Ten years ago this day, on January 11, 2008, Sonya "Sunny" Greenberg was born, the daughter of Mrs. Greenberg, my high school US history teacher, and her husband, Geoff.
The arrival of a new baby is usually a matter of good news, which was especially the case with little Sunny.
I met Sunny on the first day of my junior year at OPRF High School on August 22, 2007. US History was my final class of the day, during 8th period. Mrs. Greenberg was standing outside the classroom door greeting her students as they arrived for class, and she was already 5 months pregnant with Sunny.
My Grandpa José was already in declining health when I started my junior year and he passed away from this life on October 8, 2007. His passing was hard on me because we were close. I struggled with emotions of grief and sorrow, afraid of getting sucked into a hopeless hole in which there would be only the darkness of death.
In this time of sorrow, it was such a comfort to walk into my US history class each day, and see Mrs. Greenberg and Sunny with her. It was a powerful reminder that though, under God's watchful eye, life comes to an end, under the same God, life comes into our world. I didn't have to be hopeless in the face of death because I could have hope in the life entering our world.
I've written from time to time on this blog about my pro-life views. Over the years, my stance has become more articulate as I've become better acquainted with facts and figures about the harm abortion does to individuals and our society in general. But facts only go so far. It's stories that make an impact. In my life, I solidified my position against abortion when I was in middle school. But the passing of Grandpa José and the entry of Sunny into the world helped strengthen my commitment to the pro-life movement.
A baby is good news, and we should be focused on making sure that every person who is conceived is able to enter into the world and be the good news our world so desperately need. It should be absolutely unconscionable to snuff out the life of a person while in a vulnerable, helpless state, who has no way of defending him/herself against the horrors of death by abortion. Truly, we as a society need to come to our senses and shift our perspective back to where it should be.
The arrival of a baby has so much potential to make a positive impact on our world. We need to exert the effort to ensure that every child can have a chance at life, and give support to the parents who feel like they can't do it themselves. We need to stand up for the unborn and protect them against the idea that somehow they don't matter. When we care for the most helpless and vulnerable, I'm sure it will have a ripple effect in helping us care about all other people on Earth who are in need.
I realize how fitting it is that this coming Sunday is the March for Life Chicago. It's a great opportunity to take a stand for life, as I personally remember the impact of the great news of Sunny Greenberg's birth.
Thursday, January 11, 2018
Sunday, January 7, 2018
AMS in Austin, Full Circle 5 Years Later
Thousands of individuals in the meteorology community are converging in Austin, TX, this week for the 98th Annual Meeting of the American Meteorological Society (AMS), including forecasters, government administrators, professors, and students. They are in Austin to attend presentations on the latest studies in the science, recent weather events of note, and the implications of it all. There are other discussions as part of this meeting, and plenty of opportunities to make connections with others in the field.
The meeting this week makes me think back 5 years ago to when I attended the 93rd Annual Meeting of the AMS, which was also in Austin, TX. It was during my senior year of studies at Valparaiso University, right before I began my 2nd semester.
I had been to meteorology conferences before, namely the Great Lakes Meteorology Conferences, sponsored by ValpU's AMS Chapter. These conferences brought in a number of great speakers discussing a variety of topics in the field about careers and latest research for the attendees, mostly ValpU meteorology students, but also a handful from Central Michigan University.
The AMS Meeting was the first time I had ever attended a larger conference for a professional organization. It was a valuable experience in helping acquaint me with what it's like to be a professional in meteorology, giving me a sense of where I was headed with all the efforts I had exerted to my studies in classes at school, not to mention all that a conference can offer. Certainly, the conference helped broaden my horizons, much as going to Texas for the first time did.
I arrived in Austin onboard Amtrak's Texas Eagle route on Friday, January 4. The next day, Saturday, I went to the Austin Convention Center for the first day of the Student Conference, which takes place before the main meeting starts.
It focuses on content relevant for students, including presentations on careers and graduate school, as well as a chance to mingle with professionals and fellow meteorology students. There were about 11 of us ValpU students there, and later, some of the meteorology staff came to the main conference as well. Two schools with the largest groups of students in attendance were Pennsylvania State University and the University of Oklahoma, with a total attendance at the conference of about 600 students.
One emphasis from the speakers at the conference using the conference as a way to meet people and make connections. When lunch came on Saturday, I decided to break away from the ValpU group and I randomly sat with some students from the University of North Carolina, and I enjoyed getting to know them.
