“We live a long time in order to become lovers. God is like a good parent, refusing to do our homework for us. We must learn through trial and error. We have to do our homework ourselves, the homework of suffering, desiring, winning and losing, hundreds of times.
Loss, and the grief that comes from it, is one of the greatest occasions of deep and sad feeling, and it’s one that is socially acceptable. When we lose a beloved friend, wife, husband, child, parent, or maybe a possession or a job, we feel it’s okay to feel deeply. But we must broaden that. We’ve got to find a passion that is also experienced when we have it, not just when we’re losing it. And we have it all the time. Don’t wait for loss to feel, suffer, or enjoy deeply.” Rohr
And so I often experience my little bit of suffering as a feeling or knowledge that I am fully alive. You can’t experience the joy without also experiencing life’s pain at some point. We can’t experience Easter without Good Friday. Although (knock on wood) I haven’t experienced much suffering in my life. Right now my mom is suffering in the hospital. She is progressing well in dealing with some sort of pancreatitis and I am sure she is using this suffering to grow more patient and compassionate, although she wouldn’t admit it. She ”offers up her pain” – to use an old phrase. It is tough being in the hospital. And it is tough for me to be so far from home, wondering what I should do, feeling the guilt of being an absentee son. Rachel, my daughter, my boys and my cousin Eileen are having to shoulder the burden and worry of the trials and sufferings of my mom. Thankfully, she also has a good set of friends who surround her and care for her as well. But she is forever on my mind here in Africa.
St. Tim's - Making Porridge
Today we visited St. Timothy School and helped distribute porridge. In our inspection of the buildings, we find there are some pressing needs – sunlight is one of the biggest needs there! The children are in classrooms that are far too dark. There are no windows and no electricity. I can’t see to read in the classroom. The kids can’t see their books or the chalkboard. We are trying to remedy the situation. More on this in the next eNewsletter. There are now 145 students at St. Tim’s, a school we assist but do not operate ourselves. It is located in a small slum – smelly, disease-ridden and dangerous, especially at night. But within the metal sheet walls of St. Tim’s, there is learning going on and students being fed and cared for. I wish I could take you there to see it. The pictures will have to suffice for now.
St. Tim's - Waiting for Porridge
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