The Art Of Being Kind

My Dark-haired Daughter will likely never work at a job. She can't handle more than the simplest of math. Her reading comprehension is terrible. She struggles to follow the simplest of directions. We don't let her cook anything unattended, and she still has terrible nightmares.

But don't be fooled: she has a tremendous gift. It's the gift of being kind. No matter where we go, who we see, what we are doing, she is kind. She notices things about everyone (and I mean EVERYone) we meet and has something kind and uplifting to say:

"I like your skirt."

"Oh, your nails are so pretty!"

"I like your haircut."

"How old is your baby? He's so cute!"

She goes on her merry way, spreading a bit of cheer to all we meet. It can be in the grocery store, a flea market, a garage sale or church: she notices, is kind and takes a moment to be present with that person in the most charitable of ways.

What a gift.

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This past Sunday, at Mass, Dear Husband and I had the great good fortune of having a dad, toddler and infant sit next to us in the front pew.

"Good fortune?" you say. Sounds horrible. Kids are so distracting. Put 'em in the nursery.

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If you're ill, don't shy away from God.

There was a time when lepers had to carry bells and loudly announce their presence, so that the "clean" people would have time to seek shelter from them.

Illnesses were blamed in parental sins, or even farther back the family chain. When the AIDS epidemic first struck in the 1980s, they were those who were convinced that this was God's way of dealing out "justice" to homosexuals.

Illness can sometimes seem like an additional cross from God: "Great, I just started a new job, and the kids have different schools this year, and I haven' even thought about a summer vacation and sorry, what's that? Lupus. No. No, you don't understand, I don't have time for that.,,,,

That may be true. YOU don't. But GOD does. For whatever He also int our lives is good and life-giving. Facing any serious illness, chronic or life-threatening, is not something anyone puts on their calendar. It can also make things very difficult to explain to people.

Oh, people …

Kissing the Leper

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