Meetings

Yesterday I managed to surprise one married couple and appear on the 10th Anniversary of their Sacrament of Marriage – sharing their joy at the time that passed and looking forward with trust to the time yet to come. As every couple, they struggle for true love. They already know where the Source of Love is and how to draw on it.

On the way home I gave a lift to Vlodek. He used to be in prison, then he met a woman who’d been beaten, and then abandoned with two children, by her husband. He married her, brought up her children, led them to their First Communion, and then became the father of the woman’s third child. The priest in the parish refused to baptize the child, saying it’s been conceived in adultery.  Vlodek’s wife is ill with MS. She lost her sight. They sleep separately, because it’s difficult to become parents again in this situation. They go to the church, though the sacraments are not available to them. Every evening Vlodek prays with his family to the Mother of God – asking Her to be with them.

The next person to sit in my car was Jola, who thumbed a lift two minutes after Vlodek had got off. She was a bit tipsy. She started complainning about the people who pray ardently when they need something, but they forget to say “thank you”. Her left forearm was striped with scars after slashing, but she talked of the prayer of gratefulness like a zealous apostle.

The meetings with people always abound in presence of God, who does miracles in them – regardless of their stories. Yesterday I had the luck of meeting those people in person.

Fr Jay