Waves of Life...

"As soon as we are alone,...inner chaos opens up in us. This chaos can be so disturbing and so confusing that we can hardly wait to get busy again. Entering a private room and shutting the door, therefore, does not mean that we immediately shut out all our inner doubts, anxieties, fears, bad memories, unresolved conflicts, angry feelings and impulsive desires. On the contrary, when we have removed our outer distraction, we often find that our inner distraction manifest themselves to us in full force. We often use the outer distractions to shield ourselves from the interior noises. This makes the discipline of solitude all the more important."

— Henri J.M. Nouwen


In the quiet inner silence, we contemplate on the present and the truth of who we are will be revealed in time. This time of silence can either be voluntarily taken amidst all our busy-ness or forced upon us by some terminal disease or even death within the family or loved ones.

When we choose to carry and surf the wave of faith and hope, living life simply in the solitude of our hearts, always pondering on the present, being grateful for what we have, seeing the goodness in others - we will understand who we are in due time, we will know the purpose of our life and find strength to live it to the fullest; living it for God and radiating our light on others; making this world a little bit better - living a life that matters.

At the end of the day, when all is said and done, what is it that truly matters to us before we breathe our last? That is what must sustain us, this is what we must be living for in each present moment of our lives.


"Keeping a journal has taught me that there is not so much new in your life as you sometimes think. When you re-read your journal you find out that your latest discovery is something you already found out five years ago. Still, it is true that one penetrates deeper and deeper into the same ideas and the same experiences."

— Thomas Merton

Dashing through life...

As I listen to the familiar Christmas tune, "dashing through the snow...", I recall a meaningful reflection I read sometime ago in 3 Minutes a Day by The Christophers. I would like to share this with you.

What's the measure of a life? This excerpt from an anonymous poem that appeared in Bits & Pieces offers a new slant.

I read of a man who stood up to speak
At the funeral of a friend.
He referred to the dates on her tombstone
From the beginning to the end.
He noted that first came the date of birth
And spoke the following date with tears.
But said what mattered most of all
Was the dash between the years.
For that dash represents all the time
That she had spent alive on earth.
And now only those who loved her know
What that little line is worth...

We don't choose our birth date or death date, but we do decide how we live the the in-between. Make the most of your life.

Blessed Advent to all, fellow pilgrims, wherever you are.


"Each year, God asks us to shed one more coat of awareness, one more dream state and come alive to the vision of God’s plan for each of us and the world-at-large.

The older we get, the harder this is to do. As children we had a sense of wonder. Our eyes were wide open and drinking in the fascinating gifts we beheld…Our thirsty souls could not have enough of the wonders of creation.

Then, somehow, we grew too old to dream. We tired of the abundance of the world, or at least grew weary of keeping up with the feast of life, and stepped away from the banquet of life.

The natural gift of wonder God gave us as children was meant to be kept alive.…Instead we let wonder go to sleep. We entered the typical dream state of most humans.

Why else does Jesus tell us today, ‘Stay awake!’…Advent says, ‘Wake up and realize the gifts of love you have received.

…Psychology says, ‘Let go.’ Spirituality says, ‘Wake up.’ In both cases there is a withdrawal from the busyness of daily life (our dream state) and a waking up to the subconscious and spiritual depths of ourselves."

Rev. Alfred McBride, O. Praem.,THE PRIEST, Oct. ‘87, p.26

Advent...preparing...waiting...

Advent, a time of waiting and preparing ourselves for the Lord's coming, as the incarnate God of love.

This short 28-day period can easily pass by without much significance for many of us amidst the “noise” of career-building, wealth-accumulation, commercialism of X’mas (see how the world so easily remove “Christ” out of the season?) and perhaps, social-networking. So many distractions...we become indifferent to the season.

Advent is a season of readiness, getting prepared, alert and awake…for what? For the coming of the Lord…into our hearts, into our lives. We must be conscious not be distracted by secular pursuits of the world. This season is the time for God, to listen to him in prayer, in scriptural reflection, for repentance… It is also a time to respond to his call, his invitation, unique for each one of us. In doing so, we trust that he Lord will bless us...will lead us along this life's journey.

