The World of Father Keith

I will be posting here and not on http://fkworld.stblogs.com from now on!  Hope you enjoy the new format!

The last few days have been getting back in the trenches of parish life by getting caught up on the many things that happened during the time of vacation. Numerous emails, phone calls, issues, and just Patti and Sr. Suzanne getting adjusted once again to my presence in the office. As dramatic as it is for me returning and getting caught up, it is even more traumatic for them when I am in the office directing their efforts for the parish. They are famous for stating that whenever I am not in the office that it is much quieter than when I am there. What they don’t know is when I am alone at the office I get a lot done too (Shhhhh, don’t tell them I said that).

Some exciting things are coming up as we get ready for a new year and as the plethora of parish activities begin once again. It is always fun as the children return to faith formation and as the halls of the parish center are once again filled with joyful noises of children running to classrooms or other children crying their eyes out that they have to be there without mommy and daddy. Also, RCIA will be gearing up and Sr. Bernie will be infecting the office with her bright smile and joy at doing something she loves doing and very good at doing it. I am starting a prayer vigil for Vicki and Beverly, our faith formation leaders as they begin the real work of the program. I think they have one of the toughest jobs in the parish as they try to recruit catechists, get registrations, class roosters together, and parents to get involved in the program. Gee, to think that at one time before I became a priest that as an OSA I wanted to be a Religious Education Director! Thank God I trust in His providence over mine. Welcome to Beverly McBride who joined the staff this summer. Welcome back to Sr. Bernie in a few weeks as well!

This is also a busy time for weddings. From now until the end of the year I have 8 weddings. The sessions leading up to their actual wedding day is so moving. I have a chance to hear stories and invite them to re-evaluate their relationship to the Church. I think that ministry is one of my most favorite things I do as a pastor. To all the couples whose weddings are upcoming my prayers are with you, and remember as panic with the planning: “God will handle it.”

Today is Wednesday and it is my day off. I have a few parish things to do today, then after that I will be going for a run, playing in my golf league, and going to my favorite restaurant for dinner: Testo’s! YUM! If you haven’t visited the parish’s website www.aspchurch.com please do so!

…vacation. As I write this addition to my blog I am on a flight back to Albany trying to kill time while the man next to me snores his head off! The days with the Watsons was a good break from my many hats of responsibilities as a spiritual leader and administrator. Here are just a few of the highlights.

It all stated on the Monday when I left. I am standing by the gate waiting for my flight and I notice all these people mobbed around this guy. I am thinking: who could that be! It was Pete Rose. Yep, he was going back to Cincinnati (maybe to see his bookie). My flight to South Bend went through Cincy. He was two rows in front of me and he actually seemed like a very nice guy. He signed every autograph that everyone wanted. No, I didn’t ask him for one! Don’t ask why I guess I was that interested. Then the very next gate next to me had a charter flight going back to San Diego since it was the weekend of the Hall of fame induction. You guessed it Tony Gwynn was on this flight. He wasnt taking any autographs but he was shaking hands and being a the nice gentleman that he is noted for. Come on, what are the odds of those two guys at the same airport at the same time, and in Albany NY of all places. Pretty ironic!

Upon my arrival into South Bend I was greeted by Anne and Claire. When Claire noticed me she squealed “Cookie” and ran up into my arms. I almost teared up with joy at the reception. At that moment I knew this vacation would have many blessings in store. I cant imagine a better way to be greeted in such an awesome way. Thanks “Factor.”

As the days passed with time to relax and do whatever I pleased we hung out a lot and played with the girls and just enjoyed their simple ways to find fun and joy. Some of us adults could learn a lesson by watching young children at play.

One of the highlights of the trip was a reunion of sorts. My friends Brian and Barbara who married this past April and I got together after a lengthy interruption in my friendships with both of them. Time, distance, and busy lives are mostly to blame for the break. It was great being with them. Brian thanks for a great meal and Barbara for the nice, warm reception. OK OK Brian don’t roll your eyes it was great seeing you too! ha ha ha. We had time to catch up albeit intense at times, it was just great to be with them and share our lives once again. Anne was kind enough to allow me to host them a dinner, and that gave us another opportunity to chill and hang out. Thanks, Anne! The meal was great! Why? Because I cooked! This boy can cook. Ask anyone in Anne’s family! Barbara and Brian, I pray that your marriage will bless your lives, the Church, and our friendship for years to come!

