Cry Room Chronicles SE: Ash Wednesday 2011

Sorry about not posting a chronicle on Sunday. We went to Front Royal to celebrate Grandmama's birthday and the whole day was taken up. It was a good Mass and Father talked about the importance of praying for the conversion of sinners. I will definitely keep them (which includes me) in my intentions this Lent.

Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the season of Lent. One of the most popular devotions in Catholicism is to receive ashes on the forehead, which is what Jacob, Lucy and I did today. We went to St. Louis for the 9:30 a.m. Mass, which was also the Mass for St. Louis's elementary school. The church was packed with students. We went straight to the children's chapel.

We walked in during the first reading, so we were definitely running late. Already in there were a mom and dad with two children. We exchanged smiles. Jacob asked for a diaper because he thought that he'd poop. It never happened. The rest of the readings and the homily were only heard in bits and pieces as I dealt with that and Lucy's subsequent desire for diaper attention. Father talked about St. Louis, the parish's patron, a king in France who was an exemplary model of a ruler and a person. I'd give you more details if I could.

Lucy almost ashless by the time we got home

After the homily ashes were distributed. Jacob initially wasn't interested in getting ashes, but he gained interested and was quite cooperative when we received them. Lucy liked getting ashes. Unfortunately, she head-butted me on the way back from the altar and lost most of her ashes almost immediately.

The big surprise was coming back to the children's chapel, which was suddenly packed with moms and children! I'm not sure where they came from but they sure livened up the place. Jacob and Lucy interacted a little bit with the new kids. Some traded books, others baskets or rosary beads. Everything got sorted back by communion time. Jacob and Lucy were enthusiastic signers of peace and they put a bunch of coins in the poor box.

Jacob wanted to go to the playground after Mass was over. The weather was far too cold, which he realized once we were outside. We came home to a yummy lunch for them and some toast for me (check out how fasting went here).