I am 36 years old, which
means I am exactly old enough to remember the Montreal Expos but not
old enough to remember the peak of Gary Carter's career as their
catcher. (I do have vague memories of his return to the team for a
season when I was 12, after “The Kid” played a few years for the
Mets.) I am a Montreal Expos fan and have not gotten over the team's
move to Washington to become the Nationals. Currently, I like the
Blue Jays enough that I am happy if they do well but I can't cheer
for them with great gusto because it feels like I am betraying nos
amours.
One night I met a
homeless man a little bit younger than my Dad. This man lived in
Montreal for the late 1970s and early 1980s. He and I spent a lot of
time talking about the Expos. I listened to the homeless man tell
stories about Gary Carter when Carter was a star on some of the best
Expos teams assembled. I envied that this man got to see Gary Carter
play live at his best while I only could watch YouTube videos of the
legend.
Two things happened today
that got me to thinking about this homeless man and thinking about
this man got me to look up Carter's last at bat on YouTube. First, I
met with a potential volunteer for the shelter. Second, I read the
Prayer for Peace by Saint Francis of Assisi.
First is my meeting.
When I meet with volunteers I talk about the sort of things they can
expect to do at the shelter. One of the things I always talk about
is simply sitting and talking with the guys. Like I always do, I
pointed out today that some of the guys at the shelter really enjoy
having someone to talk with because they spend most of their days
alone and silent. Hanging out – as simple as watching a Tom Cruise
movie or talking about the glory years of your favourite baseball
team – is how relationships are built. I will never be able to
talk about faith with one of my guys if I am not first willing to
talk about whatever it is he wants to talk about.
Second is prayer.
Francis leads us to pray, “O Divine Master, grant that I may not
so much seek... to be loved, as to love.”
I regularly need to pray this prayer. Recall what words Paul uses
to describe love. Love is patient, kind, supportive, loyal, hopeful,
and trusting. Love is not quick-tempered, selfish, jealous, rude, or
boastful. Love does not keep a record of the wrong that was done.
Love does rejoice in truth.* A nice summary of Paul's list may be,
“Love is HARD.” The reason I need to pray for the ability to
love my guys is because I am not able to love them without God's
help. God's grace is the only thing that allows me to set aside my
desire and my demand for love. Without God, I cannot love. Without
love, I cannot serve.
I am
a disciple of Jesus so I follow a man who always loved people even
when the love was not returned. Saint Francis' prayer was so helpful
to me because it reminds me to imitate Jesus and work to love others
rather than to work to make them love me.
If
love is not at the centre of my work with Outflow, I will be a
failure. People often ask me how to talk with homeless people or
others who are down-and-out in one way or another. My suggestion is
to find something you have in common with the person and go from
there. When we think about “homeless people” it is important
that we put more emphasis on the word “people”. These folks are
the same as you and me, created in God's image and loved by Him.
There is certainly and always something in common between the person
who is asking me how to talk to a homeless person and the homeless
person they want to talk with. If nothing else, they are both
persons.
Today
I was reminded to love. Today I remembered my need God's grace for
me to do this.
Prayer for Peace by
Saint Francis of Assisi
Lord,
make me an instrument of your peace.
Where
there is hatred, let me sow love,
where
there is injury, pardon,
where
there is discord, union,
where
there is doubt, faith,
where
there is error, truth,
where
there is despair, hope,
where
there is sadness, joy,
where
there is darkness, light.
O
Divine Master,
grant
that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be
understood, as to understand;
to be
loved, as to love;
for
it is in giving that we receive,
it is
in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and
it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Gary
Carter's last at bat
*Paul's famous love chapter is 1 Corinthians 13. I used the Contemporary English Version for this list.
--Tony
