ASH WEDNESDAY REFLECTIONS

Yesterday was Ash Wednesday.  St. Mary Student Parish, where I am a member, serves The University of  Michigan student population.  Not surprisingly, the 7:00 p. m. mass was literally full to the rafters last night.  There's something about getting that black smudge on the forehead that has a pretty irresistible pull, even for busy college kids.  As a volunteer, I was asked to help distribute the ashes.  Put the thumb in a custard bowl filled with the ashes of burnt palm branches from last year, make a little cross on the forehead of the young person before you-- cute how some of them kind of smile shyly, some are very serious, none of them look bored.  Made an old guy like me feel a little younger for a while.  It was also nice to see old friends Ed and Paulette as well as new friend Mary.  To me, at the heart of  religion it's all about community made real.

Things shouldn't be so surprising anymore, but sometimes they are.  The words that are said while the thumb is tracing a cross on the forehead kept me aware of the urn on my mantel.  Each time I said those words to the person before me, I knew and felt their meaning at a much deeper level than ever before.  These are the words:

Remember, you are dust.
To dust you shall return.


A young married couple sat next to me  last night.  He held her hand, just the way I would have done with you last year, dear.  As we were leaving I thanked him for reminding me of what that love looks like.  He cried and hugged me.  Still hard to believe that last year I wheeled you up to the front and we both got black smudges on our foreheads.  A humbling reminder to live each day to the fullest for we know not when.