We invite Dehonians, co-workers and other collaborators in SCJ ministry to share their personal reflections regarding the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in their lives and their communities. The following is from Fr. Byron Haaland, SCJ, Novice Master for the US Province.
My dad was a builder of homes. This meant that he would spend time and money at City Hall obtaining the necessary permits for the many aspects of construction. The lesson he attempted to teach me was,“Don’t fight with City Hall. Do all the requirements and your life will be happy.”
During this pandemic “City Hall” has spoken. We are to pull back from our little daily freedoms and hunker down in place. New requirements seem to be posted throughout the day. It invites madness and cabin fever. Temptations abound to break these rules, to cheat just this one time.
All these directives, of course, afford us all an opportunity during this season of Lent… and beyond. It offers us TIME to be STILL and LISTEN to the God of our hearts. It’s as if the entire world has been Invited to participate in a sort of novitiate experience. Certainly, lots of things must be attended to these days but it also gifts us with TIME. It is what we choose to do with this TIME that makes all the difference.
Don’t fight City Hall. Choose to be happy in place.
