Go right up to him and say "Hi!"  and introduce yourself to your humble blogger, D. Scott Miller.

He will undoubtedly seem confused on how you might have recognized him as he probably already long forgot that he posted a recent picture on-line.

Meanwhile, you can find me as well as others microblogging the conference and twittering away.  Watch here.

The conference itself comes with many memories. In 1982, many walked out of their New Orleans hotel on Saturday night, visited local establishments on Bourbon Street, and then returned to their hotel early Sunday morning very confused (what was in those hurricanes?) when the lobby had been fully decorated for Christmas in their absence.

I was fortunate enough in my career to be the lead agent on running three NCCYM’s while I worked for the NFYCM.  In Birmingham, I was pulled over my the conference center police for using a scoter to get from place to place.  The local bishop, David Foley, hung out in the hotel bar with youth ministers two nights in a row.  On the conference night out, I caught the last tour and show at the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame and was rewarded with the sweetest version of "Somewhere over the Rainbow" ever.

In Denver, there were many memorable moments, many involving the late, great Mike Yaconelli.  I "sold" an MC on a line following his keynote which merited Yac a second standing ovation.  Yac apologized for the overstock of book he brought with him to the conference for a book signing,  He sold out in half-an-hour.  Then, there was getting locked out of my room at 6am on Sunday, going to the front desk with sweats, bed-head hair, and morning breathe, and running into Mike making his departure.  It was the last I saw him… he died within the next year.

My clearest memory of the Pittsburgh conference was actually escaping the two thousand gathered and grabbing a happy meal and looking at Christmas lights with Jack Farmer, son of Brad and Joia as they prepared for the comedy club.  It was simple and sweet.   As was standing beside Brian Johnson as he was about to storm the stage for his keynote.

Two years ago, we gathered in Las Vegas.  It was another’s conference but I had a hand in the selection of the location. My moment, however, was still backstage, pushing buttons for the power-point of Mike Patin’s keynote which touched many hearts and received a few laughs.

If you are in Cleveland, please say hi.  If not…  play along at home and watch as we update the site.

Meanwhile, please add your NCCYM memories in the comments…

This is as good a day as any to refocus in our our own spiritual health.  My home office, in an evangelization effort, is encouraging me to Embrace the Divine Within.  Seems like a starting point.

I seek to be more consistent in my spiritual life, finding a home church and being a less vagabondish stranger in the back pew. I seek to be more poetic and inspirational in my verbal communication and e-mails and less utilitarian. I seek God time and me time.

Advent and December bring the gift of family time, conference time with friends, desk time, beach time, and, frankly, breathing time. May God grant me (and all of us) the grace enough to take full advantage of it!

Pixar Rocks!

Their movies capture a sense of adventure like so few other - - yes, always entertaining the kids, but the critics’s food-sensatory flashback in Ratatouille and the wordless expressions of love in Wall-E. . . well, that is the adult stuff that goes beyond a PG rating.

So, needless to say, I’m excited about the next movie which takes an unlikely hero in an unlikely setting (rat in a kitchen, robot waste compactor on a deserted planet) and makes a story.

Turkey stuffing has taken on great implications within our family traditions. 

A few years back, youngest daughter Meghan was up for the holiday and we were ad-libbing turkey stuffing - the bread crumbs (of course) but some celery, onion, raisins, dried cranberries, sausage - - all chopped up and thrown in.  Added some soup, and (just being silly) chopped up a chocolate chip cookie (just one) and added it as the "secret ingredient."

Not sure if either Jeb Bartlett or the operators of the Butterball hot-line would approve.  The older kids do not and just roll their eyes at Meghan and me.

Happy Thanksgiving to all catholicYMblog readers and friends!

 

Over 740 attended the Baltimore Youth Catholic Conference on November 21-23 in Ocean City, MD.  The conference theme “Search and Rescue” was developed from the reading of the Feast of Christ the King.

The Catholic Review reported on the conference

> Rescue mission: Youths called to evangelize here

> New Orleans youth leader challenges young people here

> Hydes teens take faith-filled jump in Ocean City here

There are five moments from the conference that were captured on video: (go to the BYCC page to watch)

> Saturday evening beach prayer

> Singing Lean on Me

> Ansel Augustine, part 1

> Ansel Augustine, part 2

> Archbishop Edwin O’Brien

Upcoming youth events that were previewed at the conference include:

> The Archdiocesan Youth and Young Adult Pilgrimage (see the Compass page)

> National Catholic Youth Conference http://www.nfcym.org/ncycpromo.htm

Meanwhile, Father Austin did blog while at the conference and had these wonderful three conference-related blog posts for you to review and update yourselves.

We are concluding the series of videos from the the National Symposium on Adolescent Catechesis.

This video played during the Closing Blessing and Commissioning session of the National Symposium on Adolescent Catechesis, November 5 - 8, 2008 in Baltimore, MD.

Learn more about the National Symposium at www.adolescentcatechesis.org

Throughout this week we will be running the videos from the the National Symposium on Adolescent Catechesis.

Here is the video video for Session 18 in which teens respond to the following specific questions: What gifts do young people bring to the Church?

Learn more about the National Symposium at www.adolescentcatechesis.org

We’ll do our best to post a video or two over the weekend and definitely into next week.

I invite your prayers for safe travel, open hearts, and generous spirits.