The Rerouted Skytress

This Sunday was Palm Sunday. Like every week since COVID -19, I attended Mass on-line. However, this Palm Sunday, I was more hopeful for the future. Last Palm Sunday, we were in the early stages of the pandemic. This time last year I wasn’t sure about much of anything. Well, I was definitely sure of one thing…. pandemics are awful, awful, awful! Yep, I am not a fan of pandemics. I even told God this. You know…in case he was in Heaven wondering about my thoughts on this particular topic. I was, also, sure I was going to do my part to make the pandemic end as quickly as it started. Yep, I told this to God, too. You know…in case he was in Heaven wondering what I was planning to do now that we had a pandemic. Like I said, last year I watched Palm Sunday on my iPad. When the priest mentioned we could drive up to church later that day to get our blessed Palms, I drove up there. Like I said, I was doing my part to end the pandemic. Irish Catholics are very superstitious. I didn’t want to jinx the world by not getting my blessed Palms. Yep,…I told this to God, too.

Palm Sunday is a very special day for Catholics for the obvious religious reasons. It is also special to Catholics for the non- obvious reasons. Yes, it’s the final week of surviving life without the things we gave up for Lent. Ah, yes, our Lenten sacrifices. I’m sure you have heard many Catholics talk about what they are giving up…or gave up…for Lent. We sort of make a big deal about it. Not because it is a beautiful thing to do. Even though it is. No. Mostly, we talk about it because it’s hard to give up things. Especially, things we love. All during Lent we talk about how on Easter Sunday the first thing we are going to do is…..enjoy what we gave up for Lent. Well, except for those who gave up swearing. I know many Catholics give up swearing for Lent. However, not too many admit they can’t wait until Easter Sunday so they can swear like a sailor again. No, the big thing Catholics talk about doing on Easter Sunday, usually entails eating something they gave up. I guarantee thousands of Catholics give up sugar items for Lent….particularly candy….especially chocolate. Many Catholics, also choose to give up their favorite drink for Lent. For many of people, this is soda. . When I was younger I usually gave up drinking soda for Lent. There were many Easter mornings I woke up and immediately drank a soda. Alleluia!!!…It was the most glorious thing as far as I was concerned. Ironically, now that I am older, I no longer drink soda. Go figure.

One Lent I decided I wasn’t going to give something up. No, I decided I was going to rejoice every day of Lent by doing something special. Yes, we Catholics have this option, too. It’s actually God approved. This particular Lent God spoke to my heart to chose this option. I chose to do something special for Ron during Lent. Ron could be very hard on himself at times. This made me sad. I always told Ron I wish he could see himself through my eyes. He was such an incredible human being. So, for Lent that year, I decided I would text him one thing each day that I admired and loved about him. Of course, my list was much longer than there are days of Lent. But, each morning I happily texted him one of his many special qualities. Some days Ron would reply with a witty text. He couldn’t help it. Humor was one of his best qualities. Some days he would simply say thank you. I know on these days his soul needed be reminded God blessed him with this marvelous trait. For Easter I gave Ron a booklet which contained each attribute I had texted him during Lent. I wanted him to have a tangible reminder of all his wonderful God-given qualities.

The next year for Lent I decided I would send Ron a quote to start each day. Ron loved to read. He loved things that made him think and touched his soul. We definitely had this in common. I actually have a Pinterest board were I pin quotes that speak to me in some way. Some are thought provoking quotes. Others are silly quotes that make my soul smile. I texted Ron a little of each type. After all, variety is the spice of life, right? One quote I sent Ron really surprised him. It was a quote by Albert Einstein. Ron loved quantum physics, the Black Hole, and a plethora of science topics. He loved to talk about Tesla….you know, the person Nikola Tesla, not the car. He, also, thoroughly enjoyed talking about Albert Einstein. Albert Einstein’s quote that peaked Ron’s interest was, “ A ship is always safe at the shore. But, that is not what it is built for”. Ron talked about this quote on numerous occasions. I think this quote spoke to him for several reasons. First, he was amazed Einstein said it. Let’s face it, Albert was known more for physics than philosophy. Second, Ron loved the reference to a ship on the water. One of Ron’s favorite things in life was being out on the water on a boat. One of my favorite things to do was sing Kenny Loggins’ “Return to Pooh Corner” to Ron. So, of course, I had to text Ron a quote from Winnie the Pooh. It was a quote from Tigger. Ron laughed at this quote. Which was what I had intended. That’s what I loved about Ron. He was extremely intelligent and had a phenomenal sense of humor.

The last Lenten list I created for Ron was his “song of the day” list. Anyone who knew Ron, knew he loved music. All kinds of music. What better way to start a music lover’s day than with a song,…right? Needless to say, this was the most joyful Lenten list to compile. It should be noted that I am not a very good singer. Actually, I’m pretty awful. So, I usually never sing around anyone. Incredibly, though, I sang with Ron all the time. We couldn’t help ourselves. Something would trigger a song in our heads and we would break out singing. Not surprisingly, some of those songs made the Lenten list. My list of songs for Lent was very diverse. Obviously, most songs on the Lenten list meant something extra- special to us. There were other songs I added to the list simply because I loved them. I knew Ron would appreciate them as well. I know Ron thoroughly loved my quirky list of songs. How did I know this? Well, he would tell me, of course! Happily, many days Ron reciprocate and he would text me my song for the day. He continued to do this long after Lent, too. Ron’s repertoire of music was vastly greater than mine. So, many times I had to google the song he deemed my song for the day. Ron would tease me for doing this. But, I didn’t mind. I love music. Unfortunately, I don’t remember the names of songs or who sang them. I clearly was not born with this gene. No. I was born with the Google gene, instead.

I didn’t give anything up for Lent this year. I, also, didn’t create any Lenten lists. Instead, I’ve been listening to the songs on the list I made for Ron. Not surprisingly, the songs still fill my soul. I’ve, also, been looking over my favorite quotes on Pinterest. There are over a thousand quotes on my Pinterest board. I know. That’s a lot. I tried to delete some. But, I can’t. All those saved quotes still inspire me. Hey, inspiration from music and much loved quotes during an awful pandemic is a beautiful thing. Of course, I don’t have to tell this to God in Heaven. No. He knows. It’s actually God approved. Have a blessed Holy Week my dear friends. Happy Easter.