Taking Deep Breaths...

Image by F8th via Flickr

I think I am running on adrenaline here since my return because I have been doing things around the parish almost non-stop without having been able to stop for a deep breath! :-D

Just yesterday, I had to present a session for the RCIA as they started off on their catechumenate. It was a 40+ minute presentation on the first item of the Creed - God, Father and Creator. Along the way the were 2 funeral masses which saw me going also to the crematorium. This parish goes the whole hog with the funeral procedure, as they don't use 'funeral ministers'. So, you go to their wake to do a rite to tranfer to the Church for the funeral Mass, have the funeral Mass, then follow the hearse to the crematorium to complete the sending off.

However, in the midst of all this bustle and the flurry that usually comes with parish life, I have managed to retain much semblance of patience and understanding for whatever shortcomings and limitations that usually arises from situations such as this. Living in Rome, with their utter stupidity and inefficiency, helped a lot as I am much more accepting with the superlative (in comparison to Rome, that is) way things are done here, even if they do sometimes cause some inconveniences along the way.

I do this by way of a little exercise I usually tell my penitents to put into practice: stop a bit, take a deeeep breathe and count slowly 1 to 5....