Invisible Motherhood

Dear Fairy Godkids,
I know, its been a while. Forgive me. But there is something on my heart to share with you. Fairy Goddaughters, take this heart, particularly if you are called to marriage as your vocation. Fairy Godsons, when you are older, remember this if marriage is your vocation, because it will be your wife and she will need you to understand.

Motherhood is often invisible.

Invisibility isn't something our culture is comfortable with. It certainly is anathema to your

generation(s) and the insta-snap-swipe pace of daily life. Yet, it is a very important part of any vocation. Your vocation is not meant to be lived on social media, sometimes it is lived in the quiet, dark, and invisible places. Marriage is to be a sign to the world of God's love for mankind. That is why it is a sacrament. Sacraments are visible signs of an invisible reality. Your vocation, if it is to marriage will be lived IN the world and will, please God, be a sign of His love for humanity in the way you love each other. If you are blessed with children your vocation extends to the mission of parenting. This is where things get invisible.

Everyone loves the cute baby pictures, the matching "Mommy and Me' outfits on insta, the "look at me, I have it ALL together" posts on snapchat stories and facebook newsfeeds. But that isn't motherhood. That is a photo-op. A snapshot of what is probably not the big picture. The nitty-gritty of motherhood is invisible.

If you are called to have children you must be prepared to be invisible.

And just what, you ask, is this invisible motherhood?
It is the waking up every hour of the night to comfort a sick baby. It is the non-stop nursing when baby is teething. It is the cramming yourself into a toddler bed to comfort a child who had a nightmare. It is the not showering (again) because you just didn't have the time. It is the laundry and the laundry and the laundry and the laundry and then more laundry. It is the falling to your knees begging God to not let you screw up. It is the waking up before the sun to pack lunches and put clothes out to be worn. It is the late night in the ER to make sure everything is OK. It is the smiling when you're bone tired. It is the nod of approval you give after your child just explained something to you for the 50th time. It is the pretending you really, truly do care about the latest craze in kid games and culture. It is the crying after your child tells you "I hate you" for the first time (because they want to know if you'll still love them). It is the staying up all night worrying. It is the desperately wanting to go to sleep, but staying awake to talk to a preteen who is beginning to face the world and needs mom. It is the waiting up for your teen to come home, so when they need to talk about the big stuff they are doing, and the night they had, you're available and they know it. It's the working an extra job to pay for tuition. It's sitting through meetings and conferences that bore you to death and take away from your time (that you could be spending doing laundry). It's balancing time with your husband and time with your kids who need to talk to you (again). It's putting your foot down and saying no because that is your job. It is being unpopular and taking the brunt of your kids' emotions because its safe for them to be mad at you. It's setting boundaries for your kids when they can't set them for themselves. It is the sacrifices, daily, made without calling attention to them.

Motherhood is beautiful. But it is hard. And it is very thankless. And that is OK. Because motherhood and never was supposed to actually be about the mother. It is all about the child. The "other." Motherhood, the real stuff of motherhood, is invisible.
<3

Your Godmother loves you,

Fairy Godmother

For a Time Such as This - Reflections on John Paul II and The Current Crisis in the Church

"Who knows—perhaps it was for a time such as this that you became queen?” Esther 4:14

My Dear Godchildren, and anyone else who reads this,

Some of you are too young to understand the history that you are witnessing. I hope that as you get older you will be able to read this and better understand what you witnessed as very young people. For my older Godchildren and those entrusted to my care, I wish to give you a perspective that I have not seen presented anywhere yet, and I believe it is important. 

You are coming of age in a moment in history that will not be forgotten. Me, your parents, and many of the adults you look to for guidance have been given a particular calling and charge in these days and it will be up to you to carry on when we are older and unable. Who has given us this task? This responsibility? And to whom do we, should we, look to for guidance? 

God Himself, and Pope St. John Paul II. 

God has placed us, as He has placed you, in this moment in time for this reason. He has a plan. We were born "for such a time as this!" And it is Pope St. John Paul II who has prepared us for it. Let me share with you my thoughts, as someone who is now no longer a youth, but an adult who is at this crossroads of history and faith. I have a responsibility, I know. I am the laity. I am the Church militant, and the example I set for you, my Godchildren, I alone will answer for, for all Eternity. As will each member of my generation. Pray for me and for all of my peers.

