4 Wives...

I received this through email. It makes a lot of sense.

Once upon a time, there was a rich king who had four wives.

He loved the 4th wife the most and adorned her with rich robes and treated her to the finest of delicacies. He gave her nothing but the best.

He also loved the 3rd wife very much and was always showing her off to neighboring kingdoms. However, he feared that one day she would leave him for another.

He also loved his 2nd wife. She was his confidant and was always kind, considerate and patient with him. Whenever the King faced a problem, he could confide in her, and she would help him get through the difficult times.

The King's 1st wife was a very loyal partner and had made great contributions in maintaining his wealth and kingdom. However, he did not love the first wife. Although she loved him deeply, he hardly took notice of her!

One day, the King fell ill and he knew his time was short. He thought of his luxurious life and wondered, "I now have four wives with me, but when I die, I'll be all alone."

Thus, he asked the 4th wife, "I have loved you the most, endowed you with the finest clothing and showered great care over you. Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?" "No way!" replied the 4th wife and she walked away without another word. Her answer cut like a sharp knife right into his heart.

The sad King then asked the 3rd wife, "I have loved you all my life. Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?" "No!" replied the 3rd wife. "Life is too good! When you die, I'm going to remarry!" His heart sank and turned cold.

He then asked the 2nd wife, "I have always turned to you for help and you've always been there for me. When I die, will you follow me and keep me company?" "I'm sorry, I can't help you out this time!" replied the 2nd wife. "At the very most, I can only walk with you to your grave." Her answer struck him like a bolt of lightning, and the King was devastated.

Then a voice called out: "I'll go with you. I'll follow you no matter where you go. "The King looked up, and there was his first wife. She was very skinny as she suffered from malnutrition and neglect. Greatly grieved, the King said, "I should have taken much better care of you when I had the chance!"

In truth, we all have the 4 wives in our lives:

Our 4th wife is our body. No matter how much time and effort we lavish in making it look good, it will leave us when we die.

Our 3rd wife is our possessions, status and wealth. When we die, it will all go to others.

Our 2nd wife is our family and friends. No matter how much they have been there for us, the furthest they can stay by us is up to the grave.

And our 1st wife is our Soul. Often neglected in pursuit of wealth, power and pleasures of the world. However, our Soul is the only thing that will follow us wherever we go. Cultivate, strengthen and cherish it now, for it is the only part of us that will follow us to the throne of God and continue with us throughout Eternity.

The Lenten Season may be appropriate time to see if there is anything we have neglected.

Do not look glum...

Matthew 6:1-6,16-18

Jesus said to his disciples:

‘Be careful not to parade your good deeds before men to attract their notice; by doing this you will lose all reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give alms, do not have it trumpeted before you; this is what the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets to win men’s admiration. I tell you solemnly, they have had their reward. But when you give alms, your left hand must not know what your right is doing; your almsgiving must be secret, and your Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you.

‘And when you pray, do not imitate the hypocrites: they love to say their prayers standing up in the synagogues and at the street corners for people to see them; I tell you solemnly, they have had their reward. But when you pray, go to your private room and, when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in that secret place, and your Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you.

‘When you fast do not put on a gloomy look as the hypocrites do: they pull long faces to let men know they are fasting. I tell you solemnly, they have had their reward. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that no one will know you are fasting except your Father who sees all that is done in secret; and your Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you.’

"Sshhh! Do not be too noisy. Do not laugh too loud. It is Lent."

As children, we have been often reprimanded for being too happy during Lent. The conventional understanding was, that when we have entered the Holy Season of Lent, we have to be austere and meditative in bearing and disposition. These are the days to be quiet and to in silence reflect on the sacrifices of the Lord Jesus. And if this is so for Lent, it is much more so during Holy Week, especially on Holy Thursday and Good Friday.

There is of course much truth in this.

The Season of Lent is a penitential season. The first day of Lent, Ash Wednesday (The Gospel we cited above is the reading of that day's Liturgy.) sets the penitential tone - we are marked with ashes, an Old Testament sign of contrition and sincere sorrow for our sins, with the words, "Turn away from sin and believe in the Gospel."

The Season calls for much reflection. We are to reflect on the great sacrifice of the Lord Jesus, and on our own personal struggles for a faithful Christian life.

The Season calls for us to be austere - to practice self-denial by fasting and abstinence. The Holy Father Benedict XVI in his Lenten Message in fact rediscovers the value of the discipline of Lent. He wrote,

It seems abundantly clear that fasting represents an important ascetical practice, a spiritual arm to do battle against every possible disordered attachment to ourselves. Freely chosen detachment from the pleasure of food and other material goods helps the disciple of Christ to control the appetites of nature, weakened by original sin, whose negative effects impact the entire human person.

The Season is a time to quiet down (read: slow down). We are called to be more cognizant of the presence of God in our lives, in our relationships, in our world. We are called to not be constantly subsumed by the busyness that we are constantly pushed to. We are called to stop, look, and listen. We are called to more consciously stop from our "full schedules" to have time for ourselves before God. We are called to unclutter our lives. We are to look into our lives and make sense of what is happening in us, with our lives, relationships, directions. We are called to pick up scattered pieces, fragments of our life and find some patterns. We are called to listen - to ourselves (Come to think of it, we often miss this, don't you think?), to others (Again, don't you think we miss this too?), and of course, to God (Yes, there is God.).

Amidst the call to contrition, reflection, self-denial and recollection though, we are called to be people of joy and hope. Our attitude amidst this discipline is one of a willing and joyful heart - willingly sacrifice and deny ourselves in loving response to God who has loved us first, and a joyful heart filled with hope that what the Lord has done - conquered sin and death, and triumphed in new life for all eternity - will also happen to us, that we will also share in the Resurrection, ultimately in the future, but beginning in our present life, relationships and world.

What is more, this motive of willingness and joy is trustworthy. We know and believe that the hope promised us will be ours.

Is this not a source of joy?

Lenten humor. =)

This cartoon is taken from www.catholiccartoonblog.blogspot.com.

On children

Kahlil Gibran on Children

And a woman who held a babe against her bosom said, "Speak to us of Children."

And he said:

Your children are not your children.

They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.

They come through you but not from you,

And though they are with you, yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts.

For they have their own thoughts.

You may house their bodies but not their souls,

For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow,

which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.

You may strive to be like them,

but seek not to make them like you.

For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.

You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.

The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite, and He bends you

with His might that His arrows may go swift and far.

Let your bending in the archer's hand be for gladness;

For even as he loves the arrow that flies,

so He loves also the bow that is stable.