I have a banner that hangs on the wall in my office at home, it was given to me by a special lady, 
Pauline, when I served as Chaplain at a nursing facility, it reads: “Bloom where you are planted.” We had a wonderful conversation about the meaning of the phrase.  She told me about how she as a young girl would watch Archbishop Fulton Sheen on black and white television. Archbishop Sheen had a nighttime radio program called The Catholic Hour and later was broadcast on television. He presented his lessons in a very dramatic way!  I got to thinking more and more about this phrase, although I have seen and heard it before, her story struck me in a whole new way, and I decided to delve more deeply into it. I found that this phrase is a well-known quote originally said by Saint Francis de Sales (1567–1622) who was the Bishop of Geneva. This quote was later made more popular by artist and illustrator, Mary Engelbreit. We read in Psalm 92:1213, “The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon; planted in the house of the Lord, they will flourish in the courts of our God”. The psalmist compares those who are planted in the house of God to a strong and vibrant tree. The biblical meaning of bloom is about our hearts and a reconciled relationship between us and God. These bible verses about blossoming show us that God desires to heal us, forgive our sins when we repent, and to love us unconditionally. So, what exactly does “Bloom where you are planted” mean? It means that we should always do our best under the current set of circumstances. Five ways we can bloom where we are planted … 

1.	Embrace the challenges that we face in our daily life; sometimes life gets really tough. 
2.	Stop complaining. 
3.	Focus on others. 
4.	Celebrate the small things in life. 
5.	Visualize the future. 

This month as we prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving, let’s try to remember the ways we can bloom within our own parish, our family, and the community in which we live. May we give thanks to Almighty God for all the gifts we have received. Enjoy God’s wonderful creation … for God made it all good for us to enjoy!    
NOVEMBER MESSAGE

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