This is our time. 

My generation has been called many things, some not so flattering. But the one moniker that makes the most sense is "The JPII Generation." Me, my peers, those who are in some cases just a little older than you, my Godchildren, we grew up under John Paul II's loving gaze. When he spoke to "young people" he was speaking to us. And we knew it. We ate it up. We, who at younger ages couldn't put words to the bland and empty sense we got from watered down liturgy and "entertaining" priests. We who witnessed the cultural repercussions of lagging vocations, plain-clothed nuns, and poor (or no) catechesis, and subconsciously hungered for more, KNEW there was more to the faith and to this God who John Paul II said loved us. It was this Pope, with his determined, charismatic, and hope filled messages who taught us about God's love and the true beauty of our faith. He challenged us. He did not water down the truth. He didn't coddle us, this man who lived through and witnessed some of the most unspeakable horrors the world has ever seen, he knew who we were. He knew who we were created to be. He knew that God made us for this time in history and he knew that the Church, the world, would need us. And at a time when the rest of society seemed to want to write off young people, he raised the bar and gave us our mission:

At this stage of history, the liberating message of the Gospel of Life has been put into your hands. And the mission of proclaiming it to the ends of the earth is now passing to your generation. Like the great Apostle Paul, you too must feel the full urgency of the task: “Woe to me if I do not evangelize” (1 Cor. 9:16). Woe to you if you do not succeed in defending life. The Church needs your energies, your enthusiasm, your youthful ideals, in order to make the Gospel of Life penetrate the fabric of society, transforming people’s hearts and the structures of society in order to create a civilization of true justice and love.

Now more than ever, in a world that is often without light and without the courage of noble ideals, people need the fresh, vital spirituality of the Gospel.

Do not be afraid to go out on the streets and into public places, like the first apostles who preached Christ and the Good News of salvation in the squares of cities, towns, and villages. This is no time to be ashamed of the Gospel (cfr. Romans 1:16). It is the time to preach it from the rooftops (cfr. Matt. 10:27). Do not be afraid to break out of comfortable and routine modes of living, in order to take up the challenge of making Christ known in the modern “metropolis.” It is you who must “go out into the byroads” (Matt. 22:9) and invite everyone you meet to the banquet which God has prepared for His people. - John Paul II, Message at World Youth Day, Denver, CO (emphasis added)

This is our time.

JPII sees the crowd gathered in Denver for WYD.

Now the Church finds herself in a crisis. She has weathered her share of storms. She has survived 2000 + years of heresies, schisms, scandals, and sin. She survived the Apostles and their abandonment of Christ, when all but John left Him on Calvary. She will survive this latest crisis too. But it is up to us, the JPII Generation, to navigate her through it. The Barque of Peter will not sink, but she is rapidly taking on water, and she needs her faithful to start baling it out! 

This is our time.

"As the third millennium of the redemption draws near, God is preparing a great springtime for Christianity, and we can already see its first signs.”- Redemptoris Missio
John Paul II repeatedly declared that there was a New Springtime of faith and evangelization underway. We understood that we were a part of it. And we are. We are the first-fruits of that New Springtime. Even in the turmoil and the hurt of this present crisis, we recognize that we are responding to that call and that as the beginning of that Springtime we are the lay people, the sisters, the priests, the young Bishops who will fully bring it about. As we came of age under our beloved Papa, John Paul II, we took his faith in us seriously. We sought out catechesis. We read the Catechism. We attended retreats and youth rallies. We started Catholic Bible Studies, prayer groups, ministries, and apostolates. We started filling up the empty seminaries, not the ones that watered down the priesthood, but the ones that formed men into servant-kings. Seminaries who made other Christs. Courageous young men, knowing the cost, and even knowing the dangers of seminary life that some of us are just now learning about, answered God's call. Young women, tired of a second wave feminist style sisterhood, sought out "old school" convents and orders, and when there weren't enough to meet the needs of the growing number of young ladies who said yes to Jesus' proposal of marriage, new orders were founded, complete with long habits and lots of prayer. 

