Abby in the Abbey: Live in the Moment!

Hi everyone!  Can you believe it has been five whole weeks since I wrote last?  I have sooo much to do here at the Monastery that time just flies for me.  Sister Rita Marie (my BFF) left for Rome almost five weeks ago and I still miss her a lot.  Sr. Leah Ann was gone the whole past week too so Sr. K was left to take care of me.  I kind of became a “snuggle bug” with her since I missed my two friends so much!  Us dogs have it easier than people because when we are lonesome or miss someone we can usually find someone else to take over, but for people it isn’t always that easy is it?

I kind of think that when someone passes away or moves on in life people really grieve for that loss.  That brings me to my thought for the day: How do you all cope with loss in life?  Sr. K says that it is important that people pray for everyone every day, but mostly for the people in their lives who are suffering from being sick, who are mourning a loved one or who are not happy in their own lives for some reason. 

I think us dogs can teach people a few things about that.  We live in the moment and make the best of it. Yes, we get sad, but somehow can work through it better.  Just some advice from me, Abby.

One more thing…this past week Sr. K said that some very sad dogs came to the Animal Shelter here in Norfolk.  I feel really bad about that, but I know that sooner or later they will be the best friends of someone who will give them a wonderful home and they will forget all that bad stuff because of what I said before…LIVE IN THE MOMENT!

Have a great springtime everyone!

Abby

Abby in the Abbey: SPRING!

Happy Easter everyone!  We are starting my favorite time of the year….spring!  I just love rolling on the grass and being outside a lot of the time.  I think people do too because there are plenty of them walking past our house especially on very nice days. Just the feeling of new things springing up really is such a happy feeling.  Sr. Monica looks up in the trees for the singing birds when we go for walks and tries to point them out to me, but to tell the truth, I’m not very interested in birds when they are singing, only when they are on the ground so I can chase them around!

I hope everyone takes this time of new beginnings, starting with Easter and moving into spring to give thanks for everything we have.  I know the Sisters will want me to tell you all that they are praying for you.  You know sometimes people just say “I’ll pray for you”, but the Sisters really do pray for everyone who asks them.  They even have this book that I saw in the back of the chapel where they write it down when someone asks them for prayers!  So, if you are reading this you can go right to the website of the Sisters and ask them for prayers.  I even saw on Sr. K’s computer that there is a place where you can light a candle!  Try it out!

Until next time this is Abby in the Abbey signing off.  

Abby in the Abbey: Big Blizzard

Hi everyone! 

I hope you all survived the big blizzard!  It was a little difficult for my Sisters with my having to go outside in that stuff, but we all made it just fine.  I am a little confused by all of the snow that is in my regular path especially since I am not much of a “snow” dog.  At least my fur is pretty long right now and that helps plus my coat that Sr. Marie Andre knitted for me.  Do you know I also have boots?  Well, they are not my favorite either but I’m pretty patient when Sr. K is putting them on me.  Sr. Marie Andre also made me some new ones that I am still getting used to wearing but they feel pretty good in this cold weather!

I was thinking the other day that the Sisters are getting ready for something called “Lent”.  Maybe this snow is God’s way of telling us that He is in charge of things and not people (or dogs either).  We get to thinking that we can control all kinds of things in our lives but as the Sisters keep telling me, we have to depend on God for everything!  Even the bad stuff is good for us in some way and that is really hard for me to understand.   Sr. K says it is a way that God can teach us how to have something called “faith”.    

So I just want to say that I hope everyone has a good experience of Lenten preparation for growing in “faith” and for realizing that God is in charge of everything!  I’m going to try and grow up a little myself but I need help from people to do that.  It is a very slow process! 

Love,

Abby

Abby in the Abbey: "Forever" Vows

Whew!  It has been a long time since I sat down to write something to everyone.  This past week-end I was sooo busy helping the Sisters because two of my bestest friends, Sr. Fidelis Marie and Sr. Madeleine made their “forever” vows.  That means they will stay here forever and gosh does that make me happy!  There were so many friends here and I tried hard not to bark and to be on my best behavior.  After all of this I just got to thinking….

