It’s Monday morning, the back of my legs are cramped from what seemed to be an endless walk we had yesterday at the beach shore with family and friends. Interestingly, it looks like I had a dreamless rest overnight, perhaps due to exhaustion from the previous day. I woke up half past my usual waking hour. It’s my day off at work and I wanted to spend extra time on bed to enjoy a chance for reflection. I’m grateful to the Lord my God for all the blessings I receive, for the friends and family whom I cherish, and for another day to experience my creator. Yesterday was also the last day that our Lady stayed in our home. The presence of “Our Lady of Fatima” is a good way to bring our entire family praying together. Even though our family…
Holidays make our sanity intact. Legally speaking, this is the time when we get to spend some quality time with the most important people in our life without having to worry about skipping from work. On the other hand, no one can take away that choice anyway, but it’s always nice to have an extra paid time off. In between stress and hustle-bustle of life, we sometimes cannot recognize which one has taken control of ourselves, thank God for holidays and we are able to stop and put on the brakes of this rapid accelerator of life. Whatever it is that drives us nuts, it depends on the kind of world we live in.
Living in the fullness of life is what makes our life worth living. It is not about the hardship; this is what gives us endurance. It is not about poverty; poverty makes us human. It is not all about money; money is just a tool for making things easier. It’s not about just getting rich; nobody cares about those who are in the millionaire’s list. It’s not all about our job titles; our job is to make a difference in the lives of others. These thoughts will occur if we have a time to reflect and contemplate. Turning off the “noise button” of life will help us understand why things are just the way it is. I guess my point is that we allow things to happen because these are part of the elements of life. However, the proverbial saying (which my mom used to tell me) will always echo in our hearts and minds…”Life is what you make it”.
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Let’s begin the tour at the 17-mile drive. First, we paid an entrance fee of about $9.75 (I guess that’s per car). We were not really sure what to expect. So we paid a fee therefore, it gave me a hunch that it is worth driving the area otherwise, why charge? So a welcome sign greeted us at the gate and the friendly staff gave us a brochure/map of the area.
Today is the feast of the “Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary” The Canticle of Mary My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my Savior for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant. From this day all generation will call me blessed; the Almighty has done great things for me, and Holy is His Name. He has mercy on those who fear him on every generation. He has shown the strength of his arm. He has scattered the proud in their conceit. He has cast down the mighty from their thrones and has lifted the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich, he has sent…
I cannot ignore the truth of having been moved by the words of the late Garrigou-Lagrange. This video stirred within me the eschatological awareness that life on earth is only the prelude to life in eternity. I am compelled to share this video, to those of you who stumbled in this page…. Enjoy!
On Poverty….Here’s some of my favorite quotes from the lips of Mother Teresa..
“It is possible that our children, our husband, our wife, do not hunger for bread, do not need clothes, do not lack a house. But are we equally sure that none of them feels alone, abandoned, neglected, needing some affection? That too, is POVERTY.”
“Poverty has not been created by God. We are the ones who have created poverty. Before God, we are all poor”
“Before judging the poor, we have to examine with sincerity our own conscience”
“A Great poverty reigns in a country that allows taking the life of an unborn child__a child created in God’s image, created to live and to love. His or her life is not for destroying but for living, despite the selfishness of those who fear that they lack the means to feed or educate one more child.”
One of the myriad stories and life accounts of great saints and notable personalities I find fascinating is of Mother Teresa’s. She was such an exceptional human being that I’m afraid, only a handful of us can imitate when it comes to loving and serving the impoverished section of society and I mean it literally. Imagine her on her knees in a street corner picking up a dying person and feeding hungry children that she constantly search in the slums of Calcutta. She reminds me of St. Francis of Assisi whose life centered on imitating the life of Christ and equally embraced poverty and charity to the needy. One privilege I am thankful about Mother Teresa is that she lived in my time and was lucky enough to witness a great saint walked in the time period to which I belong. Her legacy will continue to touch the lives of the millions and change the hearts of many. I am most certain, the story of her life will live many centuries from now.
