Pain in Perspective

Today was one of those days...

The events of the morning included the usual lunch making, shuttling both boys to school, an important telephone appointment, a funeral, a mammogram and an orthodontist appointment, all before 2:00 pm. In the midst of it all, I cleaned two bathrooms, did a load of laundry, and got caught up on email.

No wonder it's 4:16 pm and I feel like a truck hit me.

Seriously though, the day was quite thought provoking. The funeral/mammogram back-to-back combo kept things in perspective in a beautiful way for me. I was in attendance to support my good friend Tracy, who lost her brother in law to cancer suddenly and with little warning. Tracy and her husband Louis are special friends of ours from church, so even though I didn't know Louis' brother Stephen, I wanted to be present with them at Mass today to lend my prayers and support. I knew that I would have to sneak out early to be at the prescheduled mammogram in time.

Blessedly, I was able to be present throughout the Liturgy of the Word and for a wonderful homily given by Msgr. Ray Dreiling. A portion of Msgr. Dreiling's homily dealt with the gospel passage from John 4:6, in which Jesus shares the words:

"I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

Msgr. Dreiling spoke of this passage's reminder that sometimes the disciples who followed Jesus just "didn't get it" - they followed Jesus but still really had no clue that He was truly God. Sadly, Monsignor reminded us, you and I are often the same way. Sometimes, it takes occasions such as funerals to remind us that our God is a God who loves us unconditionally, without end, and forever.

Stephen Linney died too young, there's no question about that. He left behind a wife and two children, and countless relatives and friends, who are missing him greatly. I hope they were comforted a bit by Msgr. Dreiling's homily today - he reminded each of us that Stephen is in God's loving hands now and that those hands of God are also filled with love, dedication, and peace. Msgr. Dreiling likened Stephen's life to a book, whose story continues now with a whole new chapter that is just beginnning. Like a beloved book, Stephen continues to touch the lives of those he left behind, but his impact upon them is neither ended nor will it be forgotten.

Leaving the funeral to rush to my mammogram appointment, I was filled with a tremendous sense of peace and love. Normally, these types of things stress me out beyond measure, but Monsignor's reflection and the thought of Stephen's family gathered together in sacramental prayer left me feeling so wonderfully confident about the Body of Christ and the Communion of Saints that I saw no need for worry.

Life unfolds each and every day in countless little ways. Most moments are filled with mundane things like packing brown bag lunches or getting braces checked. But every so often, in the midst of Ordinary Time, we receive the gift of knowing that each and every one of these moments is truly an extraordinary gift from God.

So today was one of those days...