How many people in this world can just say “yes” to doing something forever?  I think there is a word called “commitment” that people use.  I really don’t know what that means, but Sr. K says it means that when you say you’ll do something that you stick with it and don’t give up when things get hard.  That is something difficult for me to understand because us dogs just move on when things don’t work out for us.  For people it is different because they are supposed to know what commitment means. 

In the meantime as Sr. K says, “stay the course, keep your eyes on God and have faith that everything will work out” because God will never let any of us down.

Abby in the Abbey: Forgiveness

Hello everyone!  Abby here with some news from my Monastery.  Summer time is soooo busy here because the Sisters come and go to meetings, leave for vacations and to visit their families.  It keeps me busy trying to keep track of everyone, but there is always someone around to take real good care of me.  My dog “brother” Gus was here for almost a whole month visiting but for some reason he doesn’t like me very well.  Sr. K says it is because he is an old man and I am a young teenager!

 

Anyway, I guess not everyone likes everyone the same, in the dog world nor in the human world.  I have been thinking about that.  Us dogs try to tolerate all kinds of strangeness in our fellow canines. Sometimes Sr. K brings dogs here who are looking for a new home so they can meet their new people and they have been hurt a lot so they need lots of love and help. There are people who have the same problem. They get hurt by other people and have a hard time with forgiveness.  I can understand that because I didn’t have the best beginning either but now my life is great! (I still have some bad behaviors that are caused by what happened in my first home).  I just hope that the people who are hurt by others or who have a hard time forgiving can move on and live in the moment like us dogs. 

Everyone out there, please be safe and have a wonderful time with your families, friends and pets.  Let’s try to let forgiveness be our by- word!

Until next time…

         Abby

Abby in the Abbey: New Resolution

It’s about time I get another note out to everyone!  Time just flies around the Monastery these days!  The Sisters are busy getting ready for their special day called “Dessert with the Sisters”, and I for sure know what DESSERT means!  I’m one of those dogs that loves to eat so whenever something happens that involves food I’m really excited.  Sr. K says that the Sisters are hoping that lots of people come and visit with them and they will have plenty of delicious desserts too!  It is on June 28th from 2-5 p.m. here at the Monastery. 

 

I heard from Sr. K that there are poor people all over the world, but the people in a place called Angola really, really need our help.  Part of the big day will be something called a “silent auction” and I just went with Sr. K to a special room where she is collecting all kinds of wonderful things for the auction.  Lots of them were made by the Sisters so they can help the poor people with their talents.  I checked it all out and was so happy to see everything.  Gosh, so many people want to help and have been real generous.

I get worried sometimes about all of the bad things that happen and then I just have to bark about it to get out my frustrations!  When I see how nice people can be though I really feel good and then I calm down.  My new resolution is to try and see only the good stuff that happens and not focus on things I can’t do anything about.  I think I’ll still have a problem with barking but maybe it will help me think about it first? 

Until next time…have a beautiful summer and relax!

 

~Abby~

Abby in the Abbey: Spring is Here!

 

 

 

Well everyone spring is really here!  I go outside several times a day and just enjoy the smells (especially the rabbits and squirrels but I’ll save that for another time).  This past week a new friend came up and played with me a while.  He is really a handsome guy and I loved running around in the courtyard with him, we had a great time! He is between homes because his family couldn’t keep him anymore.  Sad isn’t it?  But we dogs can live in the moment and keep hoping for better things to come. 

 

Speaking of better things, Sr. K says this is a special time of year for many people because lots of nice things happen like graduations, weddings, and family reunions. I (and the Sisters) hope everyone stays safe and has a wonderful time together.  There is something so great about getting together with those we love.  I love my Sisters here and couldn’t imagine living any place else.  I get all the treats I want and all the petting and love too.  It is the simple things that make me happy and I think for most people the simple pleasures are the best ones.  Just sitting outside in this nice weather and enjoying hearing the birds sing and the lovely flowers coming to life. Sr. K and I go for walks around the monastery every day and just soak up the beauty. Maybe I could invite all of my friends reading this to do the same. Take time to smell the roses (and other flowers) and soak up the wonder of it all!

Abby in the Abbey: Holy Week

Hi everyone!  It looks like it is time for me to write again!  The Sisters told me that this week is a very special week for everyone because it is called “Holy Week”.  I don’t really know what that means except that the Sisters get more serious and they pray even more than usual.  

