Name Change, Same Content

It was over seven years ago when I started this blog as a way to mark my graduation from Valparaiso University.  I intended it as a way to share what's going on in my life in my post-college years, especially with those I knew during college, so they could keep up with me.  That motivation is how this blog got its name, The Post-College Paul Rubio.

These posts are in the spirit of weekly e-mails I would send to family and friends back home while I was away at college.  I have also written posts on this blog in which I reflect on what's happening in the world near and far from me, and to reflect on events of the past.

Some people actually follow this blog via e-mail, using the feature I have included in the right-hand sidebar.  It is a feature by which Google automatically sends people a post via e-mail whenever I publish something new.

From what I can tell, the subject line of those e-mails from Google includes the title of this blog.  Sometimes, people mention to me about something they read on my latest post, and refer to my blog by the first term, "Post-College".

While this blog has existed in my post-college life since the commencement of it, I don't necessarily want that term to be the first thing that comes to mind when people think of my blog.  It has become more than just a way for people I knew in college to keep up with my life, especially as it contains my myriad reflections.

Therefore, I am changing the name of this blog to "Paul Ponders".  This title captures how the posts on this blog are a way for me to reflect on life, even current events in my life.  With any experience, whether it be a book I read or a trip I go on thousands of miles away, I strive to perceive the deeper meaning of what I experience.

This title change won't alter what I write about on my blog.  All of you readers will continue to see the same great content about what's happening in my life, reflections on events of the past, and musings about what's in the world around me.  And, in honor of the event that inspired this blog, I intend to continue, on an annual basis, to write my Post-College reflection post, published each year on May 19, pondering what my ValpU graduation means to me on each anniversary.

I also want to note a couple of things:  If you subscribe to this blog via e-mail, I don't personally send my posts to you when I publish them.  Google sends them to you automatically.  In the past, people have replied to the e-mail that Google has sent them with the text of the post to comment.  If you aren't already aware, I want to be sure you know that I don't receive those replies if you send them that way.  If you want to comment on a post, please go to the actual blog on the Internet and post a comment.  You can also send me a comment by contacting me using the contact feature on the blog's sidebar, or through other means, like e-mail, phone, or in-person.

Also, Google doesn't tell me who subscribes to this blog via e-mail.  I can think of a handful of people who do, but I don't know all those who do.  If you subscribe to this blog via e-mail, please feel free to contact me sometime and let me know, as I would enjoy knowing the community of people who are following with this blog.

I thank you for reading and following along with my life and reflections.  I hope you continue to enjoy what I write on this blog.

Gifts 2020/2021: Reflecting in the Spirit of the Magi

This Christmas Season is a great time to celebrate the amazing gift of God's presence given to us in Christ, Who manifests Himself in various ways.

Even the exchanging of gifts at this time of year is a wonderful opportunity for reflecting on how God's presence is shown in them.

And so in accordance with a custom I have taken up on my blog, inspired by Father Larry McNally's custom in his Epiphany Sunday homily, I reflect on the recent exchanging of gifts as I experienced it.

Yet as I reflect on gifts, I realize that there were birthdays I celebrated in proximity to Christmas Day earlier in the month of December.  And those birthdays speak to how relationships are an important part of life, even as Christmas is a celebration of how God desires to be in a relationship with us, taking the initiative to show His love to us.

Gifts I Gave

Gold: I wanted to celebrate my friend Richard on his birthday with something nice, so I got him an e-gift card for Amazon.

Frankincense: I gave my Uncle a 2021 calendar with dog photos.

Myrrh: I got my Dad some pears from Harry and David, a treat that hearkens back to his godfather's custom years ago.

Gifts I Received

Gold: My brother gave me Amtrak gift money.  I am eager to use it for enjoying the journey to somewhere in the USA.

Frankincense: My parents gave me a mouse and keyboard to go with my computer, as I had expressed that I could use those tools to make it easier to type.  It will prove handy, especially as I continue virtual RE classes.

Myrrh: My Abuela gave me clothes of various kinds, though at first, I thought I was getting Swiffer cloths when I saw the box upon unwrapping my gift.

