A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Carpe Nix! Seize some Michigan snow! We landed in the snowy state just in time for the winter solstice, and were not disappointed by the season. There's plenty of ice and freezing temperatures and the white powdery stuff to delight the kids, who came for a white Christmas with Grandma. Liturgical : Fourth Sunday of Advent! Gospel Excerpt: Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph, son of

Calendar Class of December 20, 2025 - by Andrea Kirk Assaf

Something NEW happened today! The Wix app has been shut down and my Wix media storage is full (apparently if I delete old media than it will also be deleted from my site, which defeats the purpose of maintaining a searchable site for previous posts). Necessity is the mother of invention, so I just wrote the blog on Substack and am linking it here: Calendar Class of December 19, 2025 - by Andrea Kirk Assaf Feel free to subscribe to the Substack blog, but I will also post it he

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe Crechem! Seize the Creche! The 2025 Vatican nativity scene has been revealed, and I was delighted to discover earlier today that it is in the traditional Neapolitan style. It features some historic figures from Naples' history, including the composer of Italy's favorite Christmas carol, St. Alphonsus Liguori. He is playing "Tu Scendi dalle Stelle" on the piano in the brick-colored building.

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe felem nataliciam, iterum! Seize the Christmas cat, again! On the odd day when I find I haven't taken any photos for the Carpe Diem Snapshot, Minerva instinctively starts striking cute poses. First, I heard strange noises coming from my computer in the other room, which l discovered were being caused by Minerva sitting on my keyboard. After that, she discovered this gift bag and decided to create a cozy nest out of it. Who can resist getting out t

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe Coetum Natalicium! Seize the Christmas band! Our spontaneous fireside trio just created a rather good improvisation with guitar, harmonica, and bongo drums. Something about these long evenings and Advent anticipation brings out the creative spirit, and a dash of silliness, among the chickens cooped up on a long rainy day, and even longer rainy evening.

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe Romanam Ambulatio! Seize the Roman passeggiata! The most pleasant part of any Roman sojourn is the leisurely stroll about the historic city, or the passeggiata, as it is called in Italian. Most locals partake in this pastime on Sundays, which is why it is the most crowded afternoon of the week. Nevertheless, time-honored traditions must be upheld, so I joined the hordes of Romans and visitors yesterday afternoon and wandered the alleyways and piaz

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Happy Bambinelli Sunday! I brought a baby for the blessing, along with a million other pilgrims. Liturgical: Third Sunday of Advent Day 1 O Antiphons: O Sapientia (O Wisdom) Today is known as Gaudete Sunday. The term Gaudete refers to the first word of the Entrance Antiphon, "Rejoice". Rose vestments are worn to emphasize our joy that Christmas is near, and we also light the rose candle on our Advent wreath. "Prepare ye the way of the Lord: Make straig

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Carpe Lux! Buona festa di Santa Lucia! Tonight is the largest meteor shower of the year, appropriately falling on the longest night (in the Julian calendar), the feast of the saint whose name banishes the dark-- Santa Lucia. In honor of this Sicilian saint's feast day, I share with you some rhymes, songs, and a poem created to celebrate this saint so beloved from the north (Sweden) to the south (Sicily): A rhyme for children: Questa è la notte di S

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Happy Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe! The top image is from the church of San Nicola, which I posted the other day when I visited for the feast of St. Nicholas. That's where I had planned to go for a special Mass today, had it not been for the cold I caught, probably from the ice skating outings pictured above. Sometimes chasing the Christmas spirit through the month of December can result in catching a cold and missing out on the fun for awhile.

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Carpe felem conquiescamus! Seize the cat nap! The tables have been cleared from the final feast, the chairs have been put up, and Minerva reigns solitary and supreme in her Christmas basket. So long, sweet students, until you return to Rome once more!

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Carpe Nativitatis! Since the official start of the Christmas season with the feast of the Immaculate Conception on the 8th, the race to capture the Christmas spirit is underway in Rome. The coziness of the atmosphere and activities naturally motivates us to gather together with friends to enjoy it all. With everyone going in their own separate directions to visit family for Christmas, these outings and gatherings are particularly precious, as they a

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Carpe Mexicum! There seems to be Mexican flavor about Rome this week, with some very impressive dancers performing in Piazza Navona today (which we were just lucky enough to stumble upon!). A friend we were with told us that he was going to a Mexican procession around the corner tonight for the feast of St. Juan Diego. Presumably, this Mexican delegation is in town also for the feast of the Immaculate Conception yesterday and the feast of Our Lady o

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe Immaculatam Mariam! This morning I completely forgot to take photos at the North American College where we attended a very beautiful liturgy followed by a very delicious lunch. Perhaps I was so in the moment that I forgot to capture the moment. Fortunately, I happened upon this statue yesterday and did take a photo simply because it was so lovely. It turns out to be a fitting subject for today's Snapshot, as it features Mary and the Infant Jesus w

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe desertum mare! Today's Gospel reminds us, through St. John the Baptist, to go out into the desert, the wilderness, to prepare a way for the Lord during Advent. The homilies linked below all expound upon that theme, particularly that of Fr. Plant. Coincidentally, before I watched those homilies I woke early to watch the sun rise over a different kind of wilderness, the vast and untamed sea. Now, in this moment, I am standing in a sea of consumer

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Buona festa di San Nicola e buon onomastico a tutti i Nicola! To pay homage to this beloved and famous saint, I stopped by the church of San Nicola in Cacere (St. Nicholas in Prison). While the name of the church alludes to the ruins of a medieval prison beneath it, St. Nicholas was in fact imprisoned, as we see in the painting above. Here is the fascinating story of life of good St. Nick, and of this church so rich in Roman history. Tonight ther

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe Optimus Amicus! Minerva, however, believes Odin's harness signage is false advertising. She subscribes to the belief that good fences makes good neighbors (or in this case, glass).

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Carpe Caelum! Some spectacular phenomena have been observed in the heavens of late. First there was the rainbow streaming down onto the cupola of St. Peter's basilica that I caught sight of for the minute or two when it was in that exact position. Then there was the glorious full arch of a rainbow over Our Lady of Harissa in Lebanon on the final day of Pope Leo's apostolic journey there. Finally, last night in Rome, there was a giant moon halo appea

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe Insignia! The most creative and enjoyable assignment of the Art and Architecture class is the creation of a personal coat-of-arms. The presentations of the crests, and the explanation of the symbolism, is one of the most rewarding sessions for me as a teacher. I can not only witness how much the students have learned about art as a visual and symbolic language, but it is also an opportunity to really get to know these young ladies with whom I've j

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Carpe Domus Gingiberis! For today's Calendar Class Club, we made some gingerbread houses that did not stay standing for long. We also wrote up the highlights of the four cycles of life studies in the month of December, and pulled out a big stack of Christmas themed read-aloud books. Now it's beginning to feel like (one of) the most wonderful time(s) of the year.