Thursday, April 19, 2012

Dorothy Mae Robertson Rolli

Matthew's Nana passed away this morning.  Nana will be greatly missed.  Here are some memories we will always hold dear:

Matthew:  Matthew remembers summers with Nana.  Playing cards with Nana was a big part of their time spent together.  At one point in Nana's life she was paralyzed, after 20+ years she recovered miraculously, Matthew would assist Nana at the grocery store during this time.  They'd hop in her baby blue Pinto and head to the grocery store.  As a reward Nana allowed Matthew to choose a comic book.  Nana also played hide-and-seek with Matthew, they had to use their imaginations since Nana couldn't really walk around to hide.  Nana told me once that she remembered Matthew saying, "Are you up a shree?"  "Are you down a shree?"  I guess Matthew hadn't mastered the /t/ sound at that point.  There was also a time when Matthew and Nana were headed back to the farm from Nana's house and they brought a bunch of pennies with them as they were going to play "Garbage" with the pennies.  Well they had left the pennies on top of the baby blue Pinto and when going around a corner the pennies fell all over the road.  I believe they stopped to grab as many as they could but the road was tarred over soon after.  That corner is still named "Penny Corner".

Me:  Nana is quite possible the most prim and proper lady I knew.  Her home was immaculate and everything was cleaned and decorated just so.  Oh to see her table scape when we would all go to her tiny summer home on Rolli Rd.  The dishes and serving pieces were always placed in just the right spots.  Her fried chicken and pie crusts...... oh my goodness!!!  Matthew and I had the foresight to ask her to put together some recipes for us.  A year before we were married Nana gave us some of her favorite recipes in a recipe card holder.  Her scalloped corn is one of my favorites.  I do have her pie crust recipe, too.  Nana also gave me a very special gift.  She had received tiny cordial glasses from her husband on their 1-year anniversary, they were passed to me, a grand-daughter-in-law.  I am still quite honored.  I will always remember how much she loved my Isaiah and Anna.  I remember especially with Isaiah she was just so proud to hold him when he was a baby.  She got such a kick out of his big belly laugh as an infant.  We also have a beautiful picture of Nana as a little girl, about 3 or 4 years, she is in a little farm dress and her little bare feet look as if they are just itching to get back to whatever it was she was doing.  We know where Anna gets her busyness from I guess.  If given a choice, Anna would be outside in a sundress and barefoot all summer as well.

Isaiah:  My boy is sweet and tenderhearted.  He just loved giving her hugs and talking about things.  Isaiah remembers programming Nana's digital TV set-up.  Oh, Nana just thought Isaiah was a genius for getting everything set for her.  He explained it all so well too, according to our Nana.  When Isaiah was about three we were at a Rolli reunion held at a WI State Park.  This park also had a little gift shop from which a little brown Swiss Bessie Cow was purchased for Isaiah from Nana.  Isaiah remembers this and the Bessie Cow has quite a special place in his heart.

Anna:  Anna's favorite memory of Nana is from this past Christmas.  Anna practiced and practiced the song called, "Happy Birthday, Jesus".  When we visited Nana before the Christmas Eve service at church, Anna sang her song for Nana.  I'm not sure what made Anna want to sing this song especially for Nana, but she did.  Nana beamed.

Thank you, God, for the gift of Nana.  Thank you that Isaiah and Anna have memories of their Great-Grandma, Nana.  Thank you, for the gift of eternal life so that we who are left behind have hope, hope in Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.  I pray this in your precious Son's name, Jesus Christ, Amen.

Saturday, April 14, 2012

Born Again ~ Full Circle

I have always had many questions that were not getting answered, in a clear manner.  While growing up in the Catholic Church I followed along, although not very well.  I did not pay attention or understand the mystery of the mass.

After leaving the Church in the early 90's I found some answers at the evangelical church.  This was a wonderful stopping point for me.  Matthew and I were married and we started our family in the evangelical church.  My questions were getting answered.

While later attending a new church, due to our family moving, we began experiencing a new set of questions.  We did not find the answers this time.  Frustration set in as the further we dug, the more questions we unearthed.

Frustration led to disappointment until a conversation we had with my dad, mom, and sister.  The conversation was emotional yet eye-opening.  We were now on the right track to explore in the right direction.  We needed something more, something deeper, something concrete.

We, as a family, are going full circle and coming home to the Catholic Church.  We are excited and relieved.  For the first time in a long time, we can breathe.  This is one of the many resources we read that helped us understand and negate the misconceptions of the Catholic Church that we received for many years.
All the new questions that Matthew and I began to have were answered, finally.  I recommend this book to all, whether wondering and disappointed or happy and content.  This book does not attack any point-of-view but rather politely explains the basis of the Christian Church.

A special thank you to my Dad for faithfully praying for me and my family for so many years.

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Well, hi there!

I thought I would stop by and begin again.  We have had numerous updates and changes since the last post.  I'm quite sure many have abandoned all thoughts that I would return.  I thought it would be fun to document the next phase in our life.  I'm quite excited to see where this new journey takes our family.  More information to follow.  I am currently revamping the blog, new title, new look, new posts.  This is the "testing 1, 2, 3" blog entry.