Franziska Notes
No.8/5 May 2011
No.8/5 May 2011
The entire world has recently witnessed the pomp and circumstance of the royal wedding in England. The carefully choreographed and rehearsed pageantry was a pleasure to watch and appropriate for the occasion. This is not where we live our daily lives however. So it is comforting to remember that our inspiration, Mother Franziska Lechner, began her life in a very small Bavarian village and a farm house. The many people and animals, as well as the capriciousness of the weather and national events demanded a spontaneity and creativity to master the unforeseen events. We can feel comfortable with Franziska Lechner. She would understand the young mother who feels frustrated with the behavior of her small children at Sunday Mass. She would understand the worry of the caregiver who suffers with a loved one descending into dementia. The month of May lets us see how God, the creator, loves the spontaneous. One day everything is dreary and cold and the tiny leaf buds are hunkered so tight it seems there is no hope of life at all. Then comes the first warm, sunny day and the loveliest flowers and tender young leaves appear as a lovely surprise. In our world we can go to the internet and order flowers to be carefully arranged and sent to celebrate loved ones who are miles away. There is also the sudden thought of picking a few violets by the way and bringing them home or pointing them out to a child. They cost us nothing but easily rival the happiness brought by the costly arrangement. As we look forward to the Feast of Pentecost let us ask the Holy Spirit, the God of surprises, for the gift of awareness and readiness to do the little things that bring joy. How sad if we wasted our lives thinking of the great heroic deeds that we never have occasion to perform, while all around are people, including ourselves, who need to be cheered by little unexpected kindness, gifts and visions of beauty.