Sr. K said that I have to be alone more during this week because they will be in the chapel pretty often and since I am not allowed there I have to be patient and wait for them.  

I was thinking…maybe that is what Holy Week is about…something called “patient waiting”.  Sr. K says that Jesus tried so hard to tell His message about forgiveness and being patient with each other but most people didn’t understand Him and didn’t want to understand either!  

Just like us dogs we want what we want and we want it now!  Us dogs have to wait until someone gets around to giving us what we want, but with people, they can kind of make their own decisions about being patient with things in their lives.  

So, the Sisters are patiently waiting for the Resurrection this coming Easter Sunday.  I only understand that I have to wait with them for all the good things that come with the Resurrection and lend a supporting paw when someone needs it.

 ~Abby~

Abby in the Abbey: HOW IS YOUR LENTEN JOURNEY GOING?

Here I am again checking in with everyone now that Lent has started. I’m trying very hard to be a better dog by not bothering the guests and by not barking so much.  I try and try, but then something comes up and distracts me and I do the stuff I said I would not be doing!  Sr. K said that St. Paul talks about that too in one of his letters….”why do I do what I don’t want to do and don’t do what I should do?” or something like that.  Sounds kind of complicated to me, but at any rate I am doing my best. 

I think that is the best thing anyway.  Give it your best in everything you do.  Try hard not to make mistakes even if you know it will happen.  Us dogs know that already, but since we are able to give unconditional love even when people hurt us that may be an example that people could take from us?  Just a thought. 

Did you know that there are people out there trying to help dogs and cats from being hurt?  Sr. K says that there will soon be a place where they can go to get help and she and some other nice people are working hard to make that happen.  I think she calls it a “shelter”.  If you all would please pray that they can finish this “shelter” that would be awesome.  They are a little short of money (whatever that is) but they have something called “faith” and I have a feeling that “faith” is a very, very good thing to have!

Till next time...

Abby

Abby in the Abbey: Lenten Preparations

Today is just a beautiful day and Sr. K and I had a long walk this morning to celebrate!  I am sooo happy that we are having a bit of warmth right now, I love laying in a spot in the sun and soaking it in!  So, is everyone preparing for Lent?  It is only 1 ½ weeks away and I can see that the Sisters are getting ready. Sr. K said that there is a great website out there that everyone can sign up for and it is totally free!  I love “free” don’t you?  It is called “Best Lent Ever” and I recommend that everyone try it out.  You get a daily e-mail with something to inspire you for your Lenten journey. 

As for me, I know for sure I won’t be fasting, but I’m going to try and be welcoming and nice to people I don’t particularly care for.  It is strange because when I first see someone coming in the door I immediately know they are strange to me and I don’t always react in a good way.  The Sisters scold me but I just can’t seem to help it.  The funny thing is, after the person is here a while and I know them a bit, I just stop barking and reacting and they become my friends!  Do you ever have that experience?  I think Sr. K calls it “judging” and says she has trouble with that too.  We both are going to try during Lent to avoid “judging”. That is one thing that I can do for sure that will make a difference both to me and to the people I meet. 

Have you ever heard of “new evangelization”?  There is a lot of talk among the Sisters about that right now.  If you haven’t read any of Pope Francis’ talks they told me they are very good.  Also, the Sisters are celebrating what they call “The year of consecrated life”.  That means that they are trying to tell people who they are, what they do and how they try to help people (and dogs too!  I think Sr. K even tries to help cats!) I find them to be kind of mean, hissing things but I suppose they are fine too because God made us all! 

Until next time I hope everyone keeps well and stays happy. 

Love, Abby

Abby in the Abbey: A Whole New Year

Oh my gosh!  I just realized that I missed sharing my incredible insights with you in December!  Christmas was just so busy here in the Monastery.  We had people coming and going for weeks before the holiday and then suddenly it was here!  Sr. K was busy writing thank-you notes to all of the generous people who shared with us and then I was busy too keeping everyone mellowed out with my kisses and snuggles. 

