Thanksgiving Afternoon!

This afternoon we had over 200 guests join us in celebrating Thanksgiving here at the North American College, they joined us for a pull-out-all-of-the-stops Eucharistic Celebration which was led by Alum and big-time advocate and supporter of our College, Edmund Casmir Cardinal Szoka. His Thanksgiving homily recalled the history of Thanksgiving and how this American Cultural Celebration of giving thanks to God for our many blessings has grown to be a celebration which is not only recognized in the States but in every country of the world where Americans live. He made mention to those of us, the +400, gathered at the NAC observing the Thanksgiving celebration in Italy was proof positive of this global cultural observance. Cardinal Szoka concluded with the call to maintain the divine origin of our thankfulness to remain faithful to those founding roots of hearth and home which bring us together this day. And it is on this day of thanks that our hearts and minds are elevated as we thank the Lord for our many blessings within our families as we enjoy each other's company this day.
After the mass we gathered in the Refectory, fancy seminary talk for cafeteria, to partake in our traditional American feast. Not to our surprise, we were greeted with a first course of ravioli, and it is only here, in Italy, where the chefs could get away with such an abomination on Thanksgiving Day. What was to follow surely made up for such an Itailan dietary introduction to our coma-inducing feast. We were served turkey, green beans, the famous canned cranberry sauce [with the can ripples], and wonderfully seasoned and prepared mashed potatoes. You are right gravy was not mentioned, another oversight which was overlooked in the kitchen but not noticed by many as the preperation did not call for such a sauce.
After our main meal 2 of our 5th year priests gave an exquisitely hilarious presentation on the origins and manifestations of Pumpkin Pie at the feast of Thanksgiving. This comedic prelude was brilliantly concluded with a lyrical adaptation of that Rock and Roll favorite by Don McLean, 'American Pie' into a more fitting presbyteral rendition now popularly known as 'Pumpkin Pie'! During this sacerdotal serenade of succulent side-dishes, pumpkin pie was delivered to each table donned in a generous and aesthetically pleasing adornment of whipped topping. This was the cherry which topped our gluttonous feast of culinary goodness!
For those of you back home, you can be rest assured that we at the North American College tasted a little bit of home this day as we gathered at table to share in the aforementioned feast while recalling our own falimies' traditions and much anticipated dishes [i.e. cheesy potatoes] which make each one of our familial experiences unique under roof of holiday gatherings.
To all of you I hope that your Thanksgiving experiences will be as wonderful as mine!
Thanks be to God for all of our great gifts but most of all for our gift of life wherein we can enjoy this day, and, at the Eucharistic Table, where we are invited to commune with those heavenly resdients with whom we have been invited through our greatest gift Jesus Christ!
Thank you and God Bless,
Jeremy Trowbridge

Thanksgiving Morning!

And the Thanksgiving fun begins. ..

In our Roman College of 173 spry priestly candidates no moment is found to be dull, and Thanksgiving morning was no exception! All the guys from the 4th floor came together for a lovely greasy American breakfast complete with fresh cinnamon rolls, bagels, fresh fruit, and egg casserole [which you will hear more about], Dunkin' Donuts Coffee, and hashbrows. It was simply amazing! Since we, the students cooked everything in our 5th floor student kitchen, an area that conveniently overlooks the Basilica of St. Peter, one would not be surprised to find the signs of male cooking left in the wake of this breakfast. We all know how excited we men get when we fire up a grill, the bigger the flame is the name of the game. Fire is a great compliment to any testosterone guided culinary experience whether it is a grilled steak, and elegant flambé or a little grease fire. Our breakfastly experience bore the element of surprise through a grease fire. It turns out that our egg casserole which included cheese and bacon had so much of these ingredients that the grease bubbled over the edges of the pan and moved swiftly, but not violently, into a flame-kissed breakfast delight!
The time shared was a lot of fun as through each one of these events we grow to know each other better whether it be through our successes or blunders or even the occasional surprise which fuels the fire, if you will, of our animated time together here at the North American College...our Roman home away from home!

Guilt-free listening enjoyment!