Lay men and women entered into the covenant of marriage ready to be open to life, rejecting the lie that contraception is freedom and women should destroy their femininity for the sake of "progress." The young women of our generation know we have a "feminine genius" and that the world needs it! We took it straight to heart when Papa told us, 

“The moral and spiritual strength of a woman is joined to her awareness that God entrusts the human being to her in a special way. Of course, God entrusts every human being to each and every other human being. But this entrusting concerns women in a special way—precisely by reason of their femininity—and this in a particular way determines their vocation.” - Mulieris Dignitatem 17.

The young fathers among us heeded the words of John Paul II in Familiaris Consortio: 

“In revealing and in reliving on earth the very fatherhood of God, a man is called upon to ensure the harmonious and united development of all the members of the family: he will perform this task by exercising generous responsibility for the life conceived under the heart of the mother, by a more solicitous commitment to education, a task he shares with his wife, by work which is never a cause of division in the family but promotes its unity and stability, and by means of the witness he gives of an adult Christian life which effectively introduces the children into the living experience of Christ and the Church.”

We are the generation who read Theology of the Body for the first time. We understand in a deeply personal way God's design for human sexuality and his plan for men and women, in their masculinity and femininity. We do not buy into the lies that a contraceptive and homosexual subculture try to tell us. 

We are the JPII Generation. This is our time. 

WYD, Panama

Spring never comes without mud and mess. As the deadness of winter thaws, the ground becomes mushy. Brown. Gross. Rain makes things messy. It is only when the sun begins to warm the thawing ground, and the mud is everywhere that the buds of springtime begin to emerge. Early spring isn't pretty. It's messy. It is ugly. It is necessary. This is the moment in which we find ourselves. This present crisis, the truth that is being revealed; it is the mud. It is the muck. It is the nastiness of early spring. Yet it is necessary. Truth must prevail and the seeds of it are sprouting. It will be the JPII Generation who allows the Truth to grow. Blossom. It will be the JPII Generation who prunes and uproots. If this is the New Springtime, than we are the gardeners and this garden needs tending. 

This is what those Bishops and priests who have failed us do not understand. They operated largely, on an unprecedented scale, when we were still young. They had a network, protection, plans, and lots and lots of secrets. They do not understand these times. They do not understand our generation. At a time when John Paul II was telling us that we were the future of the Church, and bolstering our courage as we came of age, these prelates and priests were busy preying on some of our generation. And some of the generation before us. This will not stand. We will not let it. The truth has been, and is being revealed. And we are the adults now. We are the lawyers, canonists, theologians, priests, sisters, lay consecrated, psychologists, investigators, and parents. We are the Church militant. We are catechized. We know our canonical rights and our responsibilities. We love our faith. We love the Mass - in both its pre and post 1962 form. And we will not sit by and let evil and sin destroy our Church, or Her New Springtime. To the victims, we say, we love you, please let us help you find healing. It was John Paul II who told us, “In his infinite love, God is always close to those who are suffering. ...Christ listens to the cry of those whose boat is rocked by the storm (cf. Mk 4: 35-41). He is present beside them to help them in the crossing and guide them to the harbour of rediscovered peace" (Address to 18th International Congress promoted by the Pontifical Council For Health Pastoral Care, Theme: Mental Health). 

This is our time. 

Pope St. John Paul II prepared us for this time. He told us in Denver,

Young people of “World Youth Day,” the Church asks you to go, in the power of the Holy Spirit, to those who are near and those who are far away. Share with them the freedom you have found in Christ. People thirst for genuine inner freedom. They yearn for the Life which Christ came to give in abundance. The world at the approach of a new millennium, for which the whole Church is preparing, is like a field ready for the harvest.

Christ needs laborers ready to work in His vineyard. May you, the Catholic young people of the world, not fail Him. In your hands, carry the Cross of Christ. On your lips, the words of Life. In your hearts, the saving grace of the Lord.

