I Will Remember

As I read my friend’s short post this morning – To Forget – I recalled this past year or so in Prescott. I pondered the words at the heart of his simple post, words of Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel.  I sat quietly and let them sink in.

“To forget is to deny the relevance of the past.”

I came to Prescott a broken man and ‘out of sorts.’  Sitting in reflection in my new house this morning, my friend’s post really hit home.

This has been a tough year, emotionally, financially, and spiritually.  My life is still not where I would like it to be, but slowly and surely, it’s moving in the right direction.  As I ponder Elie Wiesel’s words, I don’t want to forget the mistakes I made in the past, the bad choices I made that put me in difficult circumstances.  Every day, I try to do mental and spiritual maintenance to correct my course.

Plugging into my Friend upstairs is a big part of that. That being said, He doesn’t respond with emails or text messages.  To quote Trappist Monk Thomas Merton..

“The fact that I think I am following your will does not mean I am actually doing so.  But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you.”

I conclude in my reflection that the most tangible thing in my life is you, my family, and friends who have stood with me through good times and bad times this past year.  Some of you, I don’t even know. I can’t count the many and diverse ways you have helped me.

Easter plays a significant role here as well. In a morning devotion a few years ago, my friend and best-selling author Franciscan priest Father Richard Rohr discussed iconography and art, and the differences between the Roman Church [western] and the Orthodox Church [eastern].  In western art, he explained, the resurrected Christ is portrayed in his white robe and shining brilliantly in all his glory. But in the eastern church the resurrected Christ is surrounded by sinners and saints to the left and right and He is standing on Hades, crushing him while leaning down to grab the hands of Adam and Eve (a figure of humanity) in their coffins, pulling them out of death.

I loved that, and this was a time back in Tucson when we were looking for a new spot for St. Francis Shelter, a welcoming place for our brothers and sisters on the streets of Tucson. I said to myself, ‘if we ever get a new shelter, I want that icon above the entrance to the shelter.’ When we moved our space into the abandoned convent of Sacred Heart Church in Tucson, our priority was to get the place up and running with comfortable rooms for our guests, an operational kitchen etc . Our work culminated with remodeling the original Chapel of the Convent which was used as an office and many other things other than a chapel for years. I would visit that space every night night and imagine returning her to the glory she once had complete with the orthodox Icon of the resurrection above the Altar.

To sum up what I’ve been babbling about… Thank you to all my friends in Prescott as well as old friends in Tucson who helped me through this challenging time. Thank you to all the new people who like to hang out on Carl’s Corner. Whether it’s just a visitor or someone who uses our services, I am truly indebted to all of you. So from me, Buddy & Marigold we love you and thank you. The positive things that surround my life could not be possible without you, and I will not forget you.

God bless and keep you all.

Carl