I'm decent at scheduling a "much ado." You know, hit a deadline, cross all the t's, make all the necessary calls ... finish. But I have yet to master the art of planning to do nothing. Don't get me wrong - I can definitely do nothing, especially when I'm sick or I find myself trapped at an auto dealer for an hour waiting on a ten-minute oil change. But planning nothing has eluded me.
I like to keep busy, perhaps equating in my mind that busyness (an actual word!) is not laziness or something like that. But, as with all things it seems, having kids tends to alter your view of things.
Lucia is always busy, too. Whether her peculiar arranging of toys in a row or simply lining up chess pieces, she's got stuff to do. But when it's time to go to sleep, she doesn't understand it if I'm reading in bed. Or if I'm on the computer. Or not home at all. In her mind, time for bed means this: change into pajamas ... brush teeth ... maybe cut nails ... wash face & nose ... read a story (or 2 or 3) ... say prayers ... fall asleep as daddy recites as many saints that come to mind to help induce sleep.
Some would consider this routine as nothing in particular. It is exactly this nothing that I need to plan on doing.
Saturday, February 25, 2006
Wednesday, February 15, 2006
Stealing
So we've had a thief these past few weeks at school. Probably not a student, due to most things being stolen during class periods.
A bunch of incidents, may or may not be related, but allow me to recount the goods:
- 1 CD player installed in a car
- coins from our fundraising coin drive
- 2 purses
- a piece of paper
From a distance, these seem like nothing much, save pehaps the CD player.
These petty thefts allow me to reflect on a very important lesson: the slippery slope of sin. What may seem like just nuisance "sins" actually have teeth that can do damage.
For instance, how many times have we done or encountered faking our age to get some discount. "OK, Lucia, for today, you're gonna be 2 yrs. old!" Or how many of us are willing to go back into a store once we realize that we just walked off with goods unpaid, "Well, that was the checkout person's fault ... I did nothing wrong."
These are very really scenarios that apparently hurt no one. But my kids will sniff me out. Children are amazingly adept at calling those actions exactly what they are: hypocrisy. These very realy scenarios are the tip of the iceberg known as stealing. Stealing is a sin. It is wrong. It is the 8th commandment. Even a little bit of stealing is still stealing. You cannot rationalize it. Even if it's for a good purpose, you must still admit that it is stealing.
The CD player was stolen from a newlywed teacher. Newlyweds don't have a lot of money (typically), nor do teachers. Funny thing is that player doesn't work without a special installation CD they kept at home. It's just a piece of junk now.
The coins stolen were from the Kindergarten class. This class was just beaming off of winning the all-school total for the week. And these kids are like 5 years old. Who steals from little kids?
The purses were stolen from a junior and senior girl. One was already having a pretty rotten week, having her mother strand her at home without a ride to school. She got here just after noon - bicycling her way in the sub-freezing weather for over an hour. But, hey, why not inconvenience her a little more by making her get a new driver's license, SS card, credit cards, bank cards, and, to boot ... a new phone.
Finally, the piece of paper was in my car. I normally lock my doors, but at times have trouble with all the stuff I'm bringing in. The paper was in my ash tray, along with 2 dollar bills and about $1.50 in change. That piece of paper is so old that you couldn't even detect a trace of ink that was once on it. But it was a reminder to me of the time I almost lost Mad ... all my fault and all my stupidity ... some 8 years ago. But to that thief, it was simply trash.
Sin is sin and it always has the effects of sin.
A bunch of incidents, may or may not be related, but allow me to recount the goods:
- 1 CD player installed in a car
- coins from our fundraising coin drive
- 2 purses
- a piece of paper
From a distance, these seem like nothing much, save pehaps the CD player.
These petty thefts allow me to reflect on a very important lesson: the slippery slope of sin. What may seem like just nuisance "sins" actually have teeth that can do damage.
For instance, how many times have we done or encountered faking our age to get some discount. "OK, Lucia, for today, you're gonna be 2 yrs. old!" Or how many of us are willing to go back into a store once we realize that we just walked off with goods unpaid, "Well, that was the checkout person's fault ... I did nothing wrong."
