A post I wrote some time and a few kids ago – it was a reminder I needed recently.
9/15/02
I ran into an old friend at the store today. We were both in a rush, so we couldn’t talk long, but we quickly reviewed how life was for each of us. She told me about how hard things were, with just one income in their family and five kids. And she related to me how crowded their house was and how they wished for a bigger place, but were afraid to move. Five children in a three bedroom house can indeed feel like a crowd.
I told her that I knew exactly how she felt; we were in the same situation. For a moment she looked a little surprised as she remembered that yes, we too have five children in a small three bedroom home and live on just one income. We wished each other well and went about our shopping. But it left me with a lot to think about.
It was very strange to have my own situation mirrored back to me like that, and it made me ask myself how I live my life for others to see. Do I appear to others to be lugging a great weight, or do I appear to take joy in the little gifts to be found through living my vocation? This friend seemed so wearied and disappointed by the way her life was going. Do I sound like that too?
I am sure there are many days that I do. There are days when it seems like the weight of the world has been set upon my shoulders, and anyone who comes near me might get an earful. We all need to vent sometimes and we all must ask for and express our need for support, but I think there may be a time and place to do that.
As Catholic Christians we embrace a life that is unpopular at best and despised and persecuted at worst. To the rest of the world, we need to show that while we have our difficulties and adversities, we are able to wiggle through by the Grace of God. We can use these things as opportunities for growth and often find great moments of joy in the midst of our suffering.
As I go through my daily life, is it apparent that I find joy in the drudgery? Growth in the sorrow? True, life changing happiness in the ordinary? Or do I appear disappointed that my life does not have the glamour and ease that I expected it to?
Our very presence can be a ministry to those whose lives we are near. We can touch their hearts simply by our thankfulness for all the blessings that our Father in Heaven showers on us. Sure, some blessings are heavy and hard to carry. Some are blessings in disguise and we can only see the blessing in them after they are long gone. But an attitude of thankfulness can make all the difference as to whether our smile is weary or joyful to the next soul we meet.