COME FOLLOW ME!

“Come follow me!”

“How far?”

“Come follow me!”

“But what can I take with me?”

“Come follow me.”

“But I don’t know where we’ll end up?”

“Come follow me!”

“Can I quit and come back, if I don’t like it?”

“Come follow me!”

“Who are you to ask someone to just drop everything – family, networks, dreams, and follow you?”

“Come follow me!”

“Why are you laughing?”

"Come follow me and find out."

* Drawing on top by a friend of mine,

the graphic artist, Al Pacitti
© Andy Costello, Reflections, 2009

*

YEE GADGETS!

Talk, talk, talk,
text, text, text,
twitter, twitter, twitter,
chatter, chatter, chatter,
Bluetooth, toot, toot,
cellphones, iPhones,
BlackBerries, Droids,
in classrooms, bathrooms,
church, car and street …
Facebook, My Space,
text and pictures,
yak, yak, yak,
words, words, words,
whisper, whisper, whisper,
listening, listening, listening,
while driving and eating,
but is anyone really talking to each other?
Is anyone on the cutting edge of another –
tasting the substance of their true bread,
tasting their essence, being nourished
with Holy Communion with them?
Can anyone hear the silent Love of God
in life’s everyday moments?
Can anyone see the Lord
walking on the waters?
Is anyone walking with the Lord
in the cool of the evening?
Is anyone walking and talking

with the Lord on the Road to Emmaus?**

Image on top borrowed from someone*
** Cf. Luke 24: 13-35
© Andy Costello, Reflections 2009

CONVERSATION # 5

“Hi!”

“Hello!”

“Where have you been? Haven’t talked to you in the longest time.”

“I’ve been around.”

“Sorry, I’m not talking to you. I’m talking to someone on my cell.”

© Andy Costello, Reflections, 2009

CONVERSATION # 4

“Hi!”

“Hi!”

“How’s it going?”

“Good. How’s it going for you?”

“Not so good. Yesterday ….”

“Ooops. I gotta get going. See you around.”

© Andy Costello, Reflections, 2009

CONVERSATION # 3

Connecting – getting it – then thinking about what I got – and I think you’re doing the same by the look of your face – then you say something and I drift into something your story triggered – and I find myself wanting to listen to both you and myself – but I can’t let go of my distraction – as well as what I think you’re thinking about – then I say something to give us some breathing space – then the thought, “Maybe I should have tried silence.” Then I say something else – and I think you’re listening to my spin off – and then I’ll start listening to you again – but maybe what I said will trigger something very different in you and now we have 6 or 8 inner conversations going on – and one outer conversation - wow it is difficult to hold a conversation – or maybe that’s how conversations go…. I don’t know – but I guess I have to ditto that – because I’ve been talking with people now for over 70 years – and some of those conversations are still going on – and they have long gone.

© Andy Costello, Reflections, 2009

CONVERSATION # 2

“I don’t get it.”

“Now that’s a great way to start a conversation.”

“I still don’t get it.”

“Now’s that even better.”

“But I still don’t get it?”

“What don’t you get?”

“I don’t get what I’m supposed to get.”

“Well, to be honest, I don’t know what I’m supposed to give.”

“What? Do you mean to say you don’t know what you’re saying?”

“Exactly!”

“Then I get it.”

“You got it.”

“I got it? What do you mean I got it?”

“You just said, ‘Then I get it.’”

“Well, I don’t get what I got if I got it.”

“You got it. Now there’s two of us.”

“What do you mean, ‘Now there’s two of us’?”

“Well I don’t get it and you don’t get it. That’s two of us.”

“Oh I get it.”

“What did you get?”

“I get that this is a crazy and confusing conversation.”

“Most of them are?”

“Okay, now I really get it.”

“Good. Better leave it at that before both of us think we’re crazy.”

“Thanks….”

“You’re welcome. Now when are going to have our next conversation?”

© Andy Costello, Reflections, 2009

CONVERSATION # 1

WORDSWORDSWORDSWORDSWORDSWORDSWORDSWORDSTALKTALKTALKTALKTALKTALKTALKTALKTALKTALK,DON’TYOUREALIZETHATICAN’THEARYOUANYMOREDON’TYOUREALIZETHATISTOPPEDLISTENINGTTOYOUALONGTIMEAGODON’TYOUKNOWTHATALLYOURWORDSAREJAMMEDTOGETHERTHEYAREFORMINGAWALLBETWEENUS.YOURWORDSAREKEEPINGUSFROMHEARINGEACHOTHER.ISTHATWHATYOUARETRYINGTODOIFITISTHENYOUARENOTALLOWINGANYSPACEFORLISTENINGWHYWHENYOUTALKWORDSWORDSWORDSWORDSWORDSICAN’TSTANDORUNDERSTANDYOUIJUSTHAVESOMEOTHERCONVERSATIONINMYHEADWHILEYOUKEEPTALKING,TALKING,TALKING,TALKING,TALKING,TALKING,TALKING,TALKINGWHYHASTHISHAPPENEDBETWEENUSAMITHECAUSEAREYOUDOINGTHISTOMEBECAUSEIDIDTHESAMETHINGTOYOUHAVEIIDON’TKNOWWEHAVEBECOMEVERYIMPERSONAL,SORTOFLIKEARADIOANDATELEVSIONONINAROOMANDNOBODYISLISTENINGTOEITHERITSEEMSWEARERSPEAKINGATTHESAMETIMEFORAWHILEANDTHENASKEACHOTEHRSOMEDEEPERQUESTIONSWHYHAVEWEGOTOURSELVESINTOTHISCRAZYPATTERNDOYOUWANTAWALLORDOYOUWANTASPACEBETWEENUSMAYBEWESHOULDBEGINBYPUTTINGMORESPACEBETWEENOURWORDSWHYDON’TWETRYMOREANDMORESILENCEBETWEENEACHOTHER’SWORDSWENEEDTIMETOHEAREACHOTHER’SMEANINGS.WENEEDTIMETOFIGUREOUTWHYALLTHISNONSENSESTARTEDMAYBESOMEDAYWE’LLTELLEACHOTHERABOUTOURREALCONVERSTIONS,THESECRETONESGOINGONINSIDEOURHEAD.

© Andy Costello, Reflections, 2009