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talking to myself

A blog by markdohle in General

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About this blog

personal stuff

Entries in this blog

personal reflection

To Endure

To Endure Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised. – Hebrews 10:36   Life can become very difficult.  There are some ways to deal with difficult times.  One way is to escape it or try to.  That seldom works out.  The many addictions that can be developed to run away from suffering, problems, and simple growth in maturity or many.  Our addictions can soothe us, put our souls to sleep, a
markdohle

markdohle in personal reflection

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personal reflection

A Talk With My Sister

(Judy, Robert, Janie)   A Talk With My Sister Judy I was talking to my sister Judy today. She texted me about how much she missed our brother David. I texted her back on how much I missed him as well. He lived here off and on for four years before his death. He would come up and stay while he received treatment for his bladder cancer. So, over time, we became quite close. So, his being gone still hits me from time to time. He used to play solitaire for hours on end. I think it calme
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markdohle in personal reflection

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personal reflection

Lessons from Holy Week

Lessons from Holy Week Holy Week has some powerful truths to tell us if one can ponder them.   This also means contemplating one's life.   If a Christian, this can lead to a deeper understanding of one of life’s mysteries.  That is of course, why there is so much injustice in the world, so much random suffering.  No one escapes suffering, not even the richest and most powerful.  In fact, in their way, they may suffer more than others.  Being rich and powerful brings pitfalls that those of u
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markdohle in personal reflection

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personal reflection

A nursing home visit, some shopping, and an intelligent worker

A nursing home visit, some shopping, and an intelligent worker The Monastery is about 15 miles from a town called Covington.  It is a nice place and has a beautiful town square.   We do not need to go there often   Just for the occasional doctor appointment near the Hospital.  It is starting to grow now and is slowly losing its small-town ambiance.  Progress for small towns does come with a heavy price. Currently, we have one of our brothers in one of the rehab centers/nursing homes
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markdohle in personal reflection

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personal reflection

Destructive Habits Often Overlooked

Destructive Habits Often Overlooked “Even if you ceased to love Me, I should always love you. Even if you no longer listened for My voice in the silence, I should still make it possible for you to hear Me. This is how every sinner finds Me waiting. Who could ever weigh My love, or set a price on it, or measure it? And who could ever dream of the immensity of My tenderness? For My love is tender. When you hear Me say, ‘I am thirsty; I’m calling your tenderness.” . . . Bossis, Ga
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markdohle in personal reflection

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memory of childhood

The Simple Apple

The Simple Apple The more I write, the more a mystery, writing becomes for me.  I often think that writing is like being a weaver with many different colored threads that are woven together to make the essay, or story, into a sort of multilayered work of art.  Then when people read, they take the writing and make it their own, and what they find is not always what I intended.   So, putting what one writes out there is a form of letting go of ownership.  I am sometimes amazed at what peop
markdohle

markdohle in memory of childhood

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personal reflection

I am going to love everyone in my 30-foot circle. -Bail Bardis

I am going to love everyone  in my 30-foot circle. -Bail Bardis Gail is a good friend of mine.  When talking to her she can come up with some interesting statements that grab my intention.  One such statement went like this: “I am going to love everyone in my 30-foot circle”.  When she stated this, she was dealing with feelings of being overwhelmed about the state of the world.  So, she decided to narrow things down to something that she could actually deal with. Our 30-foot circle
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markdohle in personal reflection

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personal reflection

What is compassion

What is compassion? “If you only knew what compassion really is— the compassion you must strive to imitate! Overlooking everything to stoop to a heart’s needs, paying no attention to any disappointments or ingratitude, being even kinder to those who  have hurt you. Just be your Christ for them. Bossis, Gabrielle. He and I (p. 173). Pauline Books and Media. Kindle Edition. Compassion involves feeling another person's pain and wanting to take steps to help relieve their su
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markdohle in personal reflection

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poem

Light is deeper buoying us up

Light is deeper buoying us up   Hell on earth can be experienced, sometimes all one can do is breathe, be in the moment and face the demon, in faith, knowing that in the darkness, light is deeper, still buoying us up, stand on the rock, the sure foundation, all things pass, yet love is eternal, giving hope in times of
markdohle

markdohle in poem

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personal reflection

The Habit of Self-reflection/Prayer

The Habit of Self-reflection/Prayer December 13—Holy Hour. . . . “Practice your faith. When you were learning to walk, you leaped forward at a venture, and little by little you became surefooted. Do the same in your inner life. Take a flying leap toward the Trinity, toward My mother, in upsoarings hitherto unknown to you, more direct, more sincere, impelled from the very center of your being. This will become habit and it will exalt you. Do you grasp what I mean? You will exalt others
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personal reflection

​ Our support in our struggles

Our support in our struggles There is one word I heed and continually ponder; it alone is everything to me; I live by it and die by it, and it is the holy will of God. It is my daily food. My whole soul listens intently to God’s wishes. I do always what God asks of me, although my nature often quakes, and I feel that the magnitude of these things is beyond my strength. I know well what I am of myself, but I also know what the grace of God is, which supports me. ---Sr. Faustina’s Diary 652
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markdohle in personal reflection

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personal reflection

Inner Chaos and the Life of Prayer

Inner Chaos and the Life of Prayer “By yourself you are chaos. Do you fully realize this? Do you try to keep it in mind? Have you humbled yourself today in thought or deed? Not to cause you distress nor diminish your strength, but to tighten your hold on the power of your God, who is only waiting for your call. Bossis, Gabrielle. He and I (p. 182). Pauline Books and Media. Kindle Edition. People often think of prayer, the inner journey, and seeking to live a deep spiritual
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markdohle in personal reflection

