From U-tube:I CHOOSE LOVE and words from Mother Teresa

I went to the grocery store last night - the cupboard was again bare - and headed to the BREAKFAST FOODS aisle. Like a clinical researcher I scanned the shelves for a cereal which would not wedge under the temporary crown that remains precariously in place on the upper left of my mouth. Nothing flakey or crunchy or sticky could be considered.

All un-refrigerated and non 'health food' cereal items stocked by my local ShopRite inhabit one entire side of an aisle....some 90 feet long, 6 shelves (about 6.5 feet high). There were so many items to choose from that I became mesmerized by the expanse of it and had difficulty in choosing what to pick. God (not a stockguy) tapped me on the shoulder and whispered into my ear "Your brothers and sisters in Calcutta, my latch key kids in the South Bronx and my children in the Solomon Islands after April's earthquake and tsunami must choose whether they eat today or tomorrow - and where the food will come from". I grabbed a bag each of 'generic' puffed wheat and puffed rice. I put back on the shelf the Bisquick, paper plates and extra bananas. Our national wealth, the abundance of nearly anything we would want, need or obtain on a whim, is so enveloping that we could very easily avoid thinking of anyone but ourselves. As Christians, we are called to live outside of our comfortable envelope. We have choices to make.

Please have a look at the attached U-Tube presentation which was sent to Barbara by Yvette Tsiropoulos (of NY City?) and passed on to me. I hope you will pass it along as well. The choices we are called to make fall beyond the cereal aisle. I would ask you to take note that some of the images presented are photographs (using mirror photography effects) which show a road that divides into two distinct paths.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTmrpNyA3X0


Mother Teresa (1910-1997) was wont to hand out what looked like a worn yellow business card (made up as a gift to her by an Indian businessman) when she went on her travels. On it was printed the following:

The Simple Path

The fruit of silence is prayer.
The fruit of prayer is faith.
The fruit of faith is love.
The fruit of love is service.
The fruit of service is peace.

Print out these directions for The Simple Path; keep them with you, refer to them often. When faced with a split in the road, I am certain neither Mother Teresa nor God would mind if you 'borrowed' these directions and used them yourself!

P.S. Go to The Geranium Farm home page for other features and information about Episcopal Relief and Development which helps those who suffer from the aftermath of natural and man-made disasters.