An Ordinary Day

by Sister Ann Marie Emon

How are your New Year’s resolutions coming along?  Maybe you chose to make just one resolution.  Regardless, why not try a resolution that will touch people’s lives in their ordinary day.  A good reason for doing a resolution like this is found in the mission statement of the Sisters of St. Francis which reads “ Called like Francis of Assisi to live the Gospel in joyful servanthood among all people…”  How can we be joyful with ordinary people?  Let me introduce you to three people that did something ordinary in a person’s life.  Meet Maria who is walking down the corridor in a long term care facility.  She is in a hurry but she sees a gentleman in a wheelchair and Maria knows the resident wants a push to the elevator.  She really wants to keep going but her New Year’s resolution kicks in and she helps the man who needs a push.

Let me introduce you to Rachel who works for a local I.T. department at the university.  She has a report due later that day so she needs all the time she can get.  In the computer lab Rachel sees a student who is frustrated trying to use the computer program called Excel. The student needs some guidance.  Rachel’s New Year’s resolution reminds her that it’s the ordinary actions that matters so she gives some advice to the student.  By the way, Rachel finished her report on time.

Matt is a Kindergarten teacher in an elementary school in Los Angeles.  The students love him.  One day Matt was outside for lunch duty.  When it was time to go back inside,  he sees one of his students, Andy, crying because he scraped his hand.  He could have just sent him to the office but instead Matt’s New Year’s resolution reminds him that Andy needed his help so he cleaned Andy’s hand and by then he was just fine.  Matt asked Andy, “What about the sidewalk?”  “I don’t know!”  “Well, let’s go check it.” They went outside to see if the sidewalk was OK.  Andy looks carefully at the sidewalk and announces, “It’s an old crack!”  The rest of the day went well for both of them.

As you can see, a simple resolution that has to do with other people rather than ourselves, is rewarding for everybody.  May you have someone in your life who will make your ordinary day a little more joyful.