Hope in unexpected places

I was watching the movie Midnight Clear with Stephen Baldwin last night, touted as a movie where hope is found in unexpected places on a Christmas Eve. The movie pulled together the stories of various characters struggling day to day in their lives- Baldwin, an alcoholic recently homeless and unemployed while weathering a divorce; a youth ministry leader devastated by a car accident a year earlier which left a co-worker (Rick) brain injured, still not home; Rick's wife and son; a lonely convenience store owner and an elderly woman. What happens in the movie is that, because it's Christmas Eve, a few of the characters reach out to each other and, despite their own difficult circumstances, extend hope to others.

Pope Benedict XVI's visit definitely stirred hope in many Catholics and others with his message of the need to live our faith despite the difficulties we encounter in our present time. He reminds us that it was never and has never been an easy road to do that in the world, yet at the same time assured us that doing God's will, in the end, would lead to an enduring and lasting footprint we can leave on this earth. It would lead to both freedom and joy.

Our mortality scares many of us. I know this not only because I've helped run a retreat for people with terminal illnesses, but I've watched a number of my friends die at young ages. Watching how they lived knowing that death is approaching and their time on earth is limited has taught me a great deal about how to live.

How blessed I was to know my friend Cindy who had MS and spent her very last bit of energy running an Independent Living Center to help so many. She taught me that no matter how little energy one has, you can always find some way to help. No hands? Use your mouth. No speech? Blink your eyes. The inherent dignity of life remains in each of us to our very last day on earth so strongly that we always have a chance to be that hope for someone else. My 60 pound friend Andy, who died in her early 20's, who spent her nights in an iron lung and whose last words remain with me to this day, a message that I try to pass on to others: the best feeling I ever had was helping someone else.

The Pope's words struck me as a reminder to all of us that we need to remember we are accountable for our mortal time and we are here to show hope to others. We think we can't be that hope to someone else because of our own problems. We're too busy. We don't know enough. We might say the wrong thing. Bottom line: we just don't feel good enough. We forget who we are, which is God's children, spiritual beings.

Each of us, every single day, has a chance to be that hope in an unexpected place to someone else.

[For extensive coverage of the Pope's homilies and speeches during his visit, as well as photos and other information, please visit Whispers in the Loggia.]