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.

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Carpe Coziness! Welcome, December! What began as a posed photo shoot of Jay by the decorations he put up, ended with a real life cozy Carpe Diem moment when Cordelia arrived on the scene. Wise Jay remarked, "In the imitation of true art, we create art itself." Pre-illumination, but it's a start! A happy December to you, friends.

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe Tempus! Seize the Season! Happy New Year, Friends! Today we begin a new liturgical year in the Catholic church with the season of Advent. As you will read below, Advent is a beautiful time of year in which we can begin something new to go deeper into our understanding of the Faith. Many beloved traditions have grown up in different cultures to commemorate this season of anticipation, from the penitential to the celebratory. The Roman rite is a com

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe Patronum Sanctum! Thanks to Jay, the patron saint of the Villa Magnolia has been rescued from the creeping vines and brought back to the light. This lovely bronze relief of St. Anthony of Padua graces the wall near the entrance ramp, greeting all who enter. Our patron, so famous for helping those who pray for his intercession to find lost things, is one of the elements of the genius loci of the villa, along with the snails, the pets, the bonfire,

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe Civitas! Seize Community! One of the best parts of a Villa Magnolia Thanksgiving is never knowing who is going to be part of the community- the civitas - for this traditional American feast. We had around 50 dinner guests last night (I actually didn't take a head count but there was plenty of food for everyone). Another tradition we've begun is sharing something we are grateful for from this last semester in Rome. It's one of the tear-jerker momen

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe gallopavum! Seize the turkey! A beloved Thanksgiving morning tradition for Americans here in Rome is the 5K Turkey Trot around Vatican City, organized by the Pontifical North American College. After successfully completing it with my new friend Carlos from Arizona here, we captured a selfie with the Turkeyman to commemorate the day. And all before sunrise! Liturgical: Thursday of the Thirty-Fourth Week of Ordinary Time; Opt. Mem. of Thanksgiving

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Carpe Crustulum! Seize the Pie! Of all the traditional dishes associated with Thanksgiving, pie tops the charts in my book. With over 50 dinner guests this year, the pie preparations began yesterday with many hands on deck. We are making the classics, apple and pumpkin, but there are other worthy options. Drool over this list her e. Liturgical : Wednesday of the 34th Week in Ordinary Time By your endurance you will gain your souls. Luke 21:12-19 San

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe Christum! For our final on-site Art and Architecture class, we paid our respects to the Apostle of Rome, St. Philip Neri, at the church he built, the "Chiesa Nuova," originally named Santa Maria in Vallicella , where the traditions Neri began are alive and well. Next, we venerated the relic of Mantua at the Basilica of San Salvatore in Lauro, where it is on display for the first time in history only until the end of the day. This church, too, is

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe Claustrum! This quiet, graceful 13th c. cloister can be found at the basilica of St. John Lateran. When the ladies and I visited not so long ago, I was struck by its similarity to the more famous cloister at St. Paul-outside-the-walls . It was unsurprising, then, to discover that the same sculptor-architect (Vassalletto) created both, in addition to the cloister at San Lorenzo al Verano. What is very surprising, however, is that they all still exi

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe Christum Regum! The feast day reminded me of this image of two very different faces of Christ from St. Paul-outside-the-walls. The first, in the center of the triumphal arch, is the Christ of judgement with the little colored clouds symbolizing the sunset of earthly time. This is the one Hannah has nicknamed "Grumpy Jesus". Once we pass through judgement and under the arch, we meet the "Handsome Jesus" at the center of the apse, warm and welcoming

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe nix! Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow! It began hailing on our way home from choir last night, but it was all gone in a matter of minutes. Not so for the Apennine mountains that provide the backdrop for Rome. This is the earliest snowfall on the mountains that I've seen in my 20+ years here. Perhaps this will finally be there year that we venture out into it beyond the city walls, to the delight of my snow-loving children. Liturgical: Saturd

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: Carpe Angelum! Crossing Bernini's "Angel Bridge" the other day, I was only slightly surprised to find this angel posing against a backdrop of the setting sun. In these days of elaborate social media photo shoots by "normal people", it is not uncommon to happen upon all kinds of costumed individuals taking selfies or being followed by their own hired paparazzi at scenic sites in Rome. It's like Halloween or Carnival every day around here! While dressing

A Carpe Diem Snapshot : Carpe Musivum! Seize the mosaic! We were able to do just that this morning, thanks to Paolo, the director of the Vatican Mosaic Studio, who gave us a private tour of the studio that creates all the artwork in the basilica. It was a perfect follow-up from our tour of the Basilica of St. Paul-outside-the-walls on Tuesday, where we saw the 276 medallions of all the Roman Pontiffs. The studio is currently at work on the 277th, the portrait of Pope Leo

A Carpe Diem Snapshot: What a memento mori! This once famous scholar's wall tomb inscription at San Pietro in Montorio has been entirely lost to history. Only a few images to represent his accomplishments remain-- a disorderly collection of books, an inkwell, and an hourglass. The year 1568 appears to be scratched onto the cover of the book on the far right. His bust is flanked by two chubby winged cherubs and above his head is a plaque commemorating the Spanish monarch Alph