We can be sure of his intercession as we take on the battle of our time: The battle for our Church. We must be bold in our demand for the Truth and for action. We must be compassionate in our care for victims and repentant sinners alike, and we must we willing to forgive even as we seek Justice. Our Papa modeled this forgiveness for us too. Let us not forget that he personally forgave the man who tried to kill him, even to point of embracing him. We too must be bold in our forgiveness, understanding that forgiveness is necessary for our Church to heal. Justice should be demanded. Real justice. For true justice can bring about repentance. We should settle for nothing less. And most importantly we must be holy. We must never stop seeking holiness. Our Papa told us at World Youth Day in Rome:

Young people of every continent, do not be afraid to be the saints of the new millennium! Be contemplative, love prayer; be coherent with your faith and generous in the service of your brothers and sisters, be active members of the Church and builders of peace. To succeed in this demanding project of life, continue to listen to His Word, draw strength from the Sacraments, especially the Eucharist and Penance. The Lord wants you to be intrepid apostles of his Gospel and builders of a new humanity.

This is our time. A time to be saints. 
Pope St. John Paul II knew we had it in us to be the saints that the Church needs now. In this time. For this time. He prepared us. He believed in us. And now he prays for us. 
Let us not let him down. 

Pax. 

My Godchildren,
I hope that this reflection helps you to understand your Godmother's thoughts on this critical and important time in history. Our Lady is guiding the Church. Papa John Paul II entrusted the world to her Immaculate Heart. She is preparing us all for its Triumph. She saved John Paul II's life so that he could continue to lead the Church - to lead us. As you come of your own age, you will usher in this Triumph in new and not-yet-known ways. Do not be afraid. Just as my generation has been prepared for such a time as this, so too are YOU being formed, right now, for your own time. Don't waste this time of preparation! Begin to live a holy life NOW. Teach yourself habits of prayer, penance, and service. Your training for your time begins now. Your Godmother wants you to be ready. You too were made for such a time as this. 

Love,
Your Fairy Godmother

Be Not Afraid

Dear Godkids,

Something has been on my mind a lot today.

Fear.

Fear is a powerful motivator. Fear can be a strong chain. Fear never liberates. It only binds. Fear never frees. It confuses. Fear is the enemy of Truth.

There is a reason that "Be not afraid" is the most used phrase in the Bible. There is a reason why it has become almost synonymous with John Paul II's epic papacy. There is a reason why he especially implored young people to "Be not afraid!" What Jesus knew, what JPII knew, is that fear can cripple us. It can break us. It can keep us from becoming who we are made to be, and coming to know who God is.

And I see it everywhere. Fear.

I see fear in the eyes of the young woman who refuses to break up with her boyfriend, even though they aren't meant for each other.

I see fear in the face of the young man who screwed up but doesn't know how to take responsibility.

I see fear in the woman contemplating abortion.

I see fear in the couple who stops using NFP and turns to contraception because it seems easier.

I see fear in the young woman afraid to step out in life and live boldly.

I see fear in the parents who hover and micromanage their children.

I see fear in the young man who sits in Church and refuses to say the prayers, but something draws him there anyway.

I see fear in the boy who won't stand up to a bully.

I see fear in the girl who won't see her own beauty.

I see fear in the woman who becomes an isolationist and racist. 

I see fear in the young person who won't say "no" to peer pressure.

I see fear in the man who hates others who are not like him.

I see fear in the young person who is trying to ignore God's call.

Fear is nasty. It sneaks into us. Sometimes fear comes because we have been hurt. We have been wounded. We want to protect ourselves from more hurt. We become afraid.  When we have wounds or hurts that cause us to fear, it means we need healing. Never be afraid to pursue healing. Whether that is in the form of therapy, spiritual direction, confession, or psychotherapy, physical therapy, or any combination of the above. Pursuing healing is an act of Hope and an act of Faith. Fear cannot remain long where one seeks healing! Just don't forget that Jesus is THE Healer, and as you pursue healing for the mind or body, its also important to pursue healing for the soul. When the soul is healthy, it is harder for fear to enter.

Sometimes fear comes because we lack faith. Fear is the antithesis of faith. They cannot co-exist. The more faith increases, the fear decreases. This doesn't mean you may never feel afraid. Feelings are human. They are natural. But we have the power to choose to have Trust in God and to overcome our fear. That power comes from the Holy Spirit. Trust, to Jesus, is the ultimate act of Love for Him. He wants nothing more than our Trust - reckless trust - in Him. The more we trust, the less we fear. The less we fear, the more free we become.

