How Embarrassing, Right?

I am embarrassed to say that in addition to my online calendars, I keep a calendar on my counter that runs from June-July.

That’s not the embarrassing part.

The embarrassing part is that every year for the past – I don’t know, maybe 19 years – I have saved the used calendar and put it on a shelf under the counter.

Now, before you get all judgy on me, let me just say in my defense, those calendars contain family history.  I mean, seriously, they are like a record of what we did every day since our kids were young.

As I went through them to finally weed them out, I kept the most recent calendar, as well as the calendars for significant years, like the year we went to Bogota, Colombia to adopt our youngest daughter (which was also the year our son graduated from high school).

Living in Colombia, our daughter’s first snow was a big deal here.  So big in fact, that I even marked her first snowball on that calendar.  Now you tell me, who’s going to toss that calendar away?

Not me.  No way.

But in the end, I got down to about three calendars, so not bad.  Mission accomplished!

I was actually surprised to see how crazy packed our days were back then.  Notations and appointments were squeezed on to most pages because those years contained not only appointments for my husband and me, but all of the kids’ activities, too.

I don’t remember thinking those days looked so full at the time, but looking back, they certainly were.  Still, our family calendar wasn’t nearly as crazy as other families.  I remember seeing a friend’s calendar on their wall years ago that would make your head spin.  Their kids were into sports (which ours were not) so you can imagine how packed their calendar was—or wait, maybe you don’t have to imagine it if you lived it yourself with your kids.

Anyway, it takes a lot of organization to keep a family organized so that everyone can get to where they are supposed to be—on time.

Naturally, Jesus didn’t have to keep a calendar back then. But it might have helped.

In today’s Gospel (John 16:5-11), Jesus talks about leaving.  He said to his disciples, “Now I am going to the one who sent me, and not one of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’”

It’s kind of funny, when you think about it.  If Jesus would have had a calendar, he would not have asked such a silly question!  No need for anyone to ask him where he was going.  All they would have had to do was look at the date on his calendar!

All silliness aside, the disciples were getting an important piece of information and they needed to be paying close attention.  Jesus told them that he had to go so the Advocate would come.

If you are not familiar with the Advocate, you are going to want to be paying very close attention over the next couple of weeks.  The Advocate’s big day (and ours!) is coming on May 31, 2020 (check your calendar!).  This special day is often called the birthday of the Church.

You will be hearing much more about the Advocate, also known as the Holy Spirit, as we move closer to Pentecost. 

Pentecost is a big day for us, and it was a big day for the early Church.  Be sure not to miss it!

Janet Cassidy
janetcassidy.blogspot.com
janetcassidy.blubrry.net (podcasts)