying for a member of our community and as a congregation we’d recite memorized words. Prayer was just a bunch of repetitive Our Fathers, Hail Marys, and Glory Bes.

CCM House – January 2013

One afternoon in the CCM house, a few of us were hanging around after our 3:00 rosary. Typical discussions about school work and weekend plans were taking place when we heard the familiar squeaking of the front door. In walked a girl who asked for Deacon Richard, who greeted her openly.

After a few moments, Deacon brought her over to us and asked us to pray with him. We prayed for the girl and she went on her way. At the time, I didn’t think much of what had happened and it didn’t start to sink in until a few weeks later.

* * *

During one of our free lunch Thursdays the rush had died down and Deacon made his way over to the table I was sitting at. He started chatting with us and found one of our friends was stressing about her exams and things happening in her family life. Some of us were listening to her, offering supportive advice. And that’s when Deacon decided right then and there that we would pray for her.

“What better time to pray for someone than right now, when they need it most?”

So we set down our cups of lemonade and bowed our heads. Deacon spoke to God from the depths of his heart and for the first time, I really listened. Because there we were, in the middle of lunch, clustered in a crowed of chattering college students, praying. It didn’t even matter what was going on around us or what we were doing. There were no strict rules to this ‘prayer’ thing. It was just in the moment.

From then on, I took on the personal challenge of praying in the moment. Whenever there was a need for prayer, I’d stop whatever I was doing and pray amidst the panic and worry. It’s been over two years since I started. And you know what? It’s a pretty awesome thing to do.

Thank you, Deacon Richard, for instilling this in me and repeating the importance of it to us over and over and over again. I hear your voice pushing me to drop what I’m doing each time someone asks me to pray for them. After all, why shouldn’t I?

What could possibly be more important than talking to God right now?

You taught me that.

be positive or be quiet

Monday was a negative day at work. There were a lot of changes in our department and many of us were on edge. I approached the week optimistically; but as the day wore on, the atmosphere became worse. It was overwhelmingly dramatic and the issues were over-talked to death. It got to the point where this negativity was drowning me and I seriously panicked and questioned a lot of my life choices. All I wanted to do was run away from everything. So I prayed to God to help me find reasoning for the unfairness and went to bed feeling sick and uncharacteristically exhausted.

Tuesday morning, I woke up cold and extremely depressed. I practically fell out of bed and had no idea why I felt so tired and worn down. But something inside of me was determined to find good things about the day. Something was pushing me to try again- even though I still felt heavily attacked.

I pass an Episcopal church on my way to work each morning that has a sign out front. This sign usually has a random bible verses or quote on it that I typically just glance at as I drive by. Tuesday morning, I drove my usual route and read the sign. I was surprised to see 5 simple words on it: Be Positive or Be Quiet.

They struck me. Seeing those words, I felt like God was talking to me personally and telling me to just focus on being positive in every way I could. It was a simple request. I’m not saying it was easy. But it was simple. It immedietly made me feel like I wasn’t going to have to face the day on my own. I was given this instruction and I took it to heart. My mouth curved into a natural, genuine smile. And I even laughed to myself a little. Everything was going to be okay.

lunch and a farewell

I finally made my way to Mylo Coffee Co. for lunch last Thursday! Mary and I were thrilled to leave the office for a few hours to spend time with our lovely Malaysian friend, Carissa. She’s headed back home this week and it was wonderful to get to share this little experience with her.

I first met Carissa Gan a few years back in our Technical Writing class at UCA. We bonded over writing manuals (and whatever one could find interesting about such a subject). After graduating, Carissa took her journalism degree and moved to New York City where she’s spent her last handful of months. Last week, she came to Arkansas to say goodbye to friends. Since she’s the photography/blogging/tech-savvy/modern/city-girl type who likes white subway tiles and cute little bakeries, we had to take her to Mylo’s. Naturally.

This was my first introduction to a Scotch Egg. So naturally, I had to try one. I think what I like most about Mylo Coffee Co. is that it’s full of new things to try. And apparently they’re going to have a rolling menu like European cafés. This egg was coated in sausage- but they also had sweet potato ones. It was crunchy and salty and the sausage had a lot of flavor. I referred to it as a breakfast ball- because that’s exactly what it tasted like. Not sure I need another one anytime soon, but it was a fun little experience!

Mary, Carissa, and I all tried the fresh herb couscous salad (that Renee made). The greek dressing added a zesty little flavor kick to the leafy goodness. Roasted pistachios were a fun little find amidst the vegetables as well. I would definitely eat that salad again. Mary also had a panini sandwich (I was tempted) and some sort of pizza pastry.

Spring weather, tasty food, and good friendship made for such a pleasant afternoon. I am so thankful to have beautiful friends like Mary and Carissa (and Renee, of course). I look forward to sharing Mylo’s with more friends soon. There are so many more things to try. Thank you for joining us, Carissa. I pray your flights home are safe.