Fear is funny. It sneaks up on us and lies. Fear whispers, "I am reasonable. Fear is healthy. I will keep you safe." But it doesn't. Fear traps. It never frees. We justify our fear. We tell ourselves it is good and OK to be afraid. Maybe we even think we deserve to feel afraid. But Jesus told us something very different: BE NOT AFRAID.

Godkids, you were not created with a spirit of fear! You were created to be free in Jesus - the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He told us that the Truth will set you free! And the beautiful and amazing Truth is that Trust, Faith, are what you were created to have! Not fear and doubt!

Ask Jesus in the Divine Mercy to help you Trust Him. Ask the Holy Spirit to give you an increase in the gift of Faith. Keep asking Him!

The world needs your witness of Trust. Too many people are afraid and living in fear. Don't be one of them, your Godmother is here to help you.

Until next time,
With Love,
Your Fairy Godmother

Christmas Still Comes

Dear Godgirls, Godboys, Confirmandi and Honorary Godoffspring,

Let's welcome Little Lu-Lu to the Fairy Godkid family! One day she will be old enough to read!

So Christmas is coming! The most wonderful time of the year! It's no secret that I LOVE Christmas. Like, LOVE, LOVE Christmas. I know most of you do too! But what about those years when Advent doesn't seem very Adventy. And when Christmas seems to be coming so fast and you just aren't ready yet! And what about those years you just want to hit pause, back up, rewind, and get a do-over?

Godkids, let me tell you something. I think it is for THOSE years that Jesus especially comes.

This Advent started out great. We were READY! I even remembered to buy brand new Advent Candles the week before Advent started! (This is unheard of!) I knew it meant that this would be a stellar Advent! The Jesse tree ornaments were organized the day before Advent began, we had a routine for Bible time, traveling through Salvation history, and the Christmas Novena. We were going to OWN this Advent and have the best Christmas Prep EVER! (Which, of course meant that we'd have the best Christmas to date!)

This Christmas we were all going to get to go to the Midnight Christmas Mass together! I have yet to go to a Christmas Vigil Mass because I'm mom. And in years past we would attend at least 3 different Christmas Masses collectively as a family because of choirs and kids' choirs and altar serving. But THIS year, we were rocking it! All three boys were scheduled to serve the Midnight Mass, which is the same one that my Fairy Godhusband is singing for! #ChristmasScore The Fairy GodRicketts were going to go to ONE Mass TOGETHER for Christmas!

Then. Chickenpox. And more Chickenpox. Then recurrent Chickenpox. Then I got Chickenpox. Then there was an emergency appendectomy. Then more chickenpox. And Christmas is 4 days away.

And yet.

And yet, Jesus Comes.

Christmas is still coming.

Our Bible time has been mediocre at best. The Jesse Tree is getting filled in fits and starts. The Advent candles still get lit (though contagious kids are not allowed to blow them out). The first two weeks of this short Advent were spent with at least half the members of this family not feeling well, and with me feeling rather poorly (OK, fine, like I had the flu).

We won't all be going to the Midnight Mass now, I will most likely be attending a Christmas Mass by myself, not breathing on anyone, just in case, as once again the elusive Christmas Vigil slips through my grasp.

I am not sure when I will get to the other preparations that need to still happen in order for us to be ready for Santa to come down our chimney. We are alerting the guests who had already accepted our Christmas Day invitations for dinner that they will be entering a Chickenpox zone. I may need to make a few more side dishes and probably a big ol' pot of soup. Christmas cookies just aren't happening this year.

And yet. 

And yet, He comes.

And its OK.

Because Jesus didn't come for the perfect Christmas. He is the entire reason for Christmas. HE makes it perfect. And just like over 2000 years ago, He comes quietly and peacefully into a crazy, break-neck world.

Maybe this Christmas isn't shaping up to be what you had hoped. Maybe things feel out of control. Maybe your family is struggling. Maybe you're going through something personal or difficult. Maybe Advent feels like a bust and you wish you were more joyful about Jesus' upcoming birthday. Maybe you wish this Advent and Christmas were different.

