During this Year For Priests we join in prayer for our beloved priests who bring the Sacrament of His Body and Blood to us. And, we pray that the Blessed Mother wrap her mantle around our priests and through her intercession strengthen them for their ministry.

The priest has the key of the heavenly treasures; it is he who opens the door; he is the steward of the good God, the distributor of His wealth.
-The Cure of Ars, St. John Vianney

St. John Mary Vianney, pray for us and all our priests!

 4RealLearning Forums : We Pray to the Lord

Our Mother’s Garden of Sorrow

Garden Links
Relocation

Grandfather’s Journey by Allen Say
http://www.eduscapes.com/caldecott/94a.html
http://www.emints.org/ethemes/resources/S00000597.shtml

Relocation Strategies
http://marriage.about.com/od/change/a/relocation.htm
http://www.123movers.com/guides/movingyourfamilytips.asp

St. Joseph

 
Unemployment

Saint Vincent de Paul Society
Novena to St. Joseph
Litany of St. Joseph

 
Damage or Displacement of Possessions

Job had every possible possession taken from him and remained faithful to the Lord.
The Book of Job

St. Frances Cabrini, Patron Saint of Displaced Persons
St. Christopher, Patron Saint of Floods and Storms
St. Florian, Patron Saint of Fires

Organizations that can help in a disaster:
The American Red Cross
Catholic Charities
FEMA

 
Loss from an Accident

St. Christopher
Michael the Archangel
Prayer to St. Michael
Guardian Angels

 
Infertility

The Catechism of the Catholic Church on the Sixth Commandment. See particularly CCC 2366-2379.
Donum Vitae: Instruction on Respect for Human Life in its Origin and on the Dignity of Procreation by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith
Infertility Terms You Need to Know
Babies Deserve Better - What you need to know if you're struggling with infertility
Further Reading
Pope Paul VI Institute
Infertility Treatments, in Accord With Church Teaching Q&A with Dr. Thomas Hilgers.
Catholic Infertility

 
Death of a Pet

Patron saint of animals: Saint Francis of Assisi
Patron saint of pets/domestic animals: Saint Anthony the Abbot

Previous threads at 4real that address the loss of a pet:
We had to put our cat to sleep
Saint Francis
Pets
Is it OK to pray for pets?
Putting a pet to sleep
Saint Francis of Assisi


It is a testament to how well and deeply you cared for your companion that you are grieving so now. Let yourself grieve. Allow your children to grieve. Find ways to honor your treasured friend’s memory, together:
  • You might consider making a donation to an animal hospital or shelter, in your pet’s name.
  • Perhaps a quiet corner of your garden could become a place to pray and remember your pet. Your children could make a memorial stone; a St. Francis statue would be a comforting addition here.
  • A framed photograph or a small memory album could be another family project. Find a special space to keep these things, and take the time to gather and pray when the time seems right.
 

Loss of Homeschooling Dream

I Want to Go to REAL School
Ready to Give-up on Homeschooling
Help! My Daughter Wants to Go to School (pdf file)
Plan for Next Year: No Burnout

Guides for Discernment
  • Pray about the decision
  • Consult with Spouse
  • Do not make a rash, impulsive decision
  • Commit to doing 'one thing a day' well
  • Get outside to revive the spirit
  • Try "school" at home complete with wake-up time, schedule, no snack time, etc.
  • Research the possibility of a "shadow day" at a school of interest
  • Consider your child's reason for wanting to attend school
  • Consider your spouse's reason for wanting your child to attend school
  • Consider things you can do to improve the attitude at home
  • Think of ways to help your child "own" their education
  • Consider un-schooling or strictly using a living books education during the period of prayer and discernment
  • Remember that the grass usually looks greener on the other side
  • Remember that the goal is Heaven, not Harvard
  • Check into tutors
  • Ask yourself "Why did we decide to home educate in the first place?"
  • Pray for wisdom as Solomon did

QUOTES

"One test of the correctness of educational procedure is the happiness of the child."
Maria Montessori

" 'I serve you in the midst of the people whom you have chosen...Give your servant, therefore, an understanding heart to judge your people and to distinguish right from wrong. For who is able to govern this vast people of yours?' The Lord was pleased that Solomon made this request. So God said to him: 'Because you have asked for this---not for a long life for yourself, nor for riches, nor for the life of your enemies, but for understanding so that you may know what is right---I do as you requested.' "
1Kings 3:8-12

"In this family the training of the soul completed that of the body. To bestow the natural life was the lesser work; above all it was a question of bringing to birth and promoting the growth of children of God. That is the object of education; the supreme science, too often unrecognised; that bends all its energies to reproducing the divine image, not in plastic material but in the spiritual substance."
Story of a Family by Fr. Stephane-Joseph Piat, O.F.M.

"Madame Martin's correspondence reveals this concern for right education in the highest degree. For her a child was not a plaything with which to amuse herself, nor a creature that has become an object of dread because no one knows how to train it. It was a trust received from the Creator's hands; she must serve it by uplifting it, and she must not fear to aim high."
Story of a Family by Fr. Stephane-Joseph Piat, O.F.M.

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