“Try It, You’ll Like It”

It’s always great to hear from our subscribed members, but especially from people I’ve met or who I’ve had the privilege to present to an event.  And yes, we have arrived at a very busy season of presentations.  Check out the listings of events already on our schedule for this fall, and hopefully we’ll have a chance to meet!

(Lake Charles Louisiana Event break out session with high school teens.)

For this week’s E-mail Blast, I’m responding to some e-mails with an encouragement to be appropriately adventurous and try something new.  I say “appropriately,” because I don’t want people to fall into harm by doing risky things.  But adventure helps makes life fun – not dangerous.

(Not risky, just lots of fun – complete with hardhat and harness!)

FYI:  I always try to keep all our subscriber e-mails anonymous by taking out names and circumstances that compromise identity.  And please know that if you have comments, concerns, suggestions, or questions about anything, all you have to do is get in touch with us by clicking HERE.

In this simple message, I’m encouraging people to be adventurous in their foods.  Go ahead and try something new.  You may wind up really enjoying something exotic.  After all, what’s strange cuisine for some may be daily cuisine for others.  Also, I want to encourage people to take an “adventure” in faith by doing what Saints have done in their lives.  They lived adventurously exciting lives by stepping out of their comfort zones and becoming instruments of compassion, service, faith, hope, and love!

(Picture of Blessed John Paul II as a young priest, with the featured canoe where he would go to pray.)

Dear Father Leo,

First I’d like to tell you how much my friend and I enjoyed your keynote speech at a recent conference.  It was engaging, informative and encouraging.  My friend and I contribute to our local paper.

In case you don’t remember, I approached you during the break and shared our family dinner idea with you.  You asked me to send you the details of this event and I am doing so.

We have four sons:  One is 28 years old and stationed at an army base in Colorado.  He enlisted as a cook and has been to Iraq twice.  His unit will be going to Afghanistan.  Cooking is his passion.  My other son is 22 years old and a recent graduate.  The third son is a junior at the State University, and my “baby” is 16 and homeschooled.  He has Aspergers, which falls under the autism spectrum.

Our family has always believed in sitting down together for meals.  We’ve used these times to engage the boys in conversation, whether the topic was on something interesting they had learned at school or games involving one-liners from movies and television shows.  Holiday meals are especially important and we have our traditional Italian menu that must be followed to the letter or the kids let us hear about it!  Christmas means Italian wedding soup, homemade ravioli with meat or cheese filling, falsa magra, braciole, and pizzelles.  Easter isn’t Easter without panettone.

Last year one of my sons came up with the idea of a meal involving each member of the family.  Unfortunately my oldest was in Iraq and unable to participate.  We filled out slips of paper with the words appetizer, soup, salad, entrée, and dessert and had each person reach into the hat and pick one.  Each recipe had to be Italian and something none of us had tried before.  We kept our contributions a secret until the day of the big meal.  There was a lot of excitement as we each scoured the internet in search of the right recipe.  There were whispers and questions about what items were available at home and which had to be purchased.

My husband had picked appetizers and he made a bruschetta with a variety of toppings.  I made cioppino – rather expensive, but it was worth it. Chris made a spinach salad, more Greek than Italian, but it was welcomed.  John made a pasta dish with a sauce of tomatoes, olives, red peppers, and wine and Dan prepared cherries marinated in wine and also homemade cannoli.

We took our time eating each entry and oohed and aahed over each contribution, fussing over and congratulating the cook.  We plan on having our second “Family Dinner!”  We’re all looking forward to the evening and hope to make this an annual event.

Ti ringrazio ancora per la tua presentazione. Spero e pregho che il tuo viaggio che viene si sara’ piacevole.  (Italian translation:  Thank you once again for your presentation.  I hope and pray that your upcoming travels go well!)

Dear mom of four great sounding sons!

Your e-mail helps explain the beauty of adventure, especially in the culinary world.  Thanks to your son serving in the military, and, as always, encourage your other sons to get involved in service/other oriented work too.  Who knows, one of them may even consider service in God’s “army” as a priest!

And by the way, those recipes sound delicious.  Be sure to send them our way, so we can post these on our website too!

(My version of a Cioppino con Spaghetti.)

Let me know how your cioppino compares to my simple Seafood Pasta Pan Boil.

And keep up the great work trying something new, so you can bring a little spice to your table!

God bless!

Dear Fr. Leo

As always, I am enjoying reading the weekly e-mail blasts!  I try to take your mission of sharing a family meal to heart and share not only the meal, but (as much as possible) the preparation of the meal with my family.  Of course, my two sons are three and five, so the extent to which they can help is limited, but they get a thrill out of doing anything.  Unless, of course, the weather’s nice.  Then they’re too busy tearing around the neighborhood on their scooters.  But I digress…

I wanted to share a recent experience with you that you may appreciate (or disregard…honestly, once I hit “send” I’ll never know what became of the message).  For several years, our parish has collected books, school supplies and other materials for a local elementary school.  My older son, who recently celebrated his fifth birthday, loves to read and has really taken a shining to our local pastor (who studied in the Seminary in Rome with you).  Our son would do absolutely anything in the world for our priest, and he decided that instead of birthday presents, he wanted all the kids who came to his party to bring a book that he could then give to our pastor for the students at the school.  Needless to say, I was a very proud of him when he told me.  I couldn’t imagine that level of generosity from a 5-year old…to pass up new toys in order for less fortunate children to have books?  I was humbled by a 5-year old!