Scripture tells us, “But they that hope in the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall take wings as eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31 - Douay-Rheims)

Many a times, in responding, the seemingly long wait for assurance, for his blessing…our minds wonder, did we truly hear him or was it merely our human thoughts fooling us? Our human condition plants the seed of doubt in our hearts… We lose confidence…we become disillusioned…

Scripture continues to reassure us and goes on to comfort us, “The Lord is good to them that hope in him, to the soul that seeketh him.” (Lamentations 3:25 - Douay-Rheims)

We must continue to be alert and wait for his coming into our lives, wait for him to lead us, to bless us abundantly. We must never lose hope. Our Lord is merciful and faithful. Surrender the distractions of the world to him...and he will give you rest and lead you.

Yes Lord, in all our weaknesses, imperfections, complexity and noisiness, we continue to ponder and echo the prayer of the psalmist, “Defeat does not come to those who trust in you, but to those who are quick to rebel against you.” (Psalm 25:3 – Good News Translation) Help us to remain simple and quiet for your coming into our lives.

Jesus, we will place our trust in you this Advent, waiting for your blessings.

“The certainty of Christian hope lies beyond passion and beyond knowledge. Therefore we must sometimes expect our hope to come in conflict with darkness, desperation and ignorance. Therefore, too, we must remember that Christian optimism is not a perpetual sense of euphoria, an indefectible comfort in whose presence neither anguish nor tragedy can possibly exist. We must not strive to maintain a climate of optimism by the mere suppression of tragic realities. Christian optimism lies in a hope of victory that transcends all tragedy: a victory in which we pass beyond tragedy to glory with Christ crucified and risen.”
- Thomas Merton – Advent: Hope or Delusion?

Simplicity

"Simplicity of life requires that we be honest about who and what we are. We live a simple life when we do not pretend to be something we are not.

Simplicity is honesty, but it is also detachment. Honesty enables me to discover the hard truth that simplicity of life is not frugality of life. It is life unencumbered, life free of the things we own so that they do not own us.

Simplicity is openness to the beauty of the present, whatever its shape, whatever its lack. It enables us to be conscious of where we are and to stop mourning where we are not.

Simplicity and serenity, simplicity and honesty, simplicity and openness, simplicity and acceptance are synonyms too long kept secret."


What is a simple life in a world and a society where having enough is never quite enough? What is the value of simplicity?

This is what becoming fully human is all about...


Joan Chittister, Benedictine sister, author - 2005

Life's a Symphony

Here’s something I came across from Anthony De Mello, he shares:

“Happiness is enoughness.” The secret is to be content with what comes our way, rejecting nothing and hankering for nothing. The great virtue of contentedness. To take things as they are and to imitate the birds in the sky and the lilies on the field.”

I am reminded of a friend who is down with terminal cancer. A fellow pilgrim who has been blogging (http://upekah.blogspot.com) - sharing the journey with others and perhaps, to keep one’s own hope alive, find daily strength, purpose to go on. When one carries such a dis-ease, which does not discriminate, one must be brave to walk the lonely path, struggling with having to heal oneself and remaining strong for the loved ones. Yes, life can be harsh and unfair… the quiet can be deafening...

Tony goes on to share, “A classical symphony. The perfect experience. A symphony has no purpose, no meaning. There is also no clinging to it and no hastening it. One does not wait till the end to enjoy it, but takes in every note, every chord as it comes and lets it go to welcome the next in uninterrupted flow. Any attempt to stop the performance, any “attachment” to a single note, will ruin the symphony…. The less the attachment, the greater the love.”

Sometimes in life, we fool ourselves to think that we have found the perfect note or keep on pushing ourselves to find that perfect note; not realizing that life, in all its richness offers us a variety of notes, which, at the end of it all, becomes a great symphony. A symphony, only if we drop all attachments, possessions, presuppositions, clinging, unforgiveness. The less the attachments, the more we love, the more we live life to the fullest, the more we live in the present, the more we are healed; savoring just the chord of today - not worrying about tomorrow's note.

We all have to end this life one day but right now, my friend may be the luckier person, by the grace of God, to savor every chord that comes along and hopefully be the symphony that will inspire others to listen so as to be able to play out their own - a symphony that I pray, will last a little while longer, by the merciful grace of God.

Tony goes on to say, "Yield to the currents of life...unencumbered by baggage." We must learn to travel light as this pilgrimage journey can be long and the gate narrow.