So now it is a whole New Year and I am sure it will be a good one.  If everyone was like us dogs and savored every moment things would be lots better in the world.  My wisdom right now is that everyone should keep warm and healthy.  You can see by my picture that Sr. K tries to keep me from freezing my paws and from getting too cold on our walks.  Of course, these days our walks are pretty short and I miss getting my exercise! 

These days the Sisters are praying hard for peace in the world.  They tell me that there are so many people that need help.  There are so many people who are living in war and violence and lots of other bad things.  Of course, if people are suffering so is the rest of God’s creation. 

I just try to do my best to keep my resolutions to be good to everyone I meet and be happy.  My barking is getting better, but sometimes I still forget and “bark” at people who don’t deserve it.  Maybe we all could try to do the same?

~Abby~

 

 

Abby in the Abbey: Thanksgiving

 

 

 

 

I have a new friend!  Imagine, Glena had surgery and Cindy has been helping out in the front office while she’s recuperating.  Cindy gives me treats, lets me sit on her lap and plays with me.  How much better could life be?  Well, I’ll tell you one thing that could be better and it’s the weather!  This ice and snow makes my feet ache, but it doesn’t stop me from going for my morning walk because that is my favorite time of the day!   Anyway, back to Cindy.  She even gave me two new toys on which I immediately “fixed” them by taking out all of the stuffing and the thing that makes them squeak.  Sr. K said she had to do “surgery” on them to repair the damage, but I did such a good job that the “surgery” didn’t work!

I just wanted to say that now that Thanksgiving is coming up fast we all need to be thankful for friends, old and new, for all the good things that God gives us and for which we forget to say “thanks”.   I’m thankful for my good home with the Sisters here at Immaculata Monastery, for all the love they give me and each other, for all of the nice people who come here every day most of whom want to say “hi” to me.  I must say that I’m not always very hospitable when I bark at people.  Somehow I just can’t help myself but don’t we all do stuff like that?  Maybe a good resolution for us all to be thankful and stop the barking!!

~Abby~

Abby in the Abbey: Hospitality

 

I’m just a dog, but I’ve noticed that the weather is changing!!!  Sr. K and Sr. GM are wearing jackets and gloves now, but they still haven’t made me wear my jacket which is fine with me because I just hate that thing!  I’m going to put on here a picture of what we saw this morning.  Isn’t it just beautiful?  There were some guys fishing in boats and Sr. K and Sr. GM wished they were out there too!  I remember going fishing with them this summer and I just loved riding in that boat.

I’m still busy making sure that the people who come to the Monastery are friends and not robbers!  Sometimes I have a hard time telling them apart and then the Sisters get mad at me and tell me to stop my barking.  Since hospitality is a huge part of the Sister’s ministry I guess barking is not a good way to greet visitors and I am trying hard to learn that part.  Luckily most of the people are dog lovers and understand that I am still learning not to be fearful of them. 

My word of wisdom today is that being hospitable in how we treat each other especially our family and friends is a great way to make a peaceful world.  It seems like with all the bad things going on that a lot can be learned from us dogs.  I heard from Sr. K just today that some people are chaining up dogs and beating them right here in Norfolk!   Isn’t that just awful???  It makes me wonder how they are treating their own people if they treat dogs that way?  Our world could use a lot more calm energy and you can find that by taking a long walk around the lake with your dog and letting your cares fly away.

~Abby~

Abby in the Abbey: The Little Things

 

 

 

Here I am again, Abby, comin’ at ya!  Gee, don’t the months go by fast?  It seems like I just wrote a message to all of you and now, here it is again, time for another update from me!  Well you can see from the picture that we had a great time at the picnic last evening.  I got to sit on Sr. Dorothy’s lap and get some love!  Doesn’t everyone deserve that kind of attention?  Sometimes the days go by so fast and there isn’t the attentiveness to show our appreciation to those closest to us. The people and things around us tend to get taken for granted.  Us dogs, of course, are great at giving unconditional love, but even we sometimes fail.  Like me, for instance.  If my favorite Sisters are around then I always want to run to them and get their petting and attention and kind of ignore the others.  That is something I definitely need to work on!