Thursday will be a day I will never forget. I baby sat Claire all day. Wow! That was……..interesting. I thought: what could be so difficult about watching her? Well as the day progressed the answers kept coming. We played all morning, watched Dora 344343566 times and it was fine until nap time. Gave her lunch and put her down for a nap. I thought to myself, yeah cookie rocks! Then came the afternoon. We played and gabbed as she sat on my lap. She sang my songs and told my how tough she was! It is 2:45 and she says to me, I need to go potty. So, on the potty she goes. We walk out of the bathroom and all the sudden she has a very bad case of diarrhea and she went through her pull up, and get this on my big left toe. Now theres something you dont hear a priest say that he had a little girls poop on his toe. I lead a very interesting life! So after the meltdown was calmed with a call to Anne and meds we spent some time in the pool. I thought: how long would that take? OH MY she is a polly wog! An hour later she wants to go inside to watch Baby Einstien so I oblige get her changed, we sit down, and then she tells me she wants to go back in the pool. To the back door she goes and shes knocking at the door and grinding yelps of Cookie, i wanna I wanna pleasssse. So like the big pushover I am bathing suit back on and shes at it for another hour. Theres a funny story that happened in Part 2 of the pool that I will let Anne decide whether or not it should be made public. A side note and question: Does anyone get the concepts of some of those cartoons on TV. I posses three college degrees and consider myself fairly educated, but maybe I am too sophisticated to grasp what an almost three year old child can explain to this 37year-old balded priest. Bottom line, if you are reading this and you are a parent, you are going to heaven! By the time Anne got home and I got Claire dinner I was wiped out. Done! Finished! As I look back at it now. It was a great day of bonding with perhaps the best almost three old you could spend a day with. Take away the poop and the few meltdowns. I would do it again. Wait, did I just say that?

The weekend was good. I helped out at Anne and Jonothan’s parish St. Pius and did a few masses. Only a vacationing priest would offer to work. Maybe not. They have a great parish and its nice helping at a place where you arent their pastor. You can say things you would never say to your own. The filter didnt always work though you can just ask Anne!!! Dont mess with the guy with a wireless mic, brothers and sisters!

Monday and Tuesday of week two were spent with Anne’s parents vacationing in Michigan. Time to really chill. There was the pool, the Lake (Michigan I guess) ha ha and watching again the girls be polly wogs. Swimming in the Lake fine and fun. The pool not so much. Lets just say I get very uptight with young children around in a pool, swimmies or not! Nope, Anne, I dont care if you are a certified lifegaurd or not! Case in point: Claire got out of the pool to get some juice from her grandmother and she bolted back in the pool and jumped right in with no one to help her by use of the stairs as she has been taught. Nope, not Claire Ms Fearless just went right. If I had a heart I would have had a heart attack on the spot. You never know what shes going to do next, so you spend your time leaving on the edge of your seat or pool side chair just watching the drama unfold. Thanks to Dave and Marge, Anne’s parents for inviting me to be with their family for those days. It was fun. So, how Red is Jboy’s back. Dude, its red! Right, Anne? By the way, how’s your head, can you get burned there?

The rest of the week was just chilling and entertaining various members of Anne’s family. Boy, did Jboy and I do most of the cooking? OH, yeah we did due to the fact that some we know just cant cook. Anne, share with everyone your mouth-watering recipe of french toast will ya? It’s deeeelish. ha ha ha.

My last evening was spent with Anne’s brother, Joe, his wife, Holly, and their two wonderful children Evan and Grace! A very fun evening of laughter and listening to endless story, like the endless salad and bread sticks you get at the Olive Garden, about Anne and her family, blah blah blah, on and on! So, someone had to cut it, so like most normal people would do and very logical we all took the Myers Briggs!!!! Yep, we are party animals indeed! Results will be coming up in a future blog of my reselts. Shocking and interesting so stay tuned. Jboy, great job on the steaks. HE can cook! Thanks for all the great meals, my friend!

