And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, "Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my heavenly Father is my brother, and sister, and mother." Matthew 12:49-50
Shortly
after I had become a lector at my local parish I volunteered to read on the
Monday evening masses during Lent.
I thought that I would add this
little offering to my list of “things I would do for God” during these 40 days.
Little did I know that in reality, He was going to do something great for for me.
When that first Monday
rolled around, I found myself a bit nervous, and I was watching the priest
carefully after the opening prayers and such, so that I would walk up to the
pulpit at the right time when he took his seat.
As I stood
up, I noticed a tall elderly woman, about eighty years old, in the first row. She had the thickest head of
blond curls I had ever seen, and she was motioning me with her arm, as if to say, “come on
and hurry up”!
Apparently,
she thought I needed some direction.
During the
reading, I couldn’t help but notice that she was watching me intently. And when
I walked back to my seat she smiled at me and nodded her head, as if in approval.
When the
mass ended and those present started to leave, she walked up to me and
introduced herself. Her name, she told me, was Dorothy; her friends called her
Dottie. She too, was a lector at the parish and had been a former school teacher there,
as well, for twelve years.
Proudly she
told me that she went back to finish her college degree at the age of 55, after
her husband had left her. I must have given her a look of surprise when she
said this to me because she quickly added, “those were the best years of my
life”…
We became
instant friends. She told me she loved her grandchildren, bingo, romance novels,
and the TV show “The Bachelor”…. She was truly a character!
It was about
4 or 5 months later that we finally got the opportunity to lector together at
the 10:30 a.m. Sunday morning mass.
It would be the only time we ever read together.
Not long
after that, on a Saturday, I got a call from one of the parishioners. Dottie
had been playing bingo at a near by church the night before and had suffered a stroke .An ambulance had been called immediately and she was rushed to the hospital.
I grabbed my
purse and jumped into my car, and drove down to the hospital as quickly
as I could.
When I
arrived, she was
lying in bed with IV tubes in her arms and was hooked up to a heart monitor. Her daughter was there too; the poor girl looked completely frazzled.
The stroke
had affected Dottie’s speech. Communication was very difficult. She desperately
wanted to say something to me, but she couldn't. I told that everything was
fine, that she didn’t need to speak. We could just enjoy our time there
together.
With that, she seemed to relax and we spent the remainder of the time quietly
being together. For me it was a gifted moment.
As the
time came for me to leave, I kissed her on the forehead and said goodbye. "Get some rest" I said. " I'll be be back in a couple of days."
Her eyes
followed me to the door and she smiled at me. It was the most beautiful smile I had
ever been given.
A couple
days later, unexpected complications set in. After receiving the Sacrament
of the Anointing of the Sick, Dottie passed away in the hospital. Her daughter and grandchildren were by her side….God had motioned for her to come up and join Him in heaven....There is no doubt that she is up there praying for all the people that had become her brothers, sister, mother.Yes,indeed, she is praying for everyone that had become her family.
Our lives
are about relationships. And, every day presents us with an opportunity to act
with love and compassion to our brothers and sister.
God brings people in and out of our lives at different times
and for different reasons. Every human person has something to share with us. Every
person is gift.
And
stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and
my brothers. For whoever does the will of my heavenly Father is my brother, and
sister, and mother.”Matthew 12: 49-50