Even though the celebrations of Christmas were adjusted this time around, Christmas Day itself was still special.  When I went to Church for Mass, the Church looked so splendidly decorated for Christmas Season with lights, wreaths, trees, and the creche.

Ultimately, the message of Christmas, God Who entered our world in the Incarnate to redeem our world and its sufferings, shines forth so powerfully even in such abnormal circumstances as these.  And day by day, God continues to demonstrate, through various signs, that He is among us, shining, into our darkness, His great Light.

20 + C + M + B + 21

Grapes of Anticipation 2021

Happy New Year's Greetings 2021!

Here we are, once again at New Year's Day.  The sense of "new" generally gives us a sense of optimism about the possibilities ahead, which surely happened on January 1, 2020, even if this time around is motivated largely by a desire to be past the pandemic and its limitations.

Yet, like I reflected on 2020, I am eager during 2021 to embrace more deeply the most important parts of life.

And so I reflect on what I anticipate about 2021 according to the Spanish custom of consuming 12 grapes upon the changing of the year as a way to address some of the major points of note.

Grape #1- Relevant Radio programming: 2020 brought some great new offerings on air, and I look forward to tuning in for more.

Grape #2- family and friends: I look forward to celebrating more milestone birthdays in my family, for my Grandma Dottie and myself, as well as the 5th wedding anniversary of Eric and Naomi.  I also look forward to some milestone birthdays among my friends, and to continue building all these relationships among family and friends, which add a special touch to life.

Grape #3- municipal elections: There are municipal elections in April in Cook County, and I look forward to participating in the process and seeing what emerges.

Grape #4- the 5th anniversary of my MLIS degree: I am eager to celebrate this occasion and use it as a time to reflect on how my vocational journey in this work is unfolding.

Grape #5- 25th anniversary of starting Kindergarten: In September, I'll have the chance to reflect back on the earliest part of my education.

Grape #6- Amtrak's 50th Anniversary: Riding across the conterminous United States by Amtrak is something so meaningful for me, and so I'm excited to mark Amtrak's milestone on May 1, and to go on an Amtrak trip, too, at some point this year.

Grape #7- Missouri's Bicentennial: I'm eager to mark this milestone occasion for the state next door on August 10, the last in a string of state bicentennials that have happened over the past decade, and to take stock of what Missouri contributes to the USA.

Grape #8- 70th anniversary of I Love Lucy's debut: In a recent conversation with Grandma Dottie, I was reminded that 2021 marks 70 years since the October 15, 1951, debut of I Love Lucy.  I hope to get lots of laughs out of the occasion.

Grape #9- leadership transitions: I shall be watching to see how various leadership transitions unfold.  For example, Jose Padilla will start as Valparaiso University's next president in 2021, and Dominican University's President Donna Carroll is set to retire with a new president on the way.

Grape #10- the Year of St. Joseph: Pope Francis proclaimed the Year of St. Joseph from December 8, 2020, until December 8, 2021. I hope to go deeper in faith as I, through various means, ponder St. Joseph and what his example offers us.

Grape #11- reading: I certainly have an ample number of books I want to read.  I look forward especially to more biographies and memoirs, even as I continue reading Witness to Hope, which is timely as 2021 marks 75 years since the priestly ordination of Pope St. John Paul II.

Grape #12- upcoming Confirmations: I am excited to celebrate this important experience for yet another group of my RE students on February 6, and to be part of all that leads to that day and accompanying them in what emerges from it, even as I reconnect and build up what I experienced in Confirmation.

I now commend this year 2021 to the God Who is Alpha and Omega, holding all time in His hands.  He is the One Who stepped into time in the Incarnation, so we may live with purpose.  I pray He enlightens the way as we start filling up this blank slate of 2021, as we use our days to connect with what's most important in life, and know the blessings of the gifts He has already given us.

We remain ever connected in relationships that are at the heart of life: All my relations.

Glory to God in the Highest, and on Earth, peace and goodwill to all people.