Lately I have been noticing relationships and friendships.  With two of my children having reached "adulthood" and moving out and on (one in California and one in college) and my 3rd child hovering on the edge himself, being a senior and working, the relationships in my family are shifting.  I have noticed lately how blessed I am that even though these kids have the usual sibling rivalries, the "depth" of their relationships with each other and us as parents is quite deep. Zachary turned 20 yesterday-away at college.  Being the kind of kid we raised, he threw himself a party and bbq'd for all of his friends.  He spent a week at least working on this, with many phone calls to dad about what to buy, how to prepare it and what to serve with it.    We talked to him several times on his birthday and he was thoroughly enjoying himself by entertaining and making others happy.  His siblings-one in California and one away at a Youth Conference made sure-without any prompting from mom or dad, to call him and wish him a Happy Birthday.  At one point, he and the 10 year old were even making plans on something for next year! Very specifically just the two of them! 
Kyra called to let us know she had driven to Los Angeles on Friday to visit a friend from Houston who happened to live there now. She made it there safely and called us several times to let us know what she was doing and letting us know she was safe in the (Michael Jackson) chaos that L.A. was going through.  She made it VERY clear that she wanted nothing to do with that!
Alex was at the Steubenville Youth Conference in Louisiana this weekend. I was fortunate to find out that they were doing a live internet stream of the event.  We pretty much kept it on all weekend and even caught a glimpse of our son's group at one point.  He always has such an awesome experience there and at AYC (Archdiocesan Youth Conference).  He told us he couldn't wait to get home and share his experiences with us again.
Last night, I experienced an extreme feeling of blessedness as I listened to my 10 year old and 4 year old in their bed laughing, telling stories and talking to each other. Imagine-a 10 and 4 year old communicating without arguing or physical violence!

Devoloping strong familial relationships has been extremely important to our family.  We do have the usual sibling rivalries and issues but in the end, they all love each other and would go to the ends of the earth for each other.  The older kids have always been there for the younger ones.  It never ceases to amaze me-this love.....

Today at Mass, Father Gately started us out by having every one introduce themselves to the people around each other.  Even before Mass started, we witnessed many acts of kindness around us.  Then Father started talking about the Michael Jackson death.  He stressed many times that he "just didn't get it".  He said that he was amazed to see people who obviously never really knew Michael acting like they were his next of kin.  This was a man who yes was a good musician and dancer, but was surrounded by so many controversies in his lifetime.  A lifetime spent mostly secreted away from the public eye.  Durning this same short period, we also lost Ed McMahon and Farrah Fawcett.  Why were these people (celebrities) not mourned with the same fervor?  Farrah Fawcett, who's last days were spent with such courage and bravery fighting a little known cancer and bringing her battle to the world so that others might find some hope.  Barely a blip on the screen compared to the Michael Jackson chaos. 
Father said he wondered if we as a society have so isolated ourselves with "things" and kept distances between and  in our family and friend relationships, that we almost automatically "latch on" to these big named celebrities.  What the world had with Michael Jackson was NOT an intimate relationship. For the vast majority of the world it was not even an acquaintence relationship.
Today's reading spoke of the woman who touched Jesus garment as he was on the way to Jarius house to cure his daughter.  Jesus knew instantly when he was touched and stopped-even in the midst of this crisis, to turn and ask "who touched me"-he wanted a true face-to-face relationship with this person.  He wanted to tell her to her face that her faith had healed her! 
Jesus (the biggest celebrity of all as far as I'm concerned) wants to have that face-to-face relationship with each of us-no matter how big the crowd is, he WILL find us! THAT is the kind of relationship we ought to have with others....are we willing to follow Jesus example and bring that relationship to others around us?  I surely hope so.