The student conference had some presentations before the large group. In one memorable presentation, the speaker started by driving a force-body diagram, which made me immediately think back to physics class a couple of years before. He then talked about a criminal investigation in Indonesia, and the thought process used to uncover what happened. He then connected that to physics problems, to suggest a thought process we can use in our work.
There was also a point in the student conference when we went around to various rooms to hear from various professionals about the work they do. One person was a woman who served as a meteorologist for the state of Florida--she said that sometimes she was like the Governor's meteorologist because he signed her checks. I also met a great person named Mike Mogil, who worked for a time in the National Weather Service (NWS), and then started a consulting business, How the Weather Works.
There were panel discussions, too. At one point, we rotated around to different rooms to hear from panelists who worked in the different sectors of private firms, government agencies, and in the academic setting. There were also panel discussions before the whole conference group.
At the end of day one of the student conference, we had the chance to talk with graduate schools and meteorology employers at the career fair. There was also a poster session, and dinner of fajitas.
The student conference continued the next day on Sunday in the morning. It wrapped up right about noontime, after which I joined with some of my fellow ValpU for lunch at a nearby Tex-Mex place. Then, I went back to the room where we had been meeting to attend a special presentation on meteorology in the energy sector, which included a role-play scenario for determining energy usage given certain weather conditions.
Later that day was a town hall forum as a way to kickstart the conference, in a large ballroom space. It featured a conversation with oil businessman T. Boone Pickens, who shared about his life experiences. Notably, the person doing the interview decided to introduce us, the conference attendees, to Mr. Pickens.
The next morning, Monday, was the President's Town Hall Forum in the same ballroom space as before, which included some speakers on weather modeling. Before they spoke, a representative of the mayor of Austin came to offer an official welcome from the city to the conference attendees.
Later, in the evening, was a town hall forum with a panel on the Superstorm Sandy that had occurred in late October 2012. One focus in the discussions was on how to adequately communicate the situation to the public, which was unique with Sandy because right before it made landfall, it lost its tropical characteristics, becoming a general midlatitude cyclone system like most weather systems on land, but was unleashing destructive power just like when it was a hurricane. There were also some panelists who talked about how journalists and social media covered the Sandy storm, including Jason Samenow, weather journalist for The Washington Post. At the end, during Q&A, I went up to the microphone and asked a question that had been on my mind since I saw a NOVA program about Sandy the November before. I asked about the relationship between global warming and Sandy's destructive effects. One of the panelists--and I believe it was Dr. Louis Uccellini, gave an answer that seemed to cast doubt on a direct correlation.
Over the next couple of days, on Tuesday and Wednesday, I attended more presentations, which included public health response to extreme weather situations, like intense heat waves, and a series of presentations on notable extreme weather events. I had many to choose from, as I could tell from glancing at the conference program online as I planned out my schedule before going, and then as I glanced through the program book while there. Two of my professors spoke at a presentation on teaching meteorology at the college level, which I attended along with a couple of fellow students. It was interesting to hear my professors talk about how they teach, and how students respond, and then to hear questions from audience directed to us, which was a small group, since that presentation was broken into different sections of the room, each with its own speaker. I also attended a weather briefing by staff at the local NWS Office in New Braunfels, TX. Because they committed error in their forecast from the day before, they handed out candy to those in attendance.
I also spent time looking around at the exhibits. One really cool exhibit featured a globe projecting 3D data, not just about weather, but even a 24-hour display of flight patterns throughout the world (please see picture below).
The Doppler-on-Wheels was also present, with scientists who had participated in the VORTEX 2 study of severe storms and tornadoes in 2010. (This was my second time seeing the DOW--the first being at the Museum of Science and Industry during the opening weekend for the OMNIMAX film Tornado Alley, which focused on the VORTEX 2 project.)
I also took advantage of the opportunity to attend a meet and greet with the AMS President, who at the time was Dr. Louis Uccellini, then serving as the Director of the National Centers for Environmental Prediction, the government agency overseeing several computer weather models and other centers focused on forecasting specific areas related to flooding, tropical systems, and severe storms. I also met some other big names, including Rick Knabb, then director of the National Hurricane Center, and Russ Schneider, who is the director of the Storm Prediction Center. I also hob-knobbed with TV meteorologists, meteorology professors, and other people from the NWS and NOAA. I also had the chance to visit with fellow ValpU students, professors, and alumni over a Tex-Mex buffet lunch, as the Department of Geography and Meteorology typically hosts a lunch for meteorology students, staff, and alumni attending the AMS Meeting. (That was one of many instances in which I ate well at the conference, which included snacks, appetizers, breakfast treats, and the awards banquet toward the end of the conference days.)