And yet.

And yet, He is coming. Jesus doesn't wait for us to be ready. We never will be. Not really. He knows how much we need Him. Now. In the middle of the chaos and the crazy. Sickness, uncertainty, insecurity. We need Him. So He comes.

This Advent, I want to give you permission, Fairy Godkids, to let go of your idea of what a perfect Advent or a perfect Christmas looks like. Let go of what you decided would make for the best holiday and instead, be still in the truth that Jesus is coming. For you. For us. And THAT is what makes it perfect. That is what makes it Christmas. If Advent is a time to recall and contemplate our need for Christ, our need for a Savior, then perhaps it is the crazy, unplanned, chaotic Advents that remind us best of all how very much we need a Savior bigger than us. Bigger than all our problems, bigger than all our sickness, all our worries. A Savior who humbled Himself to become one of us.

Christmas is coming, dear Godchildren. How very blessed we are!

Your Fairy God Mother wishes you a very Merry, Happy, Holy Christmas!

Are You Happy Yet?

My dear Godkids,

Are you happy yet?

Not, like, "yeah, I'm happy, I just got to sleep late and the house is empty so I can binge on my current fave show" kind of happy. I mean the deep down content, not restless, peaceful sort of happy. The kind that can't be ruffled. The kind that is hard to shake even when bad things happen. THAT sort of happy.

No?

Well, then we need to talk. I saw that - I saw you rolling your eyes at me! But really, we should talk, because its time for a Holy Spirit intervention.  (there you go again with the eye rolling!)

God has made each and every person for a purpose. There is a mission, a plan JUST FOR YOU. The world needs you to accomplish it! It is why you were created! God loves you so much that He not only MADE you, but He made you with a PURPOSE. And this purpose will make you happy. It will give you that deep peace. The unshakable happy peace. It will also get you to Heaven - where you will be deliriously happy FOREVER. See, God desires your happiness. He desires you to have peace. He made you this way!

If you aren't feeling it, its time to figure out why, because living without this peace, without this happiness, isn't worth it.

Some of the biggest things that steal this peace and happiness from us are sin, lack of a prayer life, and noise. If we haven't been to confession in a while, if we are stuck in habitual sin, if we aren't praying or seeking to deepen our prayer life, if we are so distracted by noise and social media and phones and friends and stuff we will soon be robbed of happiness and peace. The good news is that we can change this! We can start frequenting the confessional. We can pray! And keep trying to pray! We can put the phones down and sit in some quiet with God. And we can ask Him to help us do these things! The Holy Spirit has been sent to us for just this! To convict us and to assist us!

The Holy Spirit can help you to stay on track with a relationship with God and He can help us to discover what it is that God has made us for!

Invoke Him! Call upon Him! Trust Him! He is our Advocate. Our Guide. Our Helper. Tell the Holy Spirit you want to be happy and ask Him to show you how! He will!

With Love,
Your Fairy Godmother

Like My Stupid Little Plant

Dear Godladies and Godboys,

I have realized something about myself and I want to share. (Actually I have realized 2 things, the first being that I am HORRIBLE and have neglected this blog and I MUST do better. I WILL do better. Seriously, send me threats via text if I fail again!)

See, I have this plant. It is a stupid little plant, but its hard to kill, which is why I still have it. Me and my black thumbs haven't gotten the best of it yet!

Anyway, so this plant sits on my desk:

My messy, functional, desk. (How do you like the lights underneath? Totally Pinterest-worthy, right? And yes that is JPII and a cat plaque....and the Holy Spirit. Really, you aren't THAT surprised, are you?)

Every so often I realize that the stupid little plant is basically climbing the window. The stems aim for the sun and the whole thing bends to reach the window and be as close to the sun as it can. 

When I notice this, I turn the plant. Sometimes I turn it 180* so its facing the opposite direction, totally away from the sun. In my mind its like plant exercise - it will keep it healthy. (or at least that's what I tell myself.)

Whenever I do this, the plant dutifully and hastily makes it way back to the sun. It amazes me how quickly it moves too. One of these times it would be fun to time-lapse it. 

