“Freedom consists not in doing what we like, but in having the right to do what we ought.” (Pope Saint John Paul II).
My mother in law was sick for some time. And during the period of her illness we – as a family – knew that it was our job to assist her in any way that would make her experience less painful.
At one point, my mother in law became gravely ill. When that happened, my husband knew that he needed to go to her. Now, my mother in law lives in a country that is on the other side of the world. It is no easy thing to go to her. It takes a considerable amount of time and money to do such a thing. It also takes – a considerable amount of time away from work and other family commitments and all the things that one enjoys.
When my husband finally realised that he was required to attend to his mother, he started to hesitate. And he started to delay. This is not because he did not wish to help his mother; rather this was because he was sad to have to help her. It is one thing after all to help our mothers in packing things away and tidying our rooms when we are young. It is quite another to see our mothers desperately sick in a hospital bed and in pain and suffering.
That evening, when things took a turn for the worse, my husband needed to book a flight to go and see his mother. And booking that flight was simply overwhelming. First he was distracted by phone calls, and later by tidying things away. After that he felt that he should change his clothes. And even later, the availability was problematic and the poor man felt quite overwhelmed by the decision at hand.
Eventually – of course – the flight was booked, and my husband flew to see his mother. And as I have been reflecting on that today I have also been reflecting on the freedom that we have in our life.
Pope Saint John Paul II said, “Freedom consists not in doing what we like, but in having the right to do what we ought.”
And I have been reflecting on that right to do what he ought – even when it was difficult for him. And I have been considering how often I use that right that I have to do what is right – not so much by my Earthly Mother, but by my Heavenly Mother. You see, when we sin, we cast the Blessed Virgin into terrible sadness – the sort of sadness that breaks her heart. Not in the trite way that we talk of it in today’s modern world, but in the way that the Sacred Heart of Christ breaks with sin, and in the way that the Holy Heart of God broke when Eve and Adam first sinned.
And I have been thinking about that today as I have been thinking about how that flight was booked that day…
For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.
Comments