Deacon Terry Brennan

Our little town has seen a bit of an uproar in the past week or two, haven’t we?  One might call it a kerfuffle.  And for those of us who have more than a few hairs beginning to shade to the lighter side of the color pallette (that would be gray), we’ve seen some kerfuffles, haven’t we?  You know, I cannot recall a single kerfuffle in which I have participated, or that I have witnessed, that in and of itself resulted in any substantial, life altering end results.  Temporary, distracting, bothersome – all these words apply to kerfuffles themselves;

Have you ever noticed that the happiest people amongst us seem to be those who have a focus on people other than themselves?  I am constantly reminded of this as I see people within our community who are of very modest means yet seem to live as if they “have it all.”
They are happy, their families are relatively functional, they are active — in short, they seem to be leading pretty decent lives.  All of this in spite of not having a $50,000 car, a $200,000 house, or fancy jobs. 

A friend once told me there are four things you will find on a tombstone – a name, a date of birth, a date of death, and a dash between the dates.  The name and the two dates – well their purpose is self evident.  But what about the dash, just what is that? 
My friend told me the dash represents everything you have done between the two dates – in other words, your life.  Finding myself solidly into middle age, I often think about the dash as the second date is now closer than the first for me. 

I find myself in a bit of a reflective stance as my sons move forward with their lives.  My wife and I are extremely proud of our children (as I hope are all parents). 
With both of them through with school and gainfully employed in fields they enjoy, my bride and I have had the chance to reflect upon the years, the tears, the laughter, and the tough decisions that led us to this moment.  Raising children for us was a true joy – not necessarily always the easiest of tasks but certainly a joyful undertaking. 

It seems to me as if society has fallen into a rut when we are presented with problems, and I’m not sure that rut is good at identifying the reality of a problem or potential solutions. 

Do we ever consider the many dimensions of our Christmas celebrations and traditions?  Of course, the story of our Lord’s birth some 2000 years ago begins the story in a very real sense.  But do we ever stop to think about the continuation of the story?

As a young boy, I can remember watching many of the space launches from Cape Canaveral.  We knew these endeavors were fraught with risk and danger and we sat with breaths held as the adventurers soared toward the stars.  Every once in a while something would go awry, and those gut clenching words were heard, “Houston, we have a problem!”  With the exception of a couple of disastrous events which will be forever etched in the memories of those who saw them, the grace of God and the application of some brilliant problem solving skills brought these pioneers home.