I look back at where I am now, and recognize the value of attending professional conferences as a chance to hear about what's happening in the field currently, meet people who are making notable achievements, and make connections, which I've been able to do at subsequent conferences, especially as I engage with the field of library and information science. I'm glad I got a good start with attending the 2013 AMS Meeting: It was there that I got a stronger sense of what the field of meteorology is all about, and helped give me a push toward focusing on landing a job. It was certainly a good dose of reality, at times intimidating and exhilarating.
One major takeaway from my experience was when, at the career fair, I met someone from the group Atmospheric Science Librarians International, an encounter that gave me the idea of becoming a librarian, thereby combining my interests. While at that point in time, the focus in my career path seemed to be on being a weather forecaster, I felt myself gravitating toward applying my meteorology background in a particular direction, and I liked the idea of librarianship because I could be part of helping people doing research in meteorology, since there's so much research happening.
Indeed, another takeaway was the implications of meteorology. While it's fascinating to study and observe the weather, meteorology professionals ultimately exert the effort because they recognize weather impacts everyone and all aspects of society. That's why there are so many social science-related discussions at conferences like these--and I certainly got in on them even more so when I attended the National Weather Association conference in October 2013 in North Charleston, SC.
At the student conference, I felt something stir inside of me as I listened to the panel presentations, the part of me that was influenced by my humanities-based studies in Christ College. During a time of questions and answers, I got up before the approximately 600 attendees and asked a panel of scientists, "What aspect of your work puts you most in tune with what it means to be human?" (Someone nearby the microphone muttered, "Now we're getting to the metaphysics of things." I had a nice chat with him a few minutes later when the session ended, drawing on some of my philosophical understandings.)
I got two great answers to my question. Someone remarked how her child plays with a ball to discover how it behaves when dropped, etc., and she said we all have this internal drive to investigate how scientific principles work. Another response focused on the human factor in severe weather events, how it impacts people's lives and their communities.
Later, over lunch, one of my classmates remarked how I had asked a deep question during that Q&A. Even if the speakers might have been struck by my question, they gave great answers.
Indeed, this conference broadened my horizons about what's going on in the world, as I sought to take my place in it and make my contribution.
The meeting this week makes me think back 5 years ago to when I attended the 93rd Annual Meeting of the AMS, which was also in Austin, TX. It was during my senior year of studies at Valparaiso University, right before I began my 2nd semester.
 |
| A meeting poster displayed at one of the entrance to the Convention Center in Austin |
I had been to meteorology conferences before, namely the Great Lakes Meteorology Conferences, sponsored by ValpU's AMS Chapter. These conferences brought in a number of great speakers discussing a variety of topics in the field about careers and latest research for the attendees, mostly ValpU meteorology students, but also a handful from Central Michigan University.
The AMS Meeting was the first time I had ever attended a larger conference for a professional organization. It was a valuable experience in helping acquaint me with what it's like to be a professional in meteorology, giving me a sense of where I was headed with all the efforts I had exerted to my studies in classes at school, not to mention all that a conference can offer. Certainly, the conference helped broaden my horizons, much as going to Texas for the first time did.
I arrived in Austin onboard Amtrak's Texas Eagle route on Friday, January 4. The next day, Saturday, I went to the Austin Convention Center for the first day of the Student Conference, which takes place before the main meeting starts.
 |
| Inside the conference |
It focuses on content relevant for students, including presentations on careers and graduate school, as well as a chance to mingle with professionals and fellow meteorology students. There were about 11 of us ValpU students there, and later, some of the meteorology staff came to the main conference as well. Two schools with the largest groups of students in attendance were Pennsylvania State University and the University of Oklahoma, with a total attendance at the conference of about 600 students.
One emphasis from the speakers at the conference using the conference as a way to meet people and make connections. When lunch came on Saturday, I decided to break away from the ValpU group and I randomly sat with some students from the University of North Carolina, and I enjoyed getting to know them.
