Self-sacrifice is a finding of a place of need, of emptiness that needs filling with a spirit of caring. Last night I kneeled before the wheelchair of Eleonore, who resides at the Dupage Convalescent Center. She had attended the St. Michael Christmas party for the aged. Some Holy Name members helped push those in wheelchairs. I was waiting for the bus to arrive to take her home. Kneeling brought me close to her, close enough to listen and to speak as the swirl of activity -- boy scouts, basketball practice -- encircled us.
We reminisced over days gone by, when our children attended St. Michael's school, her's my age, and mine her grandchildren's. But those memories lit up her face, as she remembered walking to mass at St. Mikes, her husband (now deceased) commuting by foot each day to his job at the post office in Wheaton. She couldn't quite remember her age, or her kids', but she did remember her happy days in Wheaton "once upon a time."
It was fitting to kneel before her, waiting in our old age, in quiet conversation, for the visitation of Jesus in his full glory. Our brief visit brought Him closer: In communion waiting, a sacrament making!
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