"How narrow is the gate, and strait is the way that leadeth to life: and few there are that find it!"
- Gospel According to Saint Matthew, Douay-Rheims Bible

The Tide Is Turning Toward Catholicism

This easy-to-read, 300-pager book will help Catholics treasure what others are finding in our church; providing an accurate account, offering profound hope and satisfying the hunger for the truth. The first sparks of this book came to the author during the adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, under the disguise of the very words entitling this book.
David J. Hartline is the editor of a popular online journal called Catholic Report (www.catholicreport.org). He believes that we “need to hear all the ‘under the radar’ good news and great events happening in the Catholic Church” throughout the world – events that, more often than not, go unnoticed. As such, he tells us the largely untold story of why the Catholic Church is gaining in strength and appeal. The fundamental thrust of this book is to inform and encourage the reader and to facilitate “the springtime of evangelization” for the church.

The book passionately begins with the last few years of Pope John Paul II’s papacy – highlighting aspects of his life, his leadership during the dark days of the church when scandals of abuse penetrated the church. As the pontiff lay dying…huge crowds outside, many of them young…”For years I came to you,” he said. “Now you come to me.” At the pope’s funeral, the world witnessed the signs, symbols and rituals of the Catholic Church; the world was mesmerized when they heard the chanting of the Litany of the Saints. The author begins his reflection that the tide did not start to turn until the death of John Paul II.

The book then goes on, shedding much light, with many, many thought provoking facts to show how the Holy Spirit is still active and very much alive today in the Catholic Church since the very first Pentecost - touching on the laity, youths, traditions, clergy, sacraments, Sunday worship, Mary, the Eucharist, the Bible, education, mega churches…every where the tide is turning. There is even a short chapter on the Crusades – what were the Crusaders up against and what does it mean for us today?
A chapter on the Catholic vote will help introduce and highlight how traditional Catholic values are working into the electoral process, voting on many social issues. The author goes on to provide interesting facts about Marian apparitions and the increased devotion to Mary. The rosary, the author quotes Archbishop Fulton Sheen, “…is the book of the blind, where souls…enact the greatest drama of love the world has ever known…the power of the rosary is beyond description.”

In addition, the author also shares his view about influences that creep into the church – what are we to do about these – literature, music, amongst many others? He assures us that the foundation of the Catholic Church remains unchanged despite all these winds of change – “the foundation made of rock best stands the test of time.”

Storm of Glory...God's Calling...

I stumbled on this beautiful book entitled, "Storm of Glory" at a recent warehouse sale. This was John Beever’s first biography of St Therese of Lisieux, initially published in 1949. By the grace of God, I discovered a hardcover copy of the 1950 reprint with illustrations at a local used bookshop recently.

The names of Louis Martin and Zelie Marie Guerin would probably sound unfamiliar to most of us. Louis was turned away from the monastery of the Great St. Bernard, whereas Zelie was denied entrance to the Convent of the Sisters of St Vincent de Paul.

This family of a successful watchmaker and a lace maker stricken with breast cancer bore 9 children; 7 girls and 2 boys. However, within 3 years, the two boys, a five year old girl, and a six-and-a-half week old infant girl all died. The last child was weak and frail and the family already so used to death, was preparing for yet another death.
Today, people know this little girl as St. Therese, the "Little Flower" because her life is a testimony of her being like the simple wild flowers in the forests and fields, unnoticed by the greater population, yet growing and giving glory to God.

This 231-page book expresses beautifully how she, within her short life (died at the age of 24 years and 9 months of tuberculosis), understood herself before the Lord - simple and hidden, but blooming where God had planted her – keeping things simple in all ways, encountering God in the simple details of life. She never did like long prayers and even fell asleep during a community prayer session. “Heaven” was the very first word she could read.

For many of us today who feel that we do not have any talent for holiness, and tend to lose hope trying – contented to being just a mediocre attendee in church, you will truly be able to relate to Therese, being physically weak herself, stubborn and sometimes psychologically vulnerable. She humbles herself with the perception that great saints were giants and that she was merely an “obscure grain of sand”. This book provides inspiration of the fact that we all have many opportunities (some we perceive to be too small) of grace in our daily lives and that there is simply no excuse for “tidak apa”-ness” (indifference) in the practice of our Catholic faith in our daily lives.

This book echoes her belief that, “Our Lord does not call those who are worthy, but those whom He will.” She adds on, “I am a nobody. I did nothing great. Much of my life was spent in the laundry…looking after the linen…I was not learned. I read very few books…I was a little soul, an ordinary soul. But I loved God…”

As this captivating book is out-of-print, used copies can easily be found at these sites, amongst many others: Amazon.com, Thriftbooks.com, Abebooks.com or Alibris.com.

Many, many other great books on this lovely saint can similarly be found.