4th
Sunday of Advent
Cycle C
December 20, 2015 9:00
and 11:00am
Saint Margaret Parish, Bel Air
A Soldier and a Woman
Last year,
the Boston Globe carried a memorable
story.
It
takes place at the Denver airport. A
46-year-old woman is sitting near the gate where she is waiting to board her
plane.
She
glances up and sees a young man in front of her. There are a number of empty seats in the
waiting area, but he nods his head at the seat next to her.
Her
suitcase is blocking that seat. She is
mildly annoyed, but she moves the suitcase.
The
young man sits down and drops his duffel bag at his feet. He is wearing a U.S. Army camouflage uniform.
He
asks, “Where you headed?” She responds, “Home.”
He then
tells her that he has just returned from Afghanistan and is heading to Florida
to surprise his mother. He hasn’t seen
her for five years.
The
woman notices that when he looks at her, his eyes show need – some need. He wants something from her, but at first,
she doesn’t know what.
She
also notices that he keeps scanning the terminal. He says that it’s hard to stop scanning for
danger.
Yesterday
he was in the desert. Some fellow
soldiers had been killed.
Today,
he is in an airport where the biggest issues are waiting for a latte or being
upset over a flight delay. He admits
that he doesn’t know how to be here in this place.
The
woman now senses what he may want from her.
So she opens her heart a bit and tells him that just last week, her
friend’s teenage son had died suddenly.
She
shares that she is a mother and she has felt so disoriented and distant from
the everyday world. With that, the
soldier seems to relax.
They
had made a connection. The woman writes:
“He had seen the raw and the unbearable.
“He knew that it was not the time of the
flight, or a latte that was his concern.
But he did not know how to tell me.
“This was what he needed from me – what we
all need. He did not want the seat
beside mine.
“He wanted to sit with me. He needed to feel safe and understood for a
while.”
Mary and Elizabeth
That
soldier and that woman and their visit together, and the visit of Mary and
Elizabeth in today’s gospel have an important lesson.
Mary
travels to visit Elizabeth. She knows
that she needs time with this older woman – for Elizabeth’s sake, and for her
own sake too.
Elizabeth
is surprised by Mary’ unexpected visit.
But she welcomes it and gives herself to it.
The
soldier seeks out this woman at the airport.
He knows that he needs someone at that moment and senses that he will
feel safe with her.
The
woman is a bit annoyed at first. But she
is there for him in a remarkable way.
Remember What Is Important
I see a simple, but
important lesson here, especially at this time of year.
Let’s be aware of
the persons in our lives. Let’s take the
initiative to be with them and to share what is really going on with us.
In turn, let’s be
open to the family member or friend or just someone we know who reaches out to
us. Let’s be alert and give that person
some attention.
Underneath all the
glitz and busyness of these December days, this is what’s really
important. In fact, this is what our
celebration of the birth of Christ is all about – a person, and in him, each
person.
So, let’s make
persons first. Maybe some very needed
personal support will occur.
Maybe a
relationship will get enriched or reconciled.
These connections with one another are Godly moments.
Mary and Elizabeth
sit with each other and end up seeing the hand of God at work. The soldier and the woman sit with each other
and a God-filled experience happens for both of them.
So maybe the
question for this Sunday before Christmas is this: With whom do I need to
sit? Or, who needs to sit with me?
