May 21, 2010
The Second Half
Spinning seeds
BY DEACON JIM AND ANN CAVERA
Ordinarily, late May should be a great time to play outdoors with grandsons Jamie and David. Yesterday was the last spring day for the boys at our house. Today, their dad begins his summer break from the college where he teaches. We had hoped our final day with the boys would be warm and sunny enough for them to ride their tricycles or color on the driveway with chalk. It might have been an exciting day for a walk to the park or the grocery store. Instead, the air was so chilly and rainy we were stuck on the front porch. I couldn’t help thinking their last spring day with us would be one they would soon forget.
Each of the boys climbed onto a rocking chair and soon discovered how much fun it was to rock hard enough to lightly bump the porch railing behind them. After several minutes of vigorous rocking, Jamie climbed down and began ringing the front doorbell, even though no one was inside to answer. Dozens of seeds from our maple tree had been blown onto the porch. David left his chair and began tossing the seeds over the porch rail to watch them spin to the earth. Jamie decided to help him and before long the porch was cleared of all those little seeds. They joined me on the porch swing and we spent the rest of our play time naming the colors of the cars that drove past our house. Neither of the boys seemed to even think it might have been more fun to go for a walk or play in the driveway. They are still young enough everything is an adventure. They haven’t discovered the gray monotone of boredom that draws a veil over the eyes of older children who might consider themselves above rocking chairs and whirling seeds.
The boys have such carefree spirits they are open to everything. Time means little because we just explore whatever the day brings. In the presence of our grandsons, we begin to see so much we might have overlooked. Our grandchildren slow us down in ways that allow us to appreciate the gifts of the Spirit. In their company we make room for the kind of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, and gentleness we should always keep as our daily company.
We recognize the same kind of gentle spirit in many of our elderly friends. They have found the grace to live their lives in love, joy, peace and goodness. Do circumstances prevent them from having a comfortable lifestyle? No problem. They spend time volunteering to help other people. Has life treated them unjustly? Have they been abandoned by people they love? They spend much of their time in prayer, often for these same people. Some must live with illness and pain. They focus on the joy they have in family, friends, hobbies, or even what is happening at the bird feeder in their back yard. The gift of the Holy Spirit opens our eyes to see the miracles all around us from the joy in a grandchild to the wonder of a spinning seed that will one day be a maple tree.
Deacon Jim and Ann Cavera are former residents of Evansville; their award-winning column is a regular feature of the Message. Contact them at www.catholicseniorspirit.com.