“Why We Should Be Thankful”
Reflection 11/24/21:
I realize it’s been sometime between my last reflection and
now. Truthfully, the job gets so busy
with seemingly “small things” that it becomes difficult to etch out a few minutes
to reflect and to write. It is in that
notion however, that seems to remind me that now is the most important time to
reflect and to record. Perhaps that
reflection may have something to do with the current week or the larger picture
of the previous year; regardless, we are approaching Thanksgiving where we will
all sit down and “try” to remember what we are thankful for. How obtuse.
At the beginning of the year I sit down with a small
committee and outline calendars, appointment, trips, special dates, ceremonies,
meetings, etc. for the school and the many moving parts that play into the
organizational works here at OLMC. I do
this knowing full well that almost all of them will in some fashion change
based on other people’s schedules and desires or events that we were unable to
anticipate at the time. Needless to say
even with this advanced knowledge, it is still frustrating and if any of you experience
this at your place of work, you know all too well what I’m talking about. As the days tick and the year moves forward becoming
further and further away from that original meeting, I often get asked the
age-old question of “why do we do this to begin with”. There are several concrete reasons to our
procedures – “Why do we have this policy procedure?”….”So that our students are
accounted for and safe.”….”Why do we do this that way”….. “Because doing it the
other way is illegal.”….. “Why can’t we do this?”…. “Because it’s a Diocese Policy”
… “Why do we even go to school on this day” ….. “Because we don’t want to add
an extra day to the calendar because we need to be out of school by Herrin
Festa.” …. And my mother’s favorite answer of all time – “Because I am the boss
and I said so.” You get my point and
yet, we ask the same things annually. In
all this questioning and second-guessing, I’m not surprised that it’s sometimes
difficult to find something to be Thankful for.
As I walked around this morning before school started (as
this is generally the only quiet time I can carve out to do so), I thought very
hard about the things I am thankful for here at OLMC. It’s easy to rap off the standard
answers: “I’m thankful for my family,
friends, job, home, food, clothes, etc.” but let’s face it, although there is
no question of our appreciation for those things in our lives, they are also
easy answers. When is the last time you
were thankful for not getting your way?
When was the last time you were thankful for that person who challenged
you resulting in you becoming a better person, boss, husband, wife, and student? When was the last time you said you were
thankful for struggle?
Today’s Gospel reminds us that in the difficult times, Jesus
will give us the words to say, the actions to take, the relationships we need
and the appreciation of persecution.
Saint Luke reminds us that as we are “seized and persecuted, handed over
to the prisons and put to death”, we are to be thankful of the Grace and Love
of Jesus Christ in our lives. “You will
be hated by all because of my name: By your perseverance you will secure your
lives.” Perhaps we need to focus a
little more on our gift of eternal life this Thanksgiving than our non-eternal disappointments
or possessions that seem to dominate our talk and our social media posts.
My walk this morning around the campus allowed me to be
thankful for a lot of things here at OLMC.
I am thankful for the faces of my students. I am thankful for the dedication of my
teachers. I am thankful for small
victories our school has had over the course of the past three years. I am thankful for the challenges and
struggles I have seen in this job both from inside the school and out. I am thankful for the let downs, frustration
and disappointments which have forced me to become stronger and more attentive. I am just as thankful for the attacks as I am
the support. In the end, I am thankful
most that God has given all those things to me to sharpen me in the end and,
for that, I am thankful.
As I close this letter of thanksgiving I think about how
contagious different mindsets can be whether on a team, in an organization or
just in the general public. I’m not sure
at times that what I’m doing here truly makes a difference for anyone or, that
God put me here to make a difference in me.
No matter which outcome was intended or if they both were equally, I
will do my best to maintain a mindset of peace and thanksgiving regardless of
what may come my way in the future. My
prayer is that each of you will as well.
May you all have a blessed and wonderful Thanksgiving
holiday. May God gift you with His peace
and keep you all safe and close to his Sacred Heart.
Mr. Swann