Quick review of the Women’s Conference
Kasia October 29th, 2007
It isn’t much before bedtime, but I don’t feel like plunging any more deeply into my checkbook tonight, so a quick recap of the 2007 Catholic Women’s Conference…
This was my third conference. I know, I only entered the Church at Easter! But The Big Seester has been sneakily trying to convert me for a long time, and each of the previous years she played up one or another of the speakers as someone I just COULD. NOT. MISS. And in fairness, each of them was excellent. Two years ago it was Pia de Solenni, whose book I’m still waiting for publication on…(ahem…move it along, Dr. de Solenni! just kidding). Last year it was Dr. Alice von Hildebrand. And this year, quite apart from my now actually being Catholic, Immaculée Ilibagiza was speaking. Yes, that’s right. The woman who survived the Rwandan genocide by spending 91 days in a three-foot by four-foot bathroom with seven other women and praying the Rosary nearly the whole time (occasionally interspersing the Divine Mercy chaplet).
She was excellent. It’s really an incredible story, and if you haven’t already read her book Left to Tell, I highly recommend it.
But apart from Immaculée, the other speakers were very good too. Bishop Flores started the day, and apart from Immaculée’s his was the talk I heard the most of. It was really excellent. Then Sister Prudence Allen, who is the force behind the ENDOW program, spoke; I missed at least half of her talk, but what I heard was very interesting. And then Dr. Patricia Cooney-Hathaway spoke, but unfortunately I missed all but about five minutes of her talk. Oh well – I was able to get all of the talks but Immaculée’s on CD, so I’ll be listening to them later and perhaps commenting on them in more depth.
But here’s what a big blog-dork I am…one of the high points of the day for me was that, thanks to Catholic Cricket’s wife Heather S., I actually got to meet Heather Price! (Yes, they’re two different Heathers. I know more…) She writes one of my favorite blogs (I can only categorize it as “everyday exceptionality”, even though I really dislike oxymorons), and if you haven’t looked at it before, I highly recommend it.
I love getting to meet in person the people I interact with online. 
Oh – and a funny story about meeting her…I was telling The Canuck what a great time I’d had at the conference, and I was trying to explain to him who exactly it was that I’d met and how. He’s not the blog junkie that I am. So I was trying to explain who the Heather is that introduced us, and somehow I completely forgot that they’ve met in person on at least one occasion, probably a couple. I’m like that. Anyway, so I’m going through trying to explain who she is, and he said “Oh – Mrs. Kheldar!”
ROFL. Yes, sweetie – Mrs. Kheldar.
He’s exactly right about who she is, of course; it just really tickled my funny bone how he’d filed her in his memory bank. I guess that’s one of the hazards of meeting people after you’ve known them under pseudonyms – he remembers her husband by the alias he used to use to comment, rather than by his actual name.
So Heather S., I regret to inform you that you are also known as Mrs. Kheldar. I hope that’s OK…
Kasia, She’s used to it. There are people at another board who know her as “Mrs. Khel”, and when I used to chat regularly (as opposed to the current “extremely sporadically”) on an IRC related to that board, several times she chatted as “MrsKheldar”, just so the people chatting knew it wasn’t me.
It’s kind of like how I, at one point, became “Peter’s Dad” to the neighbor girl.
Grin. I’m glad the Canuck isn’t the only one. (I might add that a woman we know from church has told me that it’s my fault she can never remember the Canuck’s real name, because she apparently reads this blog – which was news to me, albeit very flattering – and always thinks of him as “The Canuck”.)
I’ve been someone’s sister, someone’s daughter, and/or someone’s girlfriend for so long, I completely understand.
Now I don’t feel quite so bad …
Is Conference Envy a mortal or a venial sin? I have never gone to Catholic conferences because either I hear about them too late or I don’t know anyone who’s going.
However, I’ve been invited by human beings in the flesh to see Teresa Tomeo at the Divine Mercy Center Christmas Bazaar and Luncheon. So it’ll be my first conference ever and I’ll know some of the craftspeople at the event.
MissJean,
First off, I think it depends on whether you really ENVY us (as in, don’t want us to have this good thing because you can’t have it), or are just jealous because you’d like to go. If the former, probably mortal: get thyself to Confession!
But seriously, you’re just up in the Thumb, right? Next time I hear about something like this I’ll be sure to post it on my blog, and consider yourself invited. We can meet ahead of time so we can recognize each other.
Where’s the bazaar? Is that at the new Divine Mercy parish in Davisburg?
Thanks, Kasia. It’s in the Grosse Point Yacht Club. Sadly, I found out that I may not be able to go. But for a good reason: my parents may come to visit.