The student conference had some presentations before the large group. In one memorable presentation, the speaker started by driving a force-body diagram, which made me immediately think back to physics class a couple of years before. He then talked about a criminal investigation in Indonesia, and the thought process used to uncover what happened. He then connected that to physics problems, to suggest a thought process we can use in our work.
There was also a point in the student conference when we went around to various rooms to hear from various professionals about the work they do. One person was a woman who served as a meteorologist for the state of Florida--she said that sometimes she was like the Governor's meteorologist because he signed her checks. I also met a great person named Mike Mogil, who worked for a time in the National Weather Service (NWS), and then started a consulting business, How the Weather Works.
There were panel discussions, too. At one point, we rotated around to different rooms to hear from panelists who worked in the different sectors of private firms, government agencies, and in the academic setting. There were also panel discussions before the whole conference group.
At the end of day one of the student conference, we had the chance to talk with graduate schools and meteorology employers at the career fair. There was also a poster session, and dinner of fajitas.
 |
| Poster for the ValpU-based AMS Chapter in the exhibit hall |
The student conference continued the next day on Sunday in the morning. It wrapped up right about noontime, after which I joined with some of my fellow ValpU for lunch at a nearby Tex-Mex place. Then, I went back to the room where we had been meeting to attend a special presentation on meteorology in the energy sector, which included a role-play scenario for determining energy usage given certain weather conditions.
Later that day was a town hall forum as a way to kickstart the conference, in a large ballroom space. It featured a conversation with oil businessman T. Boone Pickens, who shared about his life experiences. Notably, the person doing the interview decided to introduce us, the conference attendees, to Mr. Pickens.
The next morning, Monday, was the President's Town Hall Forum in the same ballroom space as before, which included some speakers on weather modeling. Before they spoke, a representative of the mayor of Austin came to offer an official welcome from the city to the conference attendees.
Later, in the evening, was a town hall forum with a panel on the Superstorm Sandy that had occurred in late October 2012. One focus in the discussions was on how to adequately communicate the situation to the public, which was unique with Sandy because right before it made landfall, it lost its tropical characteristics, becoming a general midlatitude cyclone system like most weather systems on land, but was unleashing destructive power just like when it was a hurricane. There were also some panelists who talked about how journalists and social media covered the Sandy storm, including Jason Samenow, weather journalist for The Washington Post. At the end, during Q&A, I went up to the microphone and asked a question that had been on my mind since I saw a NOVA program about Sandy the November before. I asked about the relationship between global warming and Sandy's destructive effects. One of the panelists--and I believe it was Dr. Louis Uccellini, gave an answer that seemed to cast doubt on a direct correlation.
Over the next couple of days, on Tuesday and Wednesday, I attended more presentations, which included public health response to extreme weather situations, like intense heat waves, and a series of presentations on notable extreme weather events. I had many to choose from, as I could tell from glancing at the conference program online as I planned out my schedule before going, and then as I glanced through the program book while there. Two of my professors spoke at a presentation on teaching meteorology at the college level, which I attended along with a couple of fellow students. It was interesting to hear my professors talk about how they teach, and how students respond, and then to hear questions from audience directed to us, which was a small group, since that presentation was broken into different sections of the room, each with its own speaker. I also attended a weather briefing by staff at the local NWS Office in New Braunfels, TX. Because they committed error in their forecast from the day before, they handed out candy to those in attendance.
I also spent time looking around at the exhibits. One really cool exhibit featured a globe projecting 3D data, not just about weather, but even a 24-hour display of flight patterns throughout the world (please see picture below).
The Doppler-on-Wheels was also present, with scientists who had participated in the VORTEX 2 study of severe storms and tornadoes in 2010. (This was my second time seeing the DOW--the first being at the Museum of Science and Industry during the opening weekend for the OMNIMAX film Tornado Alley, which focused on the VORTEX 2 project.)
 |
| One of the scientists got this picture of me by the DOW. |
I also took advantage of the opportunity to attend a meet and greet with the AMS President, who at the time was Dr. Louis Uccellini, then serving as the Director of the National Centers for Environmental Prediction, the government agency overseeing several computer weather models and other centers focused on forecasting specific areas related to flooding, tropical systems, and severe storms. I also met some other big names, including Rick Knabb, then director of the National Hurricane Center, and Russ Schneider, who is the director of the Storm Prediction Center. I also hob-knobbed with TV meteorologists, meteorology professors, and other people from the NWS and NOAA. I also had the chance to visit with fellow ValpU students, professors, and alumni over a Tex-Mex buffet lunch, as the Department of Geography and Meteorology typically hosts a lunch for meteorology students, staff, and alumni attending the AMS Meeting. (That was one of many instances in which I ate well at the conference, which included snacks, appetizers, breakfast treats, and the awards banquet toward the end of the conference days.)