After just one day, look how far this stupid little plant has come: 

Its halfway there already! Its like 'The Little Plant That Could!'

It needs the sun. Its stops at nothing to get to it (I've seen it all of a sudden grow or contort itself just to get to the sunlight!) And I realized I am that plant. 

I am my stupid little plant. 

Except I'm a stupid little girl who needs the Son. And I literally stop at nothing to get to Him. Even when it seems crazy. Even when it makes no sense. Even when it gives my parents a mini-heart attack (no really, ask them). I cannot help myself. Like my stupid little plant, who just knows it needs the sun, I, stupid little girl, need The Son. Desperately. And without Him, nothing is worth it. Its just not. There is no joy. No peace. No FUN. No Adventure!

So I want to tell you. You need Him too. You need the Son, just like my stupid little plant. Just like I have realized I am worth nothing - to you, to me, to ANYONE or ANYTHING without Him and I just can't change that (nor, honestly, would I want to) you too need Him. For EVERYTHING. 

We are made like my stupid little plant. We were created to NEED, to CRAVE the Son. God. We just get so distracted with stuff, and things, and media, and filters on Snapchat (ahem. no comment) that we put Him off. We forget. We have Him in His God-box and take Him out when we have a crisis or feel a fleeting sense of piety. Or want to show off for the hot guy in Church. But we NEED Him. All. The. Time. 

JPII said, "It is Jesus you seek when you dream of happiness..." He nailed it. It IS.

So turn to Him. Keep turning to Him. Little by little. Like my stupid little plant. Aim for HIM. And you won't want to turn away. 

<3 

With Love,
Your stupid little Fairy GodMother 

Whacked Out World

My Dear Godkids,
I am sorry! This is a LONG overdue letter and I feel terrible that it has taken me THIS long to write it! Things have been so wacky (did she just say "wacky?") lately and well, that is sort of the theme I'm going for here. Because, Godkids, this is a flipping whacked-out world.

Seriously, can I take a moment and apologize for my generation (ahem NOT a Millennial though, OK?) and everything we have done to royally screw up the future for you? You're welcome...

You know what I think the most cray-cray-crazy thing is? The bizarre notion that whatever someone feels or thinks is "reality." I know one of you recently had an incident at school along those lines. All of a sudden men aren't men. Boys aren't boys. Women aren't women. They are instead, whatever they feel like they should be. Or feel like they are. Or want to be, or whatever.  Things like, oh, you know, biology, have little to do with reality. Instead of the famous "I think therefore I am" we have coined the belief that "I feel, therefore I am.....whatever I feel like I am." (If this is actually the case, I am a chinchilla. And my name is Horace.)

And the craziest thing? If you call out the absurdity, YOU are ridiculed, or reprimanded, or punished. That person over there, with the large biceps, facial hair, and deep voice? No, NOT a man. That person is a Shar Pei today. Please refer to  him as "puppy."  

Godkids, you are inheriting a mess.

But I am not worried.
Do you know why?

Because of YOU.

YOU are going to be the ones who have to put this mess back together again. It will be up to YOU to make order out of the chaos that is all around. It will fall on YOU to make things make sense again.
And I know you can do it.
You're ALREADY doing it!

Every time you refuse to fall for the crazy. Every time you speak the simple Truth that you know is in front of you. Every time you don't allow yourself to bullied by the pop culture cray.

You KNOW the Truth. You do.
You have been confirmed (well, those of you who can speak in sentences and sleep through the night without soiling yourself).
Mo and Helen, you are ADULTS in the Church. You are responsible for witnessing to the Truth, in Love. Even if that has consequences.

Recently Pope Francis canonized a new Saint; Jose Sanchez del Rio. He was one month shy of turning 16 when he was put to death for professing his Faith in Christ. He was killed. For speaking the Truth. He was killed for standing for TRUTH. My Godkids, no one is seeking to kill you.
Will you speak the Truth?! You are tasked with witnessing to your Faith- to witness to what you know is right and what you know is true.
You can do it. If this 15 year old boy can die gladly for his faith, you can stand up to the crazy and witness to the Truth.

Your fairy Godmother is proud of you.  You can do it.

Love,
Your fairy Godmother