Moments come and go, but there are some that hold us for at least a split second. Something apparently ordinary takes place and we take a pause and take note of a simple detail. Perhaps it’s a brand new day with a cup of coffee in hand, or an unexpected gesture of courtesy. There are a number of examples. These passing moments last the space of a breath, but they hold something within, they leave us with the thought that there was something there, and should have stayed a bit longer. It reminds me of the woman who hears a melody and her mind quickly traces the words, “what would I give to hear my dad’s voice once again”. The parent many years ago had died. It is safe to say that these moments carry within a sense of what is eternal.
With a bit of effort or perhaps with the effort to move mountains, the discipline may be cultivated and we can learn to prolong the moment. The truth is that our lives often feel as if we were a piece of driftwood floating downriver. We suffer from pressure and depression, expectations, weariness, failures, sadness, and failures in our attempts to love. We fool ourselves by thinking that we have everything under control. If in the moments that hang on to us, what is eternal and what is important is to be found, we have to find a way to pause, discover what is eternal, important and live accordingly. Truly live.
In a mysterious way, we are able to recognize that the “something” that makes its way through those moments, is actually a “someone”. As a people of faith, in the blinking of an eye, we glimpse the presence of God. He is letting us know that he is there. His presence is almost anonymous, like a passing shadow, never aggressive. God’s presence affirms our existence and gives us a pathway towards real life. These days, this really feels important. We live in a world where the greatest of our efforts seem to be to deny that something more important exists; a denial of God. Let us pause, recognize God in our midst, let us acknowledge that he journeys with us, supporting us, counseling us, loving us. In the end, giving us the grace to stand and not be a piece of driftwood.
– Father Francisco Gomez, S.T.