Yesterday, I sat in the car at the end of my driveway and waited for my daugther to get off the bus. She had an orthodontic appointment, and we had to hustle or we wouldn't make it.
While I waited for her to hop in the car, I noticed Alexis, the sixth grader who lives next door. She was walking down her own drive, waiting for her brother to get off the bus. Alexis strolled down her driveway, playing a clarinet. I could tell that she was really hoping that the little kids on the elementary bus would take notice. She was not only in middle school now - she had an instrument!
I watched the little scene with a note of pessimism. Yeah, she loves the clarinet now, but how will she feel about it in six months? Will she still be eager to play it when it's practice time and nobody is listening?
I realized, with shame, that I was doing the same thing an editor did when I wrote an article about my daughter's First Communion. I wrote about my great joy. That, finally, I had someone from my family joining me at the Altar to receive Our Eucharistic Lord. No longer alone, I had someone to walk the aisle with me. Someone dear to me to talk to about how wonderful it was to be Catholic. My joy could not be contained.
Yes, but how will you feel if she falls away from the Sacraments? Many parents have to deal with that. Do you have any fears that she won't stay Catholic?
Uh! You have got to be kidding me! I wanted to shoot back a very indignant response.
But really, isn't that exactly how I responded to Alexis' joy at playing the clarinet in her driveway on a warm August afternoon?
It is a joyfilled moment. We should drink in these moments. Praise God for days like today.
And maybe let the pessimistic thoughts fly away.
Life is a gift. Today is filled with good things. And sometimes we have to protect our hearts from letting our own thoughts steal it all away.
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