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personal reflection

Being Childlike Before God

Being Childlike Before God ““You’re not very sure of this, are you? There is always this distance that you put between God and His children, whereas I try to remove all distance. Oh, My beloved friends, come to Me more simply. I always make the comparison of the little child who throws her two arms around her Father’s neck. Do you need so much ceremony to love Him, to thank Him? Don’t you see that the Father gives more tenderness than He receives?” Bossis, Gabrielle. He and I (pp. 172
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markdohle in personal reflection

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personal reflection

Each human heart is a temple wherein God dwells

Each human heart is a temple wherein God dwells It does not take much to make most people feel more at ease. More than we know, people are used to being ignored or passed over, or, only given a cursory nod of attention.  So, when someone smiles at them, and talks to them it can be a time of joy.   We are made for relationships with God, as well as with others.  Much suffering is brought about by treating others as if they are props on a stage or something to be used. Jesu
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markdohle in personal reflection

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article of interest

A Neurosurgeon’s Near Death Experience

A Neurosurgeon’s Near Death Experience As many who read me already know, the NDE experience is an important human experience, a common one in fact, that should be studied and prayed over. Most of us know what is really important about life, yet it is so easy to be drawn away from these truths into a life that is simply a whirlwind of activity that ultimately leads nowhere. We can lead our lives by merely responding to outside influence and ultimately lose ourselves in the process. Thi
markdohle

markdohle in article of interest

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personal reflection

Deeper Trust

Deeper Trust   One of the hardest lessons to be learned in the Spiritual life is the letting go of our idols that we create that we think are God. So, as we age, and hopefully mature, these idols are smashed and another one arises, though hopefully closer to the heart of who and what God is. I believe that is a never-ending process.   When the God of our understanding fails us, it is then that a crisis of sorts happens and we either have to deepen our faith through prayer and yes
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markdohle in personal reflection

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personal reflection

So, pray for peace, grow in love of all

So, pray for peace, grow in love of all   November 25, 2023 – Message from Our Lady of Medjugorje Dear children! May this time be interwoven with prayer for peace and good deeds, so that the joy of the expectation of the King of Peace may be felt in your hearts, families and in the world which does not have hope. Thank you for having responded to my call. (November 25, 2023) It is not always easy to have hope. The world seems like it has become darker, but I d
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humor and experience

We all have those moments

We all have those moments All kinds of funny things can happen to us.  When they happen, they can be embarrassing.  Like the time I got mustard in my beard in a restaurant.  I tried to wipe it, but it spread, I went to the ‘restroom’ to clean it, and it only made my beard more yellow and of course, the spot became a big smudge.  The staff was amused by it so I decided (what else could I do) to laugh with them.  Though now, I don’t use so much mustard when I am out.   You can never be too ca
markdohle

markdohle in humor and experience

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personal reflection

Christmas Meditation

Christmas Meditation   He saw everything and loved We are all called to interior freedom, yet like everything in this world, there is a price to be paid. The armor of man is easier to wear than is the armor of God. To go against, to fight, to hate, and seek revenge. To devalue as less than human those we despise, is how we protect ourselves from seeing the humanity of others.   Jesus
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personal reflection

The Holy Spirit and the Eucharist

The Holy Spirit and the Eucharist My Heart thirsts for the love of the saints. To those who come to Me, I will give love and holiness. And in this shall My Father be glorified. 1 And this shall come to pass through the intimate action of My Spirit. Where I am present in the Sacrament of My love, there also is the Spirit of the Father and of the Son. It is by the Holy Spirit that My Eucharistic presence is My glorious presence to the Father in heaven, and it is by the Holy Spirit t
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personal reflection

God and the Afterlife By Jeffrey Long, M.D. with Paul Perry

God and the Afterlife By Jeffrey Long, M.D. with Paul Perry In the early 70’s, I went with a few community members, to a talk given by Kubler Ross on the Near-Death-Experience (NDE).  Even though it was 45 years ago, I can still remember the talk clearly.  In the audience was also a young man, named Raymond Moody, whose book was soon to be released.  He stood up in the audience when Kubler Ross asked him to present himself.  From that point on I have been an avid student of th
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personal reflection

In the Eucharist rest the very Heart of Christ Jesus

In the Eucharist rest the very Heart of Christ Jesus It is in the Eucharist that I wait for them as physician and as remedy. If they are sick in their body or in their soul, let them seek Me out, and I will heal them of the evil that afflicts them. Many priests do not have a real and practical faith in My Eucharistic presence. Do they not know that the Eucharist encloses within itself all the merits of My Passion? Let them recover the faith of their childhood. Let them come to fi
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article of interest

Christ the King 2023

Christ the King    2023  This is the homily given by our Abbot Dom Augustine   I don’t think that for the 21st century American the reality of King has deep significance. Perhaps something was evoked in us recently with the coronation of King Charles of England. At the same time I don’t think using the word ‘President’ is any much better.  But we do get the idea that a King is someone who rules, and has much power. We celebrate Christ the King today. He is the ruler of the univ
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markdohle in article of interest

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personal reflection

Something

Something Do you seek Me? Do you often seek Me? How can you find Me if you don’t hunt for Me? Don’t you look for what you need most? And since without Me you can do nothing, what do you need more than God? As for Me, I love to act for you and through you.Bossis, Gabrielle. He and I (p. 223). Pauline Books and Media. Kindle Edition. There are many reasons that people do not believe in any kind of deity. Some of the reasons I readily understand, others, well, I don’t
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