I look back at where I am now, and recognize the value of attending professional conferences as a chance to hear about what's happening in the field currently, meet people who are making notable achievements, and make connections, which I've been able to do at subsequent conferences, especially as I engage with the field of library and information science. I'm glad I got a good start with attending the 2013 AMS Meeting: It was there that I got a stronger sense of what the field of meteorology is all about, and helped give me a push toward focusing on landing a job. It was certainly a good dose of reality, at times intimidating and exhilarating.
One major takeaway from my experience was when, at the career fair, I met someone from the group Atmospheric Science Librarians International, an encounter that gave me the idea of becoming a librarian, thereby combining my interests. While at that point in time, the focus in my career path seemed to be on being a weather forecaster, I felt myself gravitating toward applying my meteorology background in a particular direction, and I liked the idea of librarianship because I could be part of helping people doing research in meteorology, since there's so much research happening.
Indeed, another takeaway was the implications of meteorology. While it's fascinating to study and observe the weather, meteorology professionals ultimately exert the effort because they recognize weather impacts everyone and all aspects of society. That's why there are so many social science-related discussions at conferences like these--and I certainly got in on them even more so when I attended the National Weather Association conference in October 2013 in North Charleston, SC.
At the student conference, I felt something stir inside of me as I listened to the panel presentations, the part of me that was influenced by my humanities-based studies in Christ College. During a time of questions and answers, I got up before the approximately 600 attendees and asked a panel of scientists, "What aspect of your work puts you most in tune with what it means to be human?" (Someone nearby the microphone muttered, "Now we're getting to the metaphysics of things." I had a nice chat with him a few minutes later when the session ended, drawing on some of my philosophical understandings.)
I got two great answers to my question. Someone remarked how her child plays with a ball to discover how it behaves when dropped, etc., and she said we all have this internal drive to investigate how scientific principles work. Another response focused on the human factor in severe weather events, how it impacts people's lives and their communities.
Later, over lunch, one of my classmates remarked how I had asked a deep question during that Q&A. Even if the speakers might have been struck by my question, they gave great answers.
Indeed, this conference broadened my horizons about what's going on in the world, as I sought to take my place in it and make my contribution.
Saturday, January 6, 2018
Gifts 2017, Reflecting in the Spirit of the Magi
This time of year celebrating the Epiphany of the Lord makes me think of Father Larry McNally, currently St. Matthias pastor, and formerly Ascension pastor.
In his Epiphany Sunday homily, he would compare certain gifts he had received with the significance of the Magi's gifts to the Christ Child.
The gold was given to acclaim Jesus as King. The frankincense recognizes that He is a Priest, with the purpose (or vocation) of bringing us to God. The myrrh honors the sacrifice Jesus made in His humanity for the sin of all people.
I use symbols to reflect on some of the gifts I gave and received for the occasion of the Nativity of the Lord.
Gifts I gave
Gold: I gave my sister-in-law Naomi some Hawaiian coffee from Trader Joe's, since she and my brother Eric had that when they went to Hawaii a year ago. I was very pleased with the coffee selection at Trader Joe's.
Incense: I was at Bed Bath and Beyond with my parents, and my Mom noticed a special circular knife there and remarked how nice of a tool it was. That gave me a great idea, so while she was elsewhere in the store, I bought it.
Myrrh: There's a woman I've gotten to know very well at Ascension, especially by being fellow Religious Education catechist-teachers. To return the favor of a gift she gave me, I gave her gift money to the Sugar Beet, a co-op store in Oak Park with a lot of goods from farms. It was the winner of Rubicon Global's "Best Small Business in America" contest. There are a lot of wonderful things to buy there, and I'm glad to support this business because it helps support sustainability--and I'm making it #4 on my list to celebrate Illinois's 200th year of statehood.
Gifts I received
Gold: Abuela gave me some tasty waffle cookies.
Incense: I received many wonderful gifts from my RE students. One that stands out in a special way in a jumbo-sized mug with an artistic map of Illinois printed on two sides of it. I've enjoyed using it for eating oatmeal on all these cold mornings we've been having the past couple of weeks, as I am reminded of the wonderful ways I've connected with those to whom I pass on the faith. Another gift was a glass ornament from Pier One Imports.
