The Human, the mysterious

A glance at myself reveals that I am so mysterious to myself, let alone to others. It would be better to put it this way, "We cannot bracket the human person". They are so different. They are unpredictable. We never fully understand them. In other words, there cannot be a point of arrival in the case of the human. It is always a point of departure, departure to explore more about the person. 

Let go and Let God

Probably one really does not fully understand the meaning of this saying, “Let go and Let God.” It becomes so difficult to let go somebody or something that one was holding on to so dearly. He/she would do anything to keep the relationship to a person or an animal, or hold on to a position or hold possession of a thing. But, comes a time, in everybody’s life, when one has to come to terms with reality. One needs to give up. Letting go is associated with loss of security, with a fear that one would lose a significant part of oneself, one would not be what one is, without that. It also has so much of pleasure attached to it. One may think that if one gives up that which always brought him/her so much of happiness, one may land up in a state of unhappiness. Rightly so, this state is so desperate. Most people wouldn’t dare to venture into such a situation. As I was struggling to come to terms with the fact of letting go, the words of  my Rector, Fr. Plascencia struck me, "sadness should always be accompanied by hope".

My friend Mackley was sharing with me that no creature can fully satisfy us, but only the creator can. Putting all these insights together, it would be appropriate to say that letting go needs to be accompanied by Letting God into our lives. God will fill the hollow spaces of our heart, and help new meaning emerge into our lives. Again, another beautiful quote comes to my mind, “If you have truly loved, then let go, if it ever was yours, it will come back to you, but if it does not, then it was never yours.”  

Friends

A friend is a gift. He/she is someone with whom one is able to be himself or herself. Friendships happen. One does not make it happen. At the end of the day, one turns to his/her friend, not necessarily to express dependence, but rather with the assurance that one is accepted as he/she is, in his/her presence and that one is not an Island in this world. 

My Dad

My dad is a person, wonderful to live with. Its always a joy to be with him. In fact, he always treats me as his friend. I remember him, encouraging me, while I was playing cricket. He used to call me Greg Mathews, the famous Australian spinner. He always came across to me as a well-planned person. Most of his calculations came true. Also, for me he is a person, who is ready to learn from life. One of his discoveries was that work done early in the morning (when most people are sleeping), saves you from lots of tensions, which otherwise you would invite for yourself. I always found him as a person, willing to help. In fact, most people who come to him for some favour are in some way helped. Again, though my dad is now around 65, he is still the sweet and new 40. Thanks dad for being the way you are to us. Definitely, like mom, you too are a saint.

Dear Departed

My friend, Maria Anthuvan, lost his uncle, Mr. Amalraj, aged 80+. Maria was definitely sad. In fact, he will be offering a mass for the repose of the soul of his uncle today. We shall pray for him in a special way. Well, when it comes to a dear departed, age is insignificant. Relationship takes precedence. Grief is a positive emotion. Grieving for the dead is also a sign of deep relationship that one had enjoyed with the dead.

Mother

My mom is a fantastic person. Talking to her and being with her, I wonder from where she got all the wisdom that she has. She has a tremendous amount of patience to listen to someone, something that books on psychology and counselling will dedicate long sections on the art of listening. She diffuses moments of tension, confusion, with an insight or intervention that was not thought of till then. She puts in so much of love in everything that she does, which makes me feel that God is present right there, that she is God’s love for me. She participates in the daily prayer, but she is praying also when she is cooking. I believe, most mothers are the same. Exceptions are always there.  Well, I believe, our mothers are real saints. 

One day at a time (lyrics)