Mass Adventures

I'm currently sitting at the kitchen table with a terrible stomach ache so I can't really do much right now. No, the clean-a-thon cannot possibly be done when I'm feel like curling up in a little ball on my bed. Well, I might as well blog... I mean, I'll be able to do this sitting down and it'll help distract me while I down more chamomile tea (I've already had a cup and it's not working).

Sunday was quite the interesting day. I left home for Mass 45 minutes before Mass began and I arrived half an hour late. The parish is about 20 minutes (on a good day) away. So why did it take us so long to get there? Easy: use of public transportation.

Both mom and I use a transportation system that works very similar to public transportation (i.e. buses, trains, etc) with the only difference being that they take us to the exact address. It's like Uber but cheaper and you have to book the trip the day before. There's always the chance that it's a shared ride... which is what happened to us on Sunday. But this wasn't the 2-3 person share ride, as usual. Oh no. We had to pick up and drop off a couple of people along the day and just when we were 2 miles from our parish, the driver received a message that he had to go back and pick someone up. No, he couldn't drop us off first; he had to drive back a couple of miles before driving back and dropping us off. Seriously.

So how did it start? Well, there was an elderly lady who was picked up before us and was therefore already inside the van when we were picked up. She asked if we were going to church and we confirmed that we were. She talked about how her husband used to be a pastor and how she learned to swear in different languages as a P.E. teacher. lol. From there, we went to pick up another lady who was going to her own church as well. So all 4 of us women (plus the driver) began our way towards our respective churches.

The elderly lady was the first to be dropped off. She attends a nondenominational Christian church. She wished us a blessed New Year. As we made our way to the Baptist church to drop off the next lady, she talked about being a prayer warrior which was actually quite inspiring even if she talked about things that weren't accurate (no, not theologically). After we dropped her off, we headed towards our parish. However, the driver was told to drive back and pick someone else up. Her own ride had abandoned her and our driver would be her "rescue" ride.

This lady (also quite older) was... quite understandably upset. I wouldn't be happy if my driver had bailed on me either. The way she spoke to the driver -- and then to us -- surprised me. She, very accusingly, asked him if he knew he was late. He tried to explain that her trip was a last minute addition to his scheduled route but she wasn't hearing him out. Then she got into the van, turned around, and in a snitty tone asked "where YOU late, too?" I explained to her that we weren't. In fact, we were on our way to church when we had to turn back for her. I explained it maybe 2-3 times before she was somewhat civil towards the driver and us... though that passed when she saw that we were getting dropped off first and that we were going in the opposite direction than her church.

We finally made it to Mass... half an hour late. I stayed in the back (the unofficial crying room) because I didn't want to bother anyone who was already seated. While I was there, I couldn't help but watch the babies and toddlers. They were all so joyful and friendly with each other. During the hymns, the father of one of the babies sang loudly as he watched his daughter walk around and interact with other toddlers. At times little lady would look up at her father singing and simply smile before going back to what she was doing. It was quite lovely.

I learned three things from my trip to Mass that day.

First: I took the ride as a metaphor for how life is in general. You plan on going down the straight path towards God. Sometimes there are unexpected detours but you should always focus on the bigger prize: getting to the house of the Lord. Yes, I know that sounded cheesy but it's true. We planned on being at our parish the entire hour (and then some) but it didn't work out. (side note: I couldn't stay for the next Mass because our rides were scheduled ahead of time and if I miss one more of those I'll get my eligibility suspended, making it even harder to attend Mass while I wait for my car to be returned.)

Second: I could've gotten frustrated and annoyed -- like the last lady we picked up on the way -- but I didn't because I knew that it was beyond my control. Obstacles shouldn't deter one from our main goal. As I said, I totally understood where this lady came from (I'm not always patient) but I was also reminded not to make assumptions and to not snap at people when I'm in a bad mood. It's so easy to focus on yourself and how you're feeling when things are going your way.

Third: My desire for a family in the future -- and seeing the beautiful example the young man (who was around my age) was setting for his daughter by praying and singing the hymns -- just reinforced the certainty of my vocation of future wife and mama. The fact that it happened on the feast of the Holy Family made me smile. It also gave me an additional kick to get myself in a better, healthier state in the upcoming year. I definitely need to take better care of myself. Sometimes I don't because I put others before myself but I know I'm not of use to anyone if I'm not well. I learned that the hard way this year.

So there you have it: my Mass adventure(s). It was an adventure getting there and another adventure trying to not be distracted by the little ones even though I did learn a bit more about myself there (not mentioned but also learn: I have a lot of patience when it comes to babies).