In my early blog I noted how my last day was with Claire. Talk about a memory! Anne and I spent the day running errands, witnessing car accidents, and me buying Claire a cinderalla book bag as a gift from her cookie!!! One question to Anne: dude its 9:35pm, did she wear it to bed?

Well thats it in a nutshell. We are close to land in Albany to officially end a great vacation with people I consider family! Thanks again guys! I do love you all!

Have a great night everyone.

God’s peace, love, joy, and blessing!

and you cross the international dateline (Carlin reference). Anyway, this is the last day in South Bend and my last official act as the “Watson Nanny” was to give Claire a bath this morning. She blabbed and sang the whole time while I was trying to get awake and caffeinated so that her babbling and wonderful rendition of “O Mick Donald” wouldn’t drive me too crazy. So, the departure, at least for me, is very difficult, but 5 hugs and smooches from her made it much easier. To top it all the yelling of: I love you cookie, I love you cookie melted me like butter to chocolate chip cookies. Nice job, Anne on the cookie squares last night. So, the smiles the hugs, the kisses and her last words of see you soooooon made this departure the easiest its ever been! Below is a picture that was taken at a picture place in town. Each year when I visit we get one done. So for the last several years I have seen her grow, and me too, older and how wonderful she is becoming as an almost three year old child who is bright, smart, loving and so much fun.

I will be back at “the crib” this evening. I want to thank Anne. Jonathan, Claire and Madeline for a wonderful time. We ate, we drank, we swam, we chilled, we prayed, a lot of fond memories. You always make me feel at home! When are you going to visit me in the fine ecclesial metropolis of Mechanicville? Yes, flights do come into Albany New York through Delta and Continental Airlines!! Love to you all!

Madeline “The Mad Dog” Sophia Watson and “Cookie”

Hello all,

The vacation is coming to a quick end soon on Friday. Today I spent time with Anne’s family in South Haven, Michigan. It was a lot of fun at the beach and tons of fun times and memories with the girls and the family. I feel like one of them each time I am around them. I enclose some pictures, because many of you have heard of my friends from Granger Indiana and the kids but you haven’t met them, or even seen them. Those days are over. Warning: Stay focused on the shiny good objects of the girls and forget the funny looking old man in some of these pictures!

This is Claire “The Factor” Elizabeth Watson

That is my friend John Celucci’s way of letting me know that my golf game has many handicaps and it aint the clubs, its me. Played The Warren at the University of Notre Dame with Jonathan and it was a lot of fun. Apparently, I had a great time because I really found every blade of grass on this relatively new golf course. People ask me all the time what my handicap is? Well today I found out that is not a number, but every club in my bag!!! I wont disclose my score, but lets just say that the New York Knicks at some point in their season scored close to the number I shot today! Some say that any day on the golf course is better than not being there. That is only for those who can hit their driver not where lions, tigers, and bears roam, ifff you know what I mean.

Vacation in Indiana has been a lot of fun and relaxing. Well, its been kind of hard to relax since Claire doesnt sit still for very long unless Dora is on the TV and Madieline who crawls all over the place and drowling the pathway of everywhere shes crawled. Their mom asked me what was wrong with me today and my response was: I am on people overload since I dont tend to spend this much time with two small children for long periods of time. I dont know how you parents do the parenting thing, but Dr. Phil is right, being a home maker and a parent is the equalivant of working two full-time jobs! That boy isnt joking. I will be loading pictures of them for all of you to enjoy. I love God, and the best part of my role in Claire’s life is the fact that I am her GODFATHER! Phew!! However, she never ceases to amaze me. Just now as I was typing this installment she crawled up in my lap, and said, I love you cookie! By the way, she calls me cookie because she has a hard time saying Uncle Keith which Anne and Jonathon have their girls calling me, so cute!

OK my turn to put Claire on the potty, lucky me! I hope you enjoy these glimpses of my vacation and life. I will have more updates later!

Hello and welcome to my inner world! I started this blog in order for all of you to see the world of my life both in the parish and beyond. My total commitment and passion is my service to you, but I also like to share the other worlds of my life that bring peace, love, joy, and blessing. In this blog you will see many of the activities of parish, events, family, and other events that will give you a glimpse of the world that I share with all of you. Enjoy!!!