The way it shapes my life

     I can't even fathom, nor would want to imagine, what my life would be without God and my Catholic faith! The impact they have had, has been all encompassing. . .most especially in my adult years. I don't believe I would be the woman I am today without them.

     I have been shaped, formed, and stretched in ways that I would not have chosen on my own. I have been called to love, when I would have preferred to lash out; to seek forgiveness; when I did not think I was the guilty party; to give, when I just did not feel like it. I am called to love others as God loves me, which will be a challenge until the day I die - it may kill me trying to do that!

The Family of God

     Belonging to the Family of God brings such a smile to my face! And finding out all that I can about my holy "siblings," has been a source of pride and pleasure, throughout my life.

     Of course, every family has a mother, and God's family is no different. Mary is "The Mother" par excellence and holds each one of her children in her Immaculate Heart to bring them to Christ, her
Son. While on earth, Our Lady lived as the perfect disciple, by accepting God's will with complete trust, as it was revealed to her. We are called to imitate Mary by doing the same, for in scripture she tells us, "to do whatever He tells you." In her unique role, as Queen of angels and saints, she sends help from heaven in our struggle toward sanctity, and watches over us with a mother's love.

My Catholic faith

       My Catholic faith is not something that I just practice on Sundays, but is an integral part of my life. It is the air that I breathe, the blood in my veins, the beats of my heart. It is at the core of my identity and a gift from God that I cherish deeply.

     Like an acorn planted long ago at my Baptism, it has changed and grown over the years, into a large tree whose roots stretch deeply into the Church to find its nourishment. It has experienced both bright sunny days, as well as dark stormy nights, but with the grace of God, has managed to remain standing tall.

It's about my journey with Them

       I have journeyed for a little more than six decades with the Blessed Three, and although I know I am now living in the "autumn" of my life, I still feel a youthfulness within my being. I believe it is Their Life within me bursting forth, bringing about a freshness and newness that otherwise would be absent. They have found a home within my heart, and I humbly cherish Their Presence.

     My journey has a destination, and that destination is, hopefully, heaven. This has been an awareness that I've had all of my life, though at times, my decisions did not reflect that fact. But my God is a patient and loving God, and like a GPS, has redirected me when I have wandered off course.

The Holy Spirit - He's Sasha to me

     As a child, and even for much of my adult life, my relationship with the Holy Spirit has not been what I would necessarily call personal. I received the Sacrament of Confirmation in third grade, and although I was catechized very well - I was a Baltimore Catechism student - I didn't really feel close to the Holy Spirit. Sure I prayed to Him at what I saw as the appropriate times; like to help me remember the answers to a test for which I had studied, or for the right words to say in a difficult situation. I also asked Him for specific gifts, fruits and graces, since I figured that was His territory. But it wasn't really much of a relationship.

The Son - My dear sweet Jesus

     I'm really not sure when I began to call the Son, "my dear sweet Jesus", but I believe it was somewhere in my adult life. As a child, I just called Him "Jesus," but there was a certain sweetness in the sound of His name. I knew how precious I was to Him because of His death for me on the cross, and was very much aware of Jesus' love.

     I was very excited when I was getting prepared to receive Jesus in Holy Communion. I wanted to make my heart a perfect dwelling place for Him and keep it spotless. I remember practicing a song entitled, "Little White Guest,"* and singing it wholeheartedly when that special day arrived. Throughout my life, that song still warms my heart and brings feelings of love and tenderness for our Lord.

The Father - He told me to call Him Papa

     When I was a little girl and thought about God the Father, my concept of Him was the "God in charge." Jesus was the obedient Son and the Holy Spirit, well, He did whatever the Father or Jesus asked Him to do.

     At the same time, I thought of Him as my heavenly Father who cared and watched over me. I knew that He loved me very much because He had sent Jesus to open the gates of heaven, that had been closed because of the sin of Adam and Eve. He wanted me to be a good little girl so I could be with Him someday in heaven. It saddened me that there were people who did not love God, nor want to make Him happy. I promised Him at a young age to do what I could to show my love for Him.

My relationship with my God

     I can't even remember a time in my life when I didn't know and love God. I was blessed to be baptized within two weeks of my birth. My parents then placed me on the altar of God to be offered to Him; they also dedicated me to Our Lady. In honor of Mary, I wore only blue and white until I was seven years old.  As I got old enough to notice pretty pink dresses or red and black velvet ones at Christmas time, I wished that I was not so restricted in my choices.  What a sacrifice and hardship that must have been for my mother, being limited to just two colors when buying clothes.

Avia Joy is all about relationship

       Relationships - our lives are full of them! Some warm our hearts and make our lives worth living, while others challenge and stretch us. There are also some that we feel indifference toward. They really don't impact our lives in a deep or lasting way, so we put no effort to deepen them.

     Although there are people we just "click" with, for the most part, relationships that we cherish did not develop over night. It took time and effort from both parties to become bosom friends.