Have any of you had any similar experiences?

Anyway, I must get back to my regularly scheduled work.

I hope y'all are having a great! :D

As always, thanks for reading and God bless! :D

Bus Adventures; Midterms; Transfer Decisions; Music Monday.

If there is one thing about taking public transportation, it's that you never know how your trip will go. I have been relying on L.A.'s massive public trans system to get everywhere, for the past week. Dad's out of the country... and he took the car keys so no one would use either of the cars while he's gone. Pfft. Anyway, I've had my fair share of bus adventures... though I don't know if any could top the ones I had on Saturday and today.

On Saturday, we took the bus to Sherman Oaks (where I did some of my growing up) to go shopping for a while. On our way back home, we encountered the rudest bus driver I've ever seen. A mentally disabled man passed by and tapped his card (we use TAP cards when we take multiple buses throughout a period of time) twice (on accident). When he figured it wasn't working, he went back to his seat. The bus driver, who already looked like he was in a bad mood, tried to explain to the man about the card but the man was focusing on getting to his seat so he missed the convo. The bus driver then started calling the man a *bleep*h*le and basically humiliating the poor guy. When the man said he was mentally disabled, the bus driver said "yeah, no kidding!" Completely uncalled for and all. The guy went up to the bus driver and showed his disabled card... but still continued to berate him with a number of profanities. I took the bus driver's number and info, all while the driver glared at me with a menacing look. I don't care how much you try to intimidate me, I'm reporting your butt for being such a punk.

Today's rides were interesting. I had no less than 3 former classmates in the same bus coming home from school. All 3 were guys I went to school with prior to the age of 13 so it was interesting to see them again. They all looked at me like "... do I know you...?" but two of them didn't say anything. Now, I don't know who thinks it's a good idea to divulge so much after not seeing someone for the past 12 years, but it's not a good idea to do so. Asking me for my number, after you tell me (with pride) that you just got out of jail and that you fathered a child at 15, won't get you that number. I don't care if we were in the same 5th grade class, it's just not gonna happen, kid. I've had some interesting experiences with guys on buses but this one takes the cake. Where's my bodyguard when I need him? lol. Oh, and did I mention that prior to all of this, the bus driver to school nearly ran over two elderly men... at two different stops? One of those times, the bus came to a screeching halt and all of us were thrown forward. I'm amazed no one got thrown on the floor or hurt in that. I won't be taking public transportation for the rest of the day. lol.

Something I WILL be doing the rest of the day is studying for my midterms. Well, one of them. I have my Philosophy of Ethics midterm on Wednesday. I don't think we have a midterm for English Lit, but we do have an essay due on Wednesday. My Philosophy of World Religions (one of my favorite courses ever) prof. pushed our midterm until after Spring Break. My Speech prof (whom I'm still fighting with) is unclear about the midterm for us but I am ready to take it whenever he gives it to us. I will definitely be saying a prayer to St. Joseph of Cupertino (patron saint of students and exam takers) just because I want to do really well on my midterms and he's come through for me in the past.

Another thing I have to think about in the next few days, and probably ask St. Thomas Aquinas for his intercession, is making my decision on where I'll transfer to. I didn't tell anyone that I'd applied elsewhere as back up options (because I didn't want to jinx it), but it seems I now have options to go elsewhere. I have the option for two universities in England, apparently there's a loophole for UBC (University of British Columbia) since I'd be transferring so that's an option again, as well as two public universities in L.A. I've already nixed going to UBC, even though living in Vancouver is basically a dream for me. I have friends near both schools in England (one near the English countryside, one up north) so that's appealing. If I were to chose one of the schools in L.A., I'd have to change my major to an English (with an emphasis on Creative Writing) major, Religious Studies minor. Or I could just keep going to Mount St. Mary's College. The only thing about that is that, out of all the options, MSMC is the most expensive. Yes, even more so than the unis in England. I just don't know. I have a lot of thinking to do, and only two weeks to make up my mind. If I decide to go to school in England (which I was originally going to do two years ago, before my father's second battle with cancer kept me here), I'll have a chance to check both of the schools out since I have Spring Break starting mid-next week. Also, I have friends who are basically threatening to kidnap me and take me to London (whoo! lol) so it'll work out. We'll see what happens.

Alright before this turns into a novel, I'll stop... but not before Music Monday's video. This is for all of you who are in the middle of midterms. Listen to Dinah Washington and "Relax Max."

Alright, I need to study. *sigh* Just a few more days until Spring Break. I can do it... I can do it... lol. :D Good luck to everyone who has midterms this week and next!

As always, thanks for reading and God Bless. :D
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