Thus, the creatures of this world no longer appear to us under merely natural guise because the risen One is mysteriously holding them to himself and directing them towards fullness as their end. The very flowers of the field and the birds which his human eyes contemplated and admired are now imbued with his radiant presence. Pope Francis Laudato SI’ 100  

Great to have my mom and dad here with us this week in Switzerland. “The life of a family is filled with beautiful moments: rest, meals together, walks in the park or the countryside, visits to grandparents or to a sick person… But if love is missing, joy is missing, nothing is fun. Jesus gives always gives us that love: he is its endless source. In the sacrament he gives us his word and he gives us the bread of life, so that our joy may be complete.” -Pope Francis  

Taking the train through the countryside of Germany brought up some nostalgic emotions as it was the first time in my life that I was in the country of my grandfather’s origin. It was the first time physically being in touch with a part of me that I rarely think about. Being an American, most of my generation are “Mutts.” That is, we are a mix of many nationalities. So although I am 75% Irish and only 25% German, my last name Illig is German. And I am proud to say that it originates from Germany. Having said that, I am an American citizen. And I am proud and not…

We had a great weekend experiencing the diverse Swiss culture. On Saturday evening, along with our neighbors, we attended Schwingfest in the village of Richigen, Switzerland. Richigen is located next to our village of Worb. Schwingfest is a festival celebrating of one of the more popular sports in Switzerland, Mediterranean style wrestling. (To learn more about Schwingfest, click here). Although it was a weekend long festival, we went on Saturday evening to see the parade. As you can see by watching the video below, it was an awesome Swiss-German experience. On Sunday, we decided to take a drive to an area of Switzerland that we have yet to see. We went west,…

The Paradox of the Road It is within the journey that I find myself It is within the silence that I speak the language of peace It is within becoming a child that I have the capacity to be an adult It is within the view from my knees that I see clearly It is within death that I find life It is within the great unknown that I find the present It is within this life that I find eternal Love.  

They say that perception is reality, and I guess that is true on one level. Yet on another level, if we live our lives from only that in which we perceive, then we run the risk of living our lives from what we project, fear, or desire in our fantasies rather than living our lives in reality. Last Thursday, Ascension Thursday, was a holiday here in Switzerland. Also, unbeknownst to us Americans, it was Father’s Day in Germany. And how did we know that? Well, on Wednesday evening our next door neighbor, who has been so kind, welcoming, and helpful to us and who also comes from Germany, invited my boys over…