How soon can one listen to Christmas music whereby they are free from being accused of jumping that joyous gun of Christmas-ness? Well regardless of what the acceptable answer is I have been stoking my Christmas Spirit for the past 2 hours with Bing Crosby's greatest. Even though I indulge in this lyrical goodness I dare not open my door with this playing until after our great American Day of Thanks. This being the case, I still do not refrain from whistling the ol' classics of Christmas down the halls of the North American College!
Happy Thanksgiving Friends!
J. Trowbridge

New Man Show

Being a 'New Man' at the Ponticfical North American College contains a lot of neat experiences and presents many great opportunities. One of the highlights of the year is the ever-famous and greatly anticipated New Man Show. This, as you may think, is a show put on by the New Men and it contains various skits regarding life at the seminary. Amid the hilaroty may be forund an impersonation of a faculty member or two, which is awlways fun. We have a little ove a week until show time and things are coming together nicely. I have found myself in a role or two on stage which will be fun but what i'm currently more excited about is the fact that I am the 'Set Guy.' I will be designing and buliding the sets for the show. Tonight I took a good look at the stage and all it had to offer, this was an experience. Having not been in real theatre I was quite inpressed with our 7 hydraulic stage floor lifts, trapdoors, cieling pulley system and the overall setup of the stage. It was quite amazing to me. So I am looking forward to using as many of the stage's capabilities as I can within the show. One of the main objectives of this show, besides entertaining 140 members of our house, is to grow together as a class and with about 8 days to go I would say, without a doubt, that we will overachieve in both areas.
And to think all this fun in the shadows of St. Peter's Dome.
All this and more is the fruit of your generosity and support.
Signing off,
J. Trowbridge

Random thoughts from the desk of J Trowbridge

Carpe Diem - There are many opportunities here in Rome and it is a great blessing to be here to enjoy the riches of antiquity and to be immersed in the breadth of our Catholicity which is represented here in Rome. Many times I have found myself telling people that I love studying in Rome because I can enjoy what the city has to offer without the common frustrations of 'tourist anxiety.' However, the challenge of daily living presents itself as well. I noticed that we, at home, fall into a routine and seldom take time out of our crammed schedules to enjoy what our local community has to offer. So that we may 'stop and smell the roses,' if you will. Before I left for school I was really getting into learning the history of my home county of Boone, in northern Illinois, and the neat little tid-bits which I ran across were quite entertaining and eye-opening. And to think, this Capronly are has a history which is pre-ebryonic compared to Rome. Getting back to my point, I am making efforts to see a new sight in Rome every week. So we will see how this plan works out amid the hecticity of seminary life.

Charades - This past week I realized how I am indebted to the inventors of Charades. This comes to the floor in light of my Italian inadequacy which is accompanied by the quip, 'actions speak louder than words.' I went to a few stores this past week [on my own] to pick up some supplies for a project and I had to get a new watch battery. I was able to get everything done that I had set out to do, so that was good, but my dialogue was atrocious and had it not been for my unique dramatizations I would have ended the day empty handed. I actualized this phenomenon last summer while I was in Mexico and I am happy to see that those skills are serving me well in Italy.

Case Study - My first spiritual director in my life as a seminarian was an aged, brilliant and wise priest from the diocese of Lincoln, NE. I am still, at times, drawn back to the advice which he gave me on pursuing a live in Christ. One of the practical points of advice that he gave me was congruous to the study practicum of a law student wherein these aspiring lawyers are encouraged to engage in case studies. A case study is as simple as reading how a case unfolds, these include the accusations, rebuttals, et cetera. They say that this investment of time is one of the most practical according to the learning process. Well, my spiritual director said that we can benefit from this approach to learning in our walk with Christ by doing our own case studies of those saints whom we hear about all the time. It is here where we have the opportunity to see what struggles they were faced with and we are able to learn their style in reorienting their desires, will and actions toward Christ. This is a very fruitful way of growing in accord to what the Lord is calling us to. One example from my reading is from St. Maria Goretti. This young girl grew up in a poor home and was taught the ways of Christian living from her mother. Since her mother was not too educated her advice was simple yet profound. From this domestic catechesis little Maria had it on her heart to try and live daily without sinning even once for fear that she would sadden her Lord. Her common sobering prayer was 'I would rather die a thousand deaths, O Lord, than commit one sin against you'...simple, childlike and profound. We are then drawn to how we can get into the habit of passing off small sins and not being too attentive to them due to their venial classification. An example of how we can be called to holiness by way of a young poor Italian farm girl who was martyred for fear of offending her Lord. Many lessons similar and dissimilar to this one can be found in the volumes and volumes written on those heroes and heriones of our faith.

Thank you for all of your prayers both for myself and for vocations as a whole. Living here at the North American College with 173 candidates for the priesthood in America and Australia I am inspired and hopeful of the Church's future. Your prayers are being answered. And I ask that you continue to pray that we may be formed into the priests which Christ is calling each one of us to become.

God Bless,
J. Trowbridge