August 27, 2000
PARKING LOT BLUES
I like to drive. That is, I like to drive everywhere except in those large parking lots at the Mall or in front of the discount department stores. I always feel I am taking my life in my own hands when I negotiate my way to a parking space.
There are designs for traffic patterns, I am sure. Yet the people who enter these parking lots often adhere to only one geometric rule: the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. Thus they ignore driving lanes, stop signs, or even parking slots and head directly for their preferred parking area.
Perhaps it is contrary to human nature to have to adhere to traffic lanes and other regulations. I don’t know anyone who really loves stop signs. Nonetheless, each person has to adjust for the good of all.
That is one of the hard, but very important lessons, that we learn in life. We don’t live alone or have the final control over most situations. We all have to learn to pay attention to whatever will protect and respect the rights of others as well as what we want for ourselves is what a healthy society is all about.
Fr. Herb
August 20, 2000
GETTING READY
I stopped in a little town for an ice cream cone. As I sat at the outside picnic table, three–
young girls came up to me and asked if I would buy any of their homemade artwork. The littlest of the children explained, "We are trying to get money for school supplies."
How could I resist?
Two thoughts struck me. First, school really is right around the corner, and many families are busy equipping their children with clothes (uniforms and other attire), pencil boxes, and book bags. Secondly, I was impressed with the enterprise of these girls. I wonder how much of their summer time was spent making the items they were selling.
Getting ready for school is an annual ritual for many families throughout the country. But here is more to getting ready that merely buying the necessities the girls had in mind.
As we come close to opening day, maybe it would be worthwhile for families to take time to talk about the value of education and the purpose of school. In addition, parents could let their children know their support just as they explain their expectations. Finally, since learning takes place at all levels, parents and children need to discuss how they will be learning more about their faith in the days ahead.
Yes, it is time to get ready.
Fr. Herb
August 13, 2000
COMMUNICATING
I was having dinner with friends in a family restaurant when a man and woman entered. Once they were shown to their table, they each opened a newspaper and began to read. The silence was broken for a moment when the server asked their order, after which they went back to reading. At some point in the meal they traded newspapers and continued with the same pattern.
It was very hard for me, in a direct line of vision, not to notice the lack of communication between this man and woman. As far as I could see, they did not say a word to each other throughout the meal.
Perhaps there are reasons for the couple’s silence. Maybe one of them had laryngitis. Or they had just had a fight. Or maybe they had been together all day and there was nothing left to be said. There’s even the chance that they had both taken vows of silence.
Somehow, though, what seemed wrong was that meals are not simply about ingesting food. They are times to come together and share...at all levels. Just as food is shared, so is the spoken and listened to. All meals--family meals, couples dining together, or friends out for the evening--need to be times for uniting with one another. When we lose the sharing that takes place at the table, then we have lost something significant to the welfare of humanity.
Fr. Herb
August 6, 2000
LOOK, MOM
Two young girls were at the pool with their mom. The mother opened up the chaise lounge close to the pool, spread out a towel, and prepared to read a book. The children jumped right into the water and started splashing one another. Every time the mother would turn her eyes to the book, one of the girls would shout, "Look, Mom! Watch this, Mom." Then the child would do a few strokes of a dog paddle or go face down in a "dead man’s float." It was obvious the mother wasn’t going to do much reading.
One time the child asked, "Mom, did you see that?" Without even looking up the mother responded, "Yes." The girl yelled back, "No, you didn’t. Watch this time." The mother’s attention was the most important thing in the world for the child. I suspect most parents will identify with the scene above. It takes place every day all over the world. Simply put, children want their parents’ attention...and approval. Blest are the parents who continue to give it. Summer is a family time. Unfortunately, many parents run out of energy or patience before the children tire. Yet, letting children know that they are supported is one of the biggest gifts parents can give their children.
Fr. Herb
