January 31, 2020

UNDOING  A  KNOT

Colors, letters, numbers …

mothers comment to each other

about their kids learning their

numbers, the alphabet, their colors,

but knots -  no. There’s no year ….

There’s no best time in childhood

to teach a kid how to undo a knot –

nope.   But when they happen,

just don’t make it worse.

“Here …. Let me try it.”

“Here …. You try it. You have

better nails than I do.” And together

one or both of them learn that time

and fingernails and patience and

just trying not to make the knot tighter –

but looser - is the trick – now as to

teenage knots and relationship knots

and life’s nots – hopefully we still

have our moms and dads and others

to help us - to undo the knots and

not to make things worse. Amen.

© Andy Costello, Reflections

January 31, 2020

Thought for Today

 “Self-image sets the boundaries of individual accomplishment.”  

Maxwell Maltz

WHEN  DID  JESUS  KNOW 

WHAT HE  KNEW? 

INTRODUCTION

The title  of  my homily for this 3^rd Thursday in Ordinary Time  is, “When Did Jesus Know What He Knew?”

Or as a sub-title a similar question from the gospels: “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers? Isn’t he the carpenter’s son….” [Matthew 13: 54-55]

Last night I was working on a short homily for this morning – while shooting back and forth a few times to check out on TV the Impeachment Hearings.

It was all questions and answers yesterday – so I wondered if that’s the reason I came up with the question I came up with for a possible short homily for today.

The people who were picked from either side were given 5 minutes to answer questions.

Would we all want 5 minute homilies for weekday homilies – if that?

I remember a book for Sunday homilies: Ten Responsible Minutes.

BACK TO MY QUESTION

When did Jesus know what he knew?

In today’s gospel Jesus said, “The measure with which you measure will be measured out to you, and still more will be given you.”

I thought about that and asked, “When and where did Jesus come up with that?”

It’s a profound observation about the human condition.

Did Jesus know the thoughts of Sigmund Freud, Anna Freud and Carl Jung about  projections – how human being project their motives and ways of judging people onto other people?

Did Jesus know the Hindu thought of Karma – as people are using it more and more today – not for incarnation – but for next week? How I treat my neighbor and others today is going to come crashing onto me or to embracing me – as I go on with life in the weeks to come.

How many times in life do we inwardly say of another, “I know why you said that? I know why you did that?” when in reality we’re really saying, “I know why I would say that?  I know why I would do that?”

DEEPER CONSIDERATIONS – DEEPER QUESTIONS

I was thinking last night: Good thing the speaker or the preacher has only 5 or 10 minutes – because that’s his take on the text.  I assume some of you here have years of thoughts and experiences and probably doctorates in this stuff – from psychology and from scripture and human development as well as family and community and teaching experiences.

CONCLUSION

In the meanwhile, I like what Jesus warns and wants here – about being generous in our judgments and projections on others.  I like it when the policeman doesn’t give me a ticket for having a tail light out or the kid at the ice cream cone counter gives me extra butter almond or rum raisin ice cream.  I like it when the other person is kind with his or her comments about me and my lateness or ill prepared or too complicated homily. I like it when the preacher says, “I don’t know where Jesus came up with this stuff – but as life goes on, sometimes Jesus says something that really hits me.  Nice. Thank you Jesus.

January 30,  2020

SOMETIMES

Sometimes you have to say the

wrong thing before you figure out

what you should have said.

Sometimes you have to lose the ring

or drop the dish or have the moment

after the fight before you really know.

Sometimes you understand the words the

first time you hear them, but wouldn’t you

rather get them in the middle of the night?

Sometimes it’s 37 days after the 37^th

anniversary that your marriage vows

mean a lot more than the first time.

Sometimes you have to read the

poem a dozen times before you

figure out what it’s really saying.

© Andy Costello, Reflections

January  30, 2020 

Thought  for  Today 

 “If you prepare for old age, old age  comes  sooner.”  

Anonymous

January 29, 2020

PRECISION

A razor blade, steel,

two plus two equals four,

cold milk, cereal and a banana,

a  piano: black and white keys,

white cord, white venetian blinds,

kissing grandma good night,

a two-year-old saying, “I love you.”

© Andy Costello, Reflections

January 29,  2020

Thought for Today

 “We choose our joys and sorrows long before we experience them.”  

Kahlil  Gibran