Otherwise things here at the monastery are going fine.  I went with Sr. Rita Marie for “our” retreat at Hildegard House.  I like it up there, but it is exhausting because I need to be constantly on guard to protect her.  There are all kinds of strange sounds, like the refrigerator coming on, coyotes howling in the distance etc.  that trigger my need to bark!  I even saw quite a few deer and Sr. Rita Marie had to explain what kind of creatures they were.  I liked sleeping in though.  Isn’t it nice to treat ourselves to these small pleasures?  Dogs are great at that and I think it is part of my job to help the Sisters see the small things and give us joy and happiness.

Til’ next time….

Abby

Abby in the Abbey: Best Friends

 

 

 
Do any of you have a special friend that you just love?  Here is a picture of me and Izzie (Isabel when she is naughty!).  She is a Schnoodle just like me and when her mom and dad have time they bring her to the monastery for a play date with me!  We get along great and love to run like crazy chasing a Frisbee or just roll in the grass.

  I would say we are best friends but even best friends have times when we don’t agree.  For example, Izzie doesn’t care much for regular dog treats, she just wants the really expensive ones, but I will eat anything!  Do any of you have similar experiences with your best friends?  You can’t understand why simple things aren’t enough and only the best will do? 

 It gets complicated after a while, but luckily we are dogs and just live in the moment.  I don’t think people are that lucky, they hold grudges when they don’t agree with each other or how other people live their lives, for example why some have to shop at Nordstrom’s and others shop at Dollar Tree.

  It sounds funny to us dogs though and to us, people are strange sometimes.  They have all this good stuff that they can get any time they want, but always want more. Hmmm, maybe this is something we should all think about huh?

~Abby~

Abby in the Abbey: Teamwork

 

Well you can see that they took me for another haircut, but this time I think I look pretty cute!  The lady even gave me some “bling” on my tail and a very nice pink collar.  I’ve been pretty busy hanging out by the front office and helping to greet guests and I am even getting better about holding back my barking impulse.  Gosh, isn’t it hard to stop doing things that you just feel you absolutely need to do even when other people don’t like it? 

This picture is of me with some donations for the animal shelter that I helped accept yesterday for, of all things, CATS!!!  Why would anyone want to donate to those hissing, mean things?  One day I just wanted to say “hi” to one and I got a very nasty scratch for my trouble.  You know, it takes all kinds to make the world doesn’t it?  I always think that dogs are the best, but not everyone agrees with me, even in my house here.

The summer is passing by very quickly and I hope everyone out there is really enjoying their family time together.  Sr. K had some back surgery and she is moving more slowly than usual so I’m glad Sr. RM and Sr. LA are there for me too.  There is nothing like teamwork in anything you do in life.  Being able to depend on each other is just one of the best things there is!

~Abby~

Abby in the Abbey: Take Time to Smell the Roses, Kick Back and Relax

 

(This is the first episode of what will be a regular blog from Abby.  She is a Schnoodle who lives at Immaculata Monastery and has a unique insight into the workings of the house.

Hi!  My name is Abby and I have lived at Immaculata Monastery for a whole year now.  I have been busy learning my manners and being a good guard dog for the Sisters.  Sometimes I get a bit overzealous in my duties and bark too much!  Then one of the Sisters shakes a can with something loud in it and makes my ears hurt!  They say it is to help me learn to do things the right way, but come on! At any rate I thought it would be good to see things from my perspective as an unofficial member of the community here.)

 

Hey everyone!  This is Abby comin’ at ya with some thoughts.  It feels sooo good to roll in fresh grass in the spring.  Just to kind of let everything go.  I went fishing last week with Sr. K and Sr. GM.  Sr. K was kind of forgetful and forgot to bring the camera to take pictures of me sitting right up front in the boat trying to spot fish for the Sisters. Sr. K had to only remind me once not to bark and scare the fish!  Do they have ears???? 

When we got back I rolled in the grass and ran like crazy to burn off all that energy I built up sitting all morning.  Sometimes we just have to let everything go and relax don’t we?  That is what summer is all about and for us dogs it is the best time ever!  People sometimes get caught up in their work, supporting their families and doing chores around the house.  My feeling is that everyone should take time to smell the roses, kick back and relax especially in nature.  Take a lesson from us dogs and live in the moment!

Love, Abby