There are times and encounters that make “my soul smile”–I just finished one of them.

For the last 4 days I was with 71 teens and 20 (or so) adults from the Archdiocese of New Orleans. We were gathered for CLI (Catholic Leadership Institute). John S., office director, asked me to design a series of sessions set to introduce high school teens to some of the basic skills of leadership. It had been some time since I’ve been in that setting, namely, an extended time frame to focus on leaderhip skills.

What a great experience! I have to start with the team. John assembled a fantastic group of people to serve the teens. This groupof people had me smiling at their talent, their love of God and of teens, and of their passion to share knowledge, skills, limelight and more with young people.

1–There were young collegiates (Julie, Shayna, Daniel, Christian and Brittany). They were smiling and obviously enjoying the chance to get to share some of the joy they have felt from their work with diocesan programs. They smiled a lot and I think it was awesome for our participants to see people close to their age who enjoy serving others.

2–Special mention has to go to the “dynamic duo” of Matt C. and Chris G. These two reecent college grads infused the week with life, energy and creativity. They pushed the envelope but were always seeing to engage our group and did a lot to set the tone and keep participants smiling, singing, laughing and thinking. They did that for me, too.

3–There were a few adults who I hadn’t worked with–Beth F., Bennetta, and Stacie. They jumped in and did a super job. They trusted and embraced the process, even when they thought we were crazy.

4–It was a joy to have some “more seasoned” veterans of youth work: Beth J., Remy, Denise, Sr. Keri, and Brigitte. I was comforted to have these experienced people with us to provide reminders, ask questions, serve one another and give support to younger team members.

5–We were well-served with the support team of Pat, Linda, Mary Kay, and Amanda (photo below I think). Many thanks for small and large odd-jobs you did for us all.

6–We weren’t able to get a musician for the whole week, but we did have some help from Thomas, Colin and Brad. These guys led our participants and it was a joy to hear our teens sing so well. (”It don’t have to be pretty, it just has to be LOUD!”)

7–Special guest appearances were made by Lynn E. (”Dealing with Different People”), Brian B.(”Evangelization”), and Mari Ann C. (”Leadership Matters”) They gave solid messages which were so well received by our teens.

8–It was a neat to work “for” John, especially since I directed his CLI experience in 1992. But he built an “all-star” style team for me to work with and gave me room to design and implement the experience. For that opportunity, I am grateful.

Our team was blessed with 71 young people who were very open to singing and learning and “being true to the process”. We had socials of “bonco”, a talent show and a dance. Bishop Muench celebrated mass and gave the wonderful reminder/challenge: “Youth is a time for special heroism.” Father John Arnone celebrated the closing mass and commissioning for us.

It was a great week for me to see youth and adults who value working together in group settings put such energy and joy into it. Thanks to all.

2 closing thoughts:

1–The magic word is GO.
2–Happy Birthday, Bennetta.

My mom is a pretty special person and amazing lady in her own right.

For having just about every major heart procedure there is (open heart/bypass, carotid artery, angioplasty, and a pacemaker–you wonder where I get my heart from??), and for her failing sight (it is getting weaker), she is moving a little slower. But she is still moving.

In may she moved into a new house and it is very nice. I wasn;t wild about it but it has proved to be a blessing so far. (Mom knows best).

It’s always a treat when my mom, now 81, comes to Metairie. I think it is more a treat for us simply because this meek woman, who is not much of a traveler, honors us by taking the 2.5 hour trip east to New Orleans.

She doesn’t do a lot when here. She gets up, has her coffee, sits, makes conversation, enjoys getting to watch professional wrestling on TV twice during the week (she always has liked it!) and like us, awaits Marlene’s return home from work.

But what is most amazing is how my mom prays! She says rosaries throughout the day. She always prays for my family and she is always eager to include any intentions I ask her. I tell people mom is in the “praying hall of fame.”

She is an example to me in how she prays so faithfully and that she always remembers her family.

I love her very much and she has shaped much of my character by her thoughtful ways.

I had the chance to visit with some old friends as well as to be a part of something exciting. I’ve been invited to be a part of an advisory group that is founding the National Center for Catholic Youth Sports.

This is exciting because this group will help provide training and resources to coaches in Catholic youth leagues across the country. As some of you know, athletics still has an important place in my life, as I volunteer as an assistant with the Loyola University Women’s basketball team.

It was great to be with youth ministry friends Mike M., Shawnee, Len, Sr. Jude, Irene, Sr. Ann and more. The discussions are exciting as a group of volunteers try to create something to serve people across our country.

This was an amazing event. Close to 20,00 people there. So many people expressing their devotion to God through a day of prayer, reflection and more.

I felt honored to be a part of the teen track …along with Janelle and ONE 80, Michelle and Chris Benzinger, and Mark Hart of Life TEEN.

I have such great respect for Archbishop Wilton Gregory and for the youth director of the diocese, Barb G. I’d met Archbishop Gregory on a retreat years ago. He is such a personable man. He gave time to youth ministers and shared faith; I felt privileged to be there.

Barb is leading a group of local folk in Atlanta to prepare for the National Catholic Youth Conference, October 27-30. If you’re not familiar with it, check out http://nfcym.org/v3/conf/2005/index.html

The hospitality I received was first rate, special thanks to Graham (a fellow Louisiana native) for being so kind.

For the last 3 or 4 years, my father-in-law and I have been able to go to Minute Maid Park to watch “his” Houston Astros take on “my” beloved Cubs for a three-game series. It’s been about the rivalry, sure, but it’s also been a chance for us and two other guys (who vary every year) to get away for a few days.

This year’s trip was going to be very different for a few reasons.
• First, my travel schedule wouldn’t allow me to see the Astros take on the Cubs at all. We’d decided to actually watch the Cincinnati Reds (by the way, both of those teams trail the 2nd place Cubs, thank you very much!).
• Secondly, the other 2 “guys” we would be taking turned out to be my daughter, Megan, and my mother-in-law. That would prove interesting for sure.

I did get a treat. I got to see a future Hall-of-Famer, Roger Clemens (known as the Rocket) pitch the opening game of the series.

He pitched hard for over 7 innings, gave up only one bad pitch, and was losing 2-0 when he was pulled out of the game. (The relieving pitchers weren’t effective at all and the Reds won 9-0.)

I was amazed at Clemens for a few reasons:
+ His passion for baseball. If the picture doesn’t show it, this is a man who still is intense and wants to succeed on the field. He could coast and collect his $18 million dollar salary, but there’s a deeper fire somewhere down below.
+ His persistence. He’s 42, and still can throw a fastball 90-plus miles an hour. That has to take discipline to maintain the physical skills as age creeps in.
+ His professionalism. The Astros, as a team, are struggling, even while Clemens puts up fantastic numbers. But even though gently led by interviewers to trash his teammates, I don’t hear Clemens complaining.

Baseball is a cool game, because, if you let it, it will make you think about life. I wondered what people would say about
My passion—do I still long to succeed in the things THAT REALLY MATTER?
My persistence—am I willing to work for them even though I am getting older?
My professionalism—Am I positive even though things aren’t always smooth?

So, while I am not an Astros fan, I think I did become more of a Roger Clemens fan, at least for a little while. Until he plays the Cubs next.

Anytime you can go to the ball park, think about real life, come away inspired, (and get to eat nachos)—well, that’s a great day.

Thanks to our family friends Warren and Carol for their generosity.