Metaphors for Life: The Boston Marathon

Our daughter, fourth of five children, is running the Boston Marathon today for the second time. She had to overcome a number of injuries and challenges to be there today. As I was praying for her this morning it occurred to me that the marathon is a metaphor for life in the Church these days. Many of us keep running the race according to the rules (orthodoxy), while the judges and race administrators play fast and loose and let interlopers join in despite lacking the proper certification and failing to meet the qualifications.

At the same time, those false judges berate the registered runners for their rigidity and lack of mercy toward the cheaters who are unprepared and likely to suffer serious injuries.

Well...life is, indeed, a marathon not a sprint. And no matter what the false judges do we persevere in the race following the rules of the Supreme Judge who will make the final decision and will separate the legitimate runners from those who winked and strutted and made deals with the false judges so they could pretend to be serious runners. We would happily welcome them to the training ranks if they wished, but they are too busy looking for loopholes and shortcuts to listen.

Do your best today, Tara. We're with you in spirit cheering on the sidelines. May your guardian angel run with you!

After the Storm: The Beach as a Metaphor for Life

I love the beach! The sound of the surf seems to me to be the heartbeat of the earth. And when I'm walking the beach, I almost always start thinking about it as a metaphor for life: its quiet times, its upheavals, its blessings and challenges.

What's going on in your life right now? Are you in the calm with the sun shining and clear, starry nights? Is your little boat floating gently on a quiet sea? Or are you in the midst of a storm with buffeting winds and teeming rain? Or is it even worse with a raging tornado bearing down on you as you race for cover? Life can deal with us roughly. Our boats can be tossed on waves that threaten to capsize us any minute.

Thought for the Day: On Jigsaw Puzzles as a Metaphor for Life

I'm currently working on a 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle called Spring Meadow. It's not a landscape scene, more like a collage with all kinds of images from a meadow: one corner with daffodils, hearts flowers, ferns, tiny birds, a bee -- all in a glorious hodge-podge! It's been lots of fun to work on.

But I'm also reading Dietrich von Hildebrand's book, Transformation in Christ, and I'm in the chapter on recollection and contemplation. So I've been trying to practice being recollected as I go about my daily activities. I pray while I'm folding wash. "Lord bless the little visitors who slept on these sheets during the holidays and the little feet that forgot these socks under the bed....Bless this dinner I'm cooking and the guests who will share it with us."

You get the idea.

Anyway, while I was working on the puzzle after Mass, visiting a local nursing homes, and having breakfast this morning I thought about how much life is like a puzzle. You don't see everything all at once. Each of the bits is like the small and big events of our lives.