Blue Nettles

Dad-thanks for always enriching us with your thoughts on so many things. It really is great. You give me perspectives to ponder. The prayers you posted on the Pope gave us some additional prayers during this past week. We were consumed with following the news about him as we drove back from Arizona and the week of preparation for his funeral and the coverage of his funeral. Duane commented that he learned more about the Catholic Church in the past week than ever. He was touched by the ongoing chant of the Litany of the Saints-especially in Italian. We went to a memorial at St. Ambrose Monday evening and then Marisa's 5th grade led the school in a special mass for the Pope on Friday. We've talked all week about what a great man he was and the example he gave of himself. He was controversial at times but how many lives in so many countries he impacted. Duane kept saying to the girls to try to remember all of this and the history they have witnessed. And then there is the Terry Schiavo that got tucked away once the Pope died... but that as well gave this family much to discuss. We considered both sides of the case and tried to sort out why her family felt one way, the husband felt the opposite and why so many people got involved! Megan found some info on a website and took it to school as part of a class discussion they had. She said that most of her class felt that it was good to pull the feeding tube (from a Catholic school?). It had so many different angles to it- if so many doctors had declared her brain dead- why did her parents believe differently? Is a feeding tube different than other means of support? We know there are many disabled people in our country being supported by feeding tubes. And what about the husband - we questioned his sincerity and motives at times. The living wills, of course, are the solution and conclusion to all of this. We fully agree with this- and through all of this- more people are stepping up to making sure these things are in place. Things happen for a reason. Lastly, thanks Dad, for more info on Lewis and Clark- I printed it for Marisa to share with her class. Her class was very interested when she explained our family's connection with the Lewis&Clark Expedition a while back. This will provide more to share. Maybe it's the ages of Megan and Marisa- and media all around us of course- but we feel there is so much discuss and think about in our world. The girls are thinking about everything...and we just keep trying to be an open forum around them. Love, Kay