OK, so we had our staff/ faculty retreat the other day, which was nice and meaningful and a good time to think about our mission and what it can look like this year. One thing that SR. Caroly shared with us was a story of another sister, which I would like to pass along.
There was a certain sister who was working at an elementary school and living in the convent about a two blocks away. Every morning she would leave the convent front door ans say, "God, you have from here until I get to school to give me what you want to give me for the day." And you know what? She was always given a gift, not because God was doing anything different for her because she was demanding it, but she was seeing differently because it was on her mind to look for it.
Lately I have been doing that when I get off the bus. I don't know if i don't have enough faith in God or trust in myself, but I give God about six blocks to give me a gift, which is further than the sister in the story. But the interesting thing? God has given me a gift everyday that i have asked for one. The first day it was the way a woman who was holding her beau's hand smiled at me. Friday it was watching a passenger on the bus converse with the bus driver (yes, I did end up taking the bus up the six blocks that day...)
Today it was a little different though. My gift was a reminder, my gift was a man outside of the coffee shop who was very poor, but because of his homelessness was not mentally stable. He came into the coffee shop a few times and each time he was gently, but firmly escorted outside and told he couldn't come in. It beike my heart because i didn't know what to do; they had given him a free cup of coffee and a free bagel. But he was my gift because i know the compassio I felt towards him was because i knew that God was there too.
I wonder what my gift will be tomorrow.
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