Cats, passion and delight? If we could pursue God like cats go after prey and delight in the Lord like cats play with toys? Wouldn’t that be one amazing Lent!
Watch Your Step!
This Lent, want to sit down, rest, and take a break? When the temptation is there to ‘take it easy’, be more wary, and look hard before you sit down. Watch your step. You may meet a lizard you didn’t expect.
Gertrude Marks Her First Anniversary
Gertrude (alias Sunbeam in cartoon-land) arrived at Cor Jesu Monastery on November 11th, 2020. We are happy to report she’s grown into her squirrel deterrence duties, despite our losing the battle of the wooden steps. She loves being outside, rolling in the gravel, and offering her belly for pets. She also loves sitting in the woods quietly on a log …
Defeat: The Squirrels Win!
Alas! We must cry “Defeat!” Julius Ceasar is quoted as saying, “Veni. Vidi. Vici.” meaning, “I came. I saw. I conquered.” We have come to the conclusion that the vast array of squirrels surrounding our house, particularly Mater Dei House, can each say something similar. Perhaps it would be “I came. I gnawed. I conquered.” The presence of the cat …
Mom and Bambi Deer
Mom Doe and Bambi deer have been visiting again.
Gunther Participates Even In Jubilees
You may have heard that this is the Holy Year of Saint Joseph as well as the Amoris Laetitia Family Year, a double holy year. During this special time in the Church, our religious institute is marking two other anniversaries: The centennial of our Founder’s ordination to the priesthood and our upcoming 75th anniversary of our foundation. As part of …
Bambi Hides At Cor Jesu
As we have some families of deer that regularly stay on our property (the deer say it’s the other way around; that we are on their property), fawns can be expected to show up. No matter how often we see fawns we can be relied upon to, well, fawn over them as they are Bambi-cute on their spindly legs and in …
Bessie the Breakfast Cow Visits Garden
Bessie the Breakfast Cow does brunch at the Priests Garden
Friends of Bessie Drop By
Although Bessie declined an invitation, four of her fellow bovines stopped by Cor Jesu just outside the Refectory and Sewing Room the other day. Word must be getting around about our clover. After posing for several photos, the steers decided to hang around until one nun made her best attempt at a “Mooooo”. Lacking a bovine-human dictionary or translating app, …
How Now Found Cow
Meet Bessie [we made that up], a neighboring cow who visits regularly for breakfast.
They’re Baaaaack! Cicadas!
We have heard much talk of the expected emergence of Cicada Brood X, the 17 year cycle, in these parts of East Tennessee and have kept a wary eye and ear out for their arrival. Mainly because we want to avoid the copperheads that love to feast of the bounty that will be filling the trees around our buildings and …
Anti-squirrel Training Continues
As part of her buildings and grounds orientation Gertrude is spending more time out of doors around Mater Dei and having some treks on a harness to re-explore more distant buildings like Cor Jesu. In a recent jaunt, she was escorted to Cor Jesu, inspected the wood damage, lunged after two squirrels (good thing for the squirrel she was in …