Myrrh: My parents gave me a new pillow for sleeping on. I saw a coupon for Bed Bath and Beyond, which caused me to remark in my Mom's presence that I could go there to get a new pillow. Clearly, that planted an idea in her head.
Epiphany is also a time for a house blessing, with the following symbols marked out:
It is in this place I have experienced the love that abounds in relationships, and truly this place I call home is a gift.
God first showed us what love means by coming to Earth as the baby Jesus, Who furthermore showed us how to express love within the context of relationships, especially family relationships. That is what truly gives these gifts, and all the others I received, their extraordinary meaning. Just as the adage says, "Home is where the heart is," so I have experienced the heart of God in gift-giving and the love that infuses it.
In his Epiphany Sunday homily, he would compare certain gifts he had received with the significance of the Magi's gifts to the Christ Child.
The gold was given to acclaim Jesus as King. The frankincense recognizes that He is a Priest, with the purpose (or vocation) of bringing us to God. The myrrh honors the sacrifice Jesus made in His humanity for the sin of all people.
I use symbols to reflect on some of the gifts I gave and received for the occasion of the Nativity of the Lord.
Gifts I gave
Gold: I gave my sister-in-law Naomi some Hawaiian coffee from Trader Joe's, since she and my brother Eric had that when they went to Hawaii a year ago. I was very pleased with the coffee selection at Trader Joe's.
Incense: I was at Bed Bath and Beyond with my parents, and my Mom noticed a special circular knife there and remarked how nice of a tool it was. That gave me a great idea, so while she was elsewhere in the store, I bought it.
Myrrh: There's a woman I've gotten to know very well at Ascension, especially by being fellow Religious Education catechist-teachers. To return the favor of a gift she gave me, I gave her gift money to the Sugar Beet, a co-op store in Oak Park with a lot of goods from farms. It was the winner of Rubicon Global's "Best Small Business in America" contest. There are a lot of wonderful things to buy there, and I'm glad to support this business because it helps support sustainability--and I'm making it #4 on my list to celebrate Illinois's 200th year of statehood.
Gifts I received
Gold: Abuela gave me some tasty waffle cookies.
Incense: I received many wonderful gifts from my RE students. One that stands out in a special way in a jumbo-sized mug with an artistic map of Illinois printed on two sides of it. I've enjoyed using it for eating oatmeal on all these cold mornings we've been having the past couple of weeks, as I am reminded of the wonderful ways I've connected with those to whom I pass on the faith. Another gift was a glass ornament from Pier One Imports.
Myrrh: My parents gave me a new pillow for sleeping on. I saw a coupon for Bed Bath and Beyond, which caused me to remark in my Mom's presence that I could go there to get a new pillow. Clearly, that planted an idea in her head.
Epiphany is also a time for a house blessing, with the following symbols marked out:
20+C+M+B+18
How fitting it is to offer a prayer of house blessing following on the heels of the recent anniversary of my quarter-century here in Oak Park. |
| Mom took this picture of me enjoying some Brown Cow ice cream on a very mild December evening at home, before the Arctic cold spell hit. |
It is in this place I have experienced the love that abounds in relationships, and truly this place I call home is a gift.
God first showed us what love means by coming to Earth as the baby Jesus, Who furthermore showed us how to express love within the context of relationships, especially family relationships. That is what truly gives these gifts, and all the others I received, their extraordinary meaning. Just as the adage says, "Home is where the heart is," so I have experienced the heart of God in gift-giving and the love that infuses it.
Monday, January 1, 2018
The Grapes of Anticipation 2018
It's time to fill up another blank slate that we've been handed on this New Year's Day 2018. And so like I did with the year that past, I shall use the Spanish custom of consuming 12 grapes for the New Year's occasion to reflect on what I'm anticipating for 2018.
Grape #1, the Bicentennial of Illinois: This occasion will be a great opportunity to celebrate the state of Illinois and the great aspects it entails, and even participating in festivities.
Grape #2, the 2018 Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang: I'm really looking forward to see the world come together for spirited competition, and to see the show put on by South Koreans.
Grape #3, milestone birthdays in the family: From what I can tell, there are 4 of them happening this year in my family.
