100 years of Spirit
Last month I had the pleasure of attending the 100th Anniversary of the Sisters of the Holy Spirit at St. Paul Cathedral in Oakland. Along with hundreds of friends and family members, we descended the cathedral steps to the reception hall following Mass to greet and congratulate the sisters. There, seated at the back of the hall was my dear friend, Sr. Agnes Cecilia. Stricken with osteoporosis, she could not lift her head to look at me, but immediately recognized my voice as I greeted her. Tears of joy filled my eyes as well as hers, as we hadn’t seen each other since I left Immaculate Conception Parish (now St. Maria Goretti) in Bloomfield 7 years ago. Sr. Agnes, known for her sense of humor, was a friend as well as a musical mentor to me. Her 3rd grade students were always well prepared for Mass, and I remember her practicing the readings with them at the microphone over and over until they were able to pronounce each word with perfection. She was famous for her joy and her spirited ways, and would often be heard singing, humming, and dancing around the convent as well as the school. I remember her dancing the polka and the tarantella with then Pastor, Fr. Dominic Olivieri at all the parish dinner dances. Her love, joy and generous spirit permeated the entire community, and she was loved by all who encountered her. Sr. Agnes Cecilia is retired now, and living at the Motherhouse on Clarwin Ave. in Ross Township. I’m sure she’s giving the sisters there a lot of laughs. The sisters celebrate their feast day this weekend on Pentecost. May their joyous spirit live on forever!
Sunday, May 19, 2013
Sunday, May 5, 2013
My Daylily Dillema
My Daylily Dillema
Can you ever have too much of a good thing? A pleasant smell? A sweet treat? A vacation holiday? Kind words? Love? By now, most of you know that I have an affinity for flowers… most flowers, that is. My “daylily dilemma” began on Tuesday of this past week, when I decided to go after all the daylilies that crept into my flower beds last fall. Now, don’t get me wrong. I happen to like daylilies, and there’s probably some society somewhere dedicated to the preservation of them. I just don’t want them threatening the diversity of my garden where coreopsis, dianthus and iris’ live peacefully side by side. So I dug until I filled 3 large landscape bags full. One sore back, two bruised knees, and three blisters later, the scourge of the daylily infestation was over. Exhausted from my digging, I had just sat down when my neighbor popped her head over the fence and said, “Could I have those beautiful lilies you just dug up?” “Gladly!” I yelled back. “I guess one man’s trash is another man’s treasure! But where were you when I was digging?”
Jesus’ command to “love one another” is one of His final instructions to the Apostles, as He prepares to leave them in the days before His Ascension into heaven, sending them out “two by two” to proclaim the works of the Holy Spirit. In order to do this, they had to clear away any impediment that threatened to weigh them down. There was no room for insecurity, which they had to prune away in order to sow the seeds of Jesus’ love unconditionally, and grow the Church as a garden of diversity and inclusivity. We are nearing the end of the Easter season. In these final weeks before Pentecost, let us be ever mindful of Jesus’ commandment of love. The daylily is beautiful, but it threatened the diversity of my garden. Let us rid our lives of anything that threatens to upset the delicate balance of our lives, and impedes our loving. My “daylily dilemma” was solved with a shovel. What tools will you use?
Can you ever have too much of a good thing? A pleasant smell? A sweet treat? A vacation holiday? Kind words? Love? By now, most of you know that I have an affinity for flowers… most flowers, that is. My “daylily dilemma” began on Tuesday of this past week, when I decided to go after all the daylilies that crept into my flower beds last fall. Now, don’t get me wrong. I happen to like daylilies, and there’s probably some society somewhere dedicated to the preservation of them. I just don’t want them threatening the diversity of my garden where coreopsis, dianthus and iris’ live peacefully side by side. So I dug until I filled 3 large landscape bags full. One sore back, two bruised knees, and three blisters later, the scourge of the daylily infestation was over. Exhausted from my digging, I had just sat down when my neighbor popped her head over the fence and said, “Could I have those beautiful lilies you just dug up?” “Gladly!” I yelled back. “I guess one man’s trash is another man’s treasure! But where were you when I was digging?”
Jesus’ command to “love one another” is one of His final instructions to the Apostles, as He prepares to leave them in the days before His Ascension into heaven, sending them out “two by two” to proclaim the works of the Holy Spirit. In order to do this, they had to clear away any impediment that threatened to weigh them down. There was no room for insecurity, which they had to prune away in order to sow the seeds of Jesus’ love unconditionally, and grow the Church as a garden of diversity and inclusivity. We are nearing the end of the Easter season. In these final weeks before Pentecost, let us be ever mindful of Jesus’ commandment of love. The daylily is beautiful, but it threatened the diversity of my garden. Let us rid our lives of anything that threatens to upset the delicate balance of our lives, and impedes our loving. My “daylily dilemma” was solved with a shovel. What tools will you use?
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