These are very really scenarios that apparently hurt no one. But my kids will sniff me out. Children are amazingly adept at calling those actions exactly what they are: hypocrisy. These very realy scenarios are the tip of the iceberg known as stealing. Stealing is a sin. It is wrong. It is the 8th commandment. Even a little bit of stealing is still stealing. You cannot rationalize it. Even if it's for a good purpose, you must still admit that it is stealing.
The CD player was stolen from a newlywed teacher. Newlyweds don't have a lot of money (typically), nor do teachers. Funny thing is that player doesn't work without a special installation CD they kept at home. It's just a piece of junk now.
The coins stolen were from the Kindergarten class. This class was just beaming off of winning the all-school total for the week. And these kids are like 5 years old. Who steals from little kids?
The purses were stolen from a junior and senior girl. One was already having a pretty rotten week, having her mother strand her at home without a ride to school. She got here just after noon - bicycling her way in the sub-freezing weather for over an hour. But, hey, why not inconvenience her a little more by making her get a new driver's license, SS card, credit cards, bank cards, and, to boot ... a new phone.
Finally, the piece of paper was in my car. I normally lock my doors, but at times have trouble with all the stuff I'm bringing in. The paper was in my ash tray, along with 2 dollar bills and about $1.50 in change. That piece of paper is so old that you couldn't even detect a trace of ink that was once on it. But it was a reminder to me of the time I almost lost Mad ... all my fault and all my stupidity ... some 8 years ago. But to that thief, it was simply trash.
Sin is sin and it always has the effects of sin.
Sunday, February 05, 2006
The Sacrament of Marriage
A sacrament points to a deeper reality ... something beyond the simple signs and symbols associated with it. Wedding rings are quite symbolic. A marriage, despite current trends (i.e. divorce, drive-thru chapels, and same-sex unions), also points to a deeper reality. It has to. It must be more than the piece of paper required by the state with 2 witnesses. It must be more than a deed to a house or joint checking account. It must even be more than children.
Because marriage is a sacrament, it is inherently tied to the Pascal mystery - that is, the life, death & resurrection of Christ. In other words, our marriages will have elements of life. There will also be death - to ourselves & to our "single" ways, to name a few. But, there is also resurrection - healing, growth and a transformation into a new being.
That being said, I wonder how many people know what they're getting into when they say that they want to be married in the Church. Do they desire this because they want the gorgeous pictures and video? Do they desire this to satisfy a gung-ho Catholic parent? Do they desire this simply out of comfort - "I've never imagined getting married anywhere else"?
The one who administers the sacrament of marriage is not the priest. It is the couple who give mutual consent. The priest is simply a witness of the church. Therefore, it is the primary responsibility of the couple to safeguard that their marriage is a daily, living witness to the Pascal mystery of Christ - i.e. a sacrament. What a responsibility! We may not all be ready to take this on to the degree in which Christ calls, but Christ calls us from where we are spiritually. We need only be open to the possibility for Christ, through the Holy Spirit, to nudge us towards fulfilling this sacramental calling to the Glory of God.
Just a couple thoughts from my sacraments class.
Because marriage is a sacrament, it is inherently tied to the Pascal mystery - that is, the life, death & resurrection of Christ. In other words, our marriages will have elements of life. There will also be death - to ourselves & to our "single" ways, to name a few. But, there is also resurrection - healing, growth and a transformation into a new being.
That being said, I wonder how many people know what they're getting into when they say that they want to be married in the Church. Do they desire this because they want the gorgeous pictures and video? Do they desire this to satisfy a gung-ho Catholic parent? Do they desire this simply out of comfort - "I've never imagined getting married anywhere else"?
The one who administers the sacrament of marriage is not the priest. It is the couple who give mutual consent. The priest is simply a witness of the church. Therefore, it is the primary responsibility of the couple to safeguard that their marriage is a daily, living witness to the Pascal mystery of Christ - i.e. a sacrament. What a responsibility! We may not all be ready to take this on to the degree in which Christ calls, but Christ calls us from where we are spiritually. We need only be open to the possibility for Christ, through the Holy Spirit, to nudge us towards fulfilling this sacramental calling to the Glory of God.
Just a couple thoughts from my sacraments class.
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