Grape #4, Greg and Melissa's 10-year anniversary: The first wedding I ever attended was for my cousin Greg and his wife Melissa, and the joyful occasion left an indelible impression on me. I will mark their special occasion with great joy.
Grape #5, Dan and Ann Ruggaber's Golden Wedding Anniversary: Dan and Ann have been a very special part of my life, and that's why I will joyfully mark the occasion.
Grape #6, the 5-year anniversary of my graduation from Valparaiso University: It will be a good opportunity to reflect on the great impact those 4 years in my life had, and to mark 5 years for this blog. There are some other notable 5-year anniversaries I will mark of events that happened during my senior year, like my trips to Austin, TX, and St. Augustine Mission in Nebraska.
Grape #7, Victoria Season 2: I enjoyed watching Season 1 last year, and I look forward to tuning in on Sunday nights, starting in less than 2 weeks, to see the story of Queen Victoria's life unfold some more.
Grape #8, the 2018 election cycle: I look forward to engaging in the democratic process of the republic by casting my vote in the primary and general elections, and preparing my selections for my ballots.
Grape #9, the Centennial of the World War I Armistice: It will be good to reflect on the event that ended World War I as a way of continuing to assess its impact on history, as we have throughout the past few years since the Centennial of that war's start.
Grape #10, continued professional opportunities: I had some significant opportunities for advancement in my career this year, and I hope to have some more meaningful opportunities to come.
Grape #11, the Synod on Young People, the Faith, and Vocational Discernment: I look forward to hearing about what will come out of this synod focusing on empowering young people, as World Youth Day 2019 will come just a couple of months after it.
Grape #12, continued involvement in Religious Education: Greater things happen as I have continued my involvement, things I couldn't have imagined before. Certainly, as an 8th grader in the program myself, I never imagined myself being back to teach, and what an adventure in faith it has been that has so enriched my sense of life.
While I may not know what will happen in life, as I said before, I know by faith that God is real, and so I go forth to take hold of confidence in His presence, that all my experiences this year may be means of knowing His graces more fully.
Grape #1, the Bicentennial of Illinois: This occasion will be a great opportunity to celebrate the state of Illinois and the great aspects it entails, and even participating in festivities.
Grape #2, the 2018 Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang: I'm really looking forward to see the world come together for spirited competition, and to see the show put on by South Koreans.
Grape #3, milestone birthdays in the family: From what I can tell, there are 4 of them happening this year in my family.
Grape #4, Greg and Melissa's 10-year anniversary: The first wedding I ever attended was for my cousin Greg and his wife Melissa, and the joyful occasion left an indelible impression on me. I will mark their special occasion with great joy.
Grape #5, Dan and Ann Ruggaber's Golden Wedding Anniversary: Dan and Ann have been a very special part of my life, and that's why I will joyfully mark the occasion.
Grape #6, the 5-year anniversary of my graduation from Valparaiso University: It will be a good opportunity to reflect on the great impact those 4 years in my life had, and to mark 5 years for this blog. There are some other notable 5-year anniversaries I will mark of events that happened during my senior year, like my trips to Austin, TX, and St. Augustine Mission in Nebraska.
Grape #7, Victoria Season 2: I enjoyed watching Season 1 last year, and I look forward to tuning in on Sunday nights, starting in less than 2 weeks, to see the story of Queen Victoria's life unfold some more.
Grape #8, the 2018 election cycle: I look forward to engaging in the democratic process of the republic by casting my vote in the primary and general elections, and preparing my selections for my ballots.
Grape #9, the Centennial of the World War I Armistice: It will be good to reflect on the event that ended World War I as a way of continuing to assess its impact on history, as we have throughout the past few years since the Centennial of that war's start.
Grape #10, continued professional opportunities: I had some significant opportunities for advancement in my career this year, and I hope to have some more meaningful opportunities to come.
Grape #11, the Synod on Young People, the Faith, and Vocational Discernment: I look forward to hearing about what will come out of this synod focusing on empowering young people, as World Youth Day 2019 will come just a couple of months after it.
Grape #12, continued involvement in Religious Education: Greater things happen as I have continued my involvement, things I couldn't have imagined before. Certainly, as an 8th grader in the program myself, I never imagined myself being back to teach, and what an adventure in faith it has been that has so enriched my sense of life.
While I may not know what will happen in life, as I said before, I know by faith that God is real, and so I go forth to take hold of confidence in His presence, that all my experiences this year may be means of knowing His graces more fully.
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