We were blessed that our pastor (who may have replaced me as Danny’s “favorite”) came to our house for dinner so that my son could present him with the books he had gathered.  (Interesting side note – I made penne a la vodka and our priest said it was right up there with the pasta he had in Italy!)  Danny was excited for days ahead of time that Fr. Matt was coming to HIS house for dinner.  Apparently it was the talk of the Pre-K class that day!  I was thrilled to have him over.  We are so blessed to have him as our pastor, inspiring us all with his contagious enthusiasm.

I just wanted to share a recent “Grace Before (and during, and after) Meals” moment with you.  Thank you again for all the inspiration.  I tried to lend our priest my copy of your book, but he said that he was going to buy his own.  He seemed as motivated by your message as I am.  Thank you again.  Talk to you soon!

God bless,

Lisa

Dear mom of a generous son,

This story shows me the power of trying something new, not just for yourself, but trying something new for others!  Your son sounds like one great kid.  He probably learned some of this generosity from the good books you gave him to read as a child, but most importantly from your good example!

(From an event in Michigan last year – this young GBM’er is dressed to serve in his cool apron – available at our online store. Kids have an amazing capacity to be generous – and really cute too!)

Tell him to keep it up!  And tell your pastor how proud I am of him for making such a good impression on you and your family.  Yes, the priesthood can be a very “new idea” for many young men, especially me.  But it sounds like your son has the heart of a good shepherd, who knows the importance of feeding the flock in body, mind, and spirit.  Good books are an important part of our diet, so please thank your son for his smorgasbord-like offering.

Also, please let me know how your pasta sauce compares with my version of penne a la vodka.  As you know, that sauce is best when you add a lot of the “good stuff” (i.e., vodka), but let it reduce to a nice thickness before adding the sauce.

God bless you!

Fr. Leo

(I made this dish at a nursing home and set off the fire alarm. Here the Fire Chief explains how a smoke detector works – particularly one right over the where I ignited the vodka to flambé!)

Hi Fr. Leo,

My children attend Catholic school and they have opportunities during the school year to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  During the summer I always invite them to come to the sacrament with me when I go, but they usually decline.  Going to Mass on Sunday is never an option for them.  We all go, but what about the sacrament of Reconciliation?  Do you think I should make them go during the summer, or just encourage them to come and let them decide?

Thank you.

Sincerely,

Lisa

Dear Lisa:

Thank you for being just as concerned about the need for Reconciliation as priests are (or should be), and I’m grateful for your efforts to send your children to a school that upholds religious and sacramental values.  When they grow up and are looking for colleges, be sure to check Mount St. Mary’s University – recently ranked as one of the Top 10 Catholic Universities in America!

(Our Weekend Eucharistic Congress that draws more than 1,500 young people to the Faith!)

Regarding the Sacrament, like all finer things in life, the desire to go to Confession more frequently is an “acquired taste.”  It’s not easy, but after we try it, we wind up “liking” it, as we see the benefits!  It can be an overwhelmingly beautiful experience of mercy.  And so I recommend that you simply encourage your children by your faithful and joyful example.  Technically, people only need to receive the Sacrament one time per year (their Easter Duty), or anytime they desire being absolved from Mortal Sin before receiving Holy Communion.

(While this is an “old style” confessional, asking for forgiveness never goes out of style!)

I recommend going at least twice per year – before Christmas and Easter – and any other time they just want to be washed clean from all their sins.  Frequenting this Sacrament requires knowing the horror of sin, but also realizing we are weak and in need of God’s healing mercy, which rejuvenates our Spirit.  At the same time, we want to avoid scrupulosity, which stifles our imagination and understanding of faith.  Perhaps the best thing to do in your personal challenge can be to lead by example.  Encourage your kids without forcing them.  Show them the wonder and beauty of Confession, and, above all, teaching them about the nearness of God’s mercy.

That may encourage them to “try” going to Confession more regularly, and who knows, they may acquire a taste for it.

God bless,

Fr. Leo

(Not a haircut I’m willing to try, but I appreciate his adventurous fashion – especially since it celebrates LIFE!)

Do you have any special stories where you went out on a limb and tried something new?  Perhaps a new recipe or getting to know someone new at your church?  Tell us about it.  And if you have comments, questions to ask Fr. Leo, or suggestions for our E-mail Blasts, please let us know.  Also, check the links to our recipes, videos, events page, and our website for one of our new sponsors, Mount St. Mary’s University.  Your kids may want to look into this college – voted one of the Best Catholic Schools in the Country.  I think maybe I’ve mentioned it before…just once or twice.  Post Your Comments below.

(These are the volunteers and workers that helped me this past weekend at the Baltimore Book Fest. Check out videos from this past weekend on our Youtube channel!)

Posted in From the Feedbag, Grace Before Meals | 2 Comments