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who am I?
familial roles identify
daughter, grandchild, sister
mother, wife, mother in law
occupational roles define
author, educator, counselor
broadcaster, journalist
ethicist, consultant
vocational roles name
creative spirituality artist
writer, priest, friend
child of God
playful roles define
puppeteer, clown
flautist, blogger
and more
who am i?
am i one person today
and tomorrow another
am i all
all at once
interwoven
who am i?
i’m me
evolving, unfolding
creating
discovering and re-discovering
becoming the essence
of the spirit within
june mack maffin january 2007
yesterday
driving into busy downtown
i noticed
out of the corner of my eye
a young man
standing
hat in hand
in a corner
bless him,dear god
I muttered
questions flitting through my head
why is he here
how long has he lived on the street
do people help him
the light changed
i stopped
and th
ere
he was
squeegee in hand
cleaning my front window
i don’t want this
i suppose he wants me to pay
i felt anger beginning to rise
then a wave of compassion
came
i dug into my pocket for something to give
but
he had disappeared.
i swirled my head around
thinking he was cleaning the back window
but he had disappeared
a random act of kindness
and i was left
with a maelstrom of emotions
the light changed
i moved with the traffic
bless him, dear god
I muttered
as tears flowed down my cheeks
forgive my selfish and judgmental thoughts
i came to my destination
put coins in the parking meter
a young man approached
friendly
gentle
in distress
his story was unique
aren’t they all
he didn’t want money
he said
but
something
someOne
spoke to my heart
i felt god’s touch
and knew
in that moment
as i helped him,
god
was with the first young man
a sign
to pass on
an act of random kindness
today
so that tomorrow’s
yesterday
won’t be the same as
yesterday’s
yesterday.
it was just a photo
that’s all
just a photo
a photo of a young man
in uniform
in a frame
hanging in a living room window
noticed as we drove by the house
what was it about that photo
that grabbed at my heart
what was it about that photo
that created a deep chasm in my soul
what was it about that photo
that brought tears to my eyes
and gripped my chest so I couldn’t breathe
what was it
it couldn’t be named
i only knew that my soul had been touched
my mind raced
my emotions felt
and I understood them not
then
out of the corner of my eye
i noticed
the salute
the car’s driver saluted the photo
quietly
quickly
calling no attention to himself
he was
for a moment
in another world
a world that connected him
to this young man
a world that united them
as siblings
a world that reminded him
of the fragility of life
and
the happenstance of circumstance
he
in the photo
eighteen or so
he
in the car
sixty three
old enough to be grandfather
and yet
for that one brief moment
they
were
brothers
“I had thought of stopping and thanking them for their son’s effort and sacrifice and tell them that his and their countrymen know and appreciate and are thankful for his duty done.”
but
he didn’t stop
instead
he offered a salute
salutes happen all the time
every day
on every land
in every continent
but
this one
this one
was
different
On Christmas Eve, Archie Bunker (of TV’s “All In the Family” fame) said to his wife Edith, “Stifle Edith. Let’s have a little ‘Silent Night’ around here for a change. I’m the only one thinking of the real solemn meaning of Christmas. Christmas is supposed to be a time of peace and quiet contemplation.”
Edith replied “But Archie, I think you’re allowed to be jolly too!”
“Sure Edith,” was Archie’s reply “I never said you should be jolly. Just be jolly with your mouth shut.”
Of course, Archie was asking for the impossible – especially at Christmas! We simply cannot be joyful with our mouths shut. How can we be silent when God has given us the best gift for Christmas?
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Sadly, for many, economic worries, emotional upheavals, relationship disasters, physical illness, grief from the loss of a loved one, the events of 9-11 have jarred them out of complacency, moved them to uncertainty and for some, even fear about the future. Some are finding it difficult to get enthusiastic about putting up a Christmas tree, singing Christmas carols, buying or creating gifts for others, baking special Christmas goodies, getting into the Christmas spirit this year.
But the children – the children bring us back to the “good news” of the Season – with their innocence, their wide-eyed awe and wonder, their anticipation, their sheer delight at the Christmas lights and decorations appearing in the stores and neighbours houses … and their ability to enter into the joy of the season with their imagination intact.
… like little Jane, who played the part of the angel Gabriel in the school pageant.
Very unexpectantly and completely out of the script, she burst onto the stage in the middle of the pageant shouting “Hey, unto you a child is born!”
… like Charlie, in another Christmas pageant who played the Innkeeper.
He said, in his gruffest possible voice to Mary and Joseph when they appeared at the door of the Inn looking for lodging that night “But there’s no room in the Inn for you.” In response, the child playing the part of Joseph spoke his scripted lines: “Please sir, my wife is with child. Surely you have some place for her.” This time, Charlie was slow to answer. He was beginning to grasp the significance of rejecting the Holy Family. In fact, the prompter had to remind him of his next line: “No room, be gone.” After Charlie spoke those words, the children playing the parts of Joseph and Mary began to walk away. But Charlie just stood there. Tears began to flow from his eyes. Then, with a quivering voice responding to a grace from within, he startled everyone by shouting words not in the script: “Don’t go, Joseph. Bring Mary back. You can have my room!”
Maybe this year, we need to see and hear the Christmas story with the eyes and ears and heart of a child.
Maybe, it’s a good idea to look to the children who best capture the essence of the Christmas story.
… like five year old Jessica
She squealed with delight – “Then the baby was borned. And do you know who He was?” Her nickel-sized eyes inflated to the size of silver quarters. “The baby was God!” And with that, Jessica jumped in the air, whirled around, dove into the sofa and buried her head under the cushion, which certainly is the only proper response to the Good News of the Incarnation – when God became human!
Children remind us that ultimately … ‘good can conquer evil’… ‘hope can overcome despair’… ‘love can obliterate hate’ … ‘joy can permeate sadness’ … and that in Jesus Christ, there is “good news”.
May this Christmas be a time to look at the world around you with the eyes, the ears, the heart and the soul of a child … and allow yourself to be filled with the joy of the most precious Gift anyone can ever receive!
