Going about the Lord's work

I sit in church for the early Christmas Eve mass. Two pews ahead a family catches my eye. I know I’m supposed to be praying, but I’m a writer. I tell stories. This blog is about the guy’s point of view, but this time I can only offer my own. I can’t generalize. Do I focus on the people around me, the architecture, a scene I’ve been mulling over, the sermon? As I have written before, I suppose I should be pious, being an ex-altar boy and practically a priest educationally. But that is so not me.

The family from left to right comprises an approximately twelve-year-boy, his sixteen-year-old sister, the mom then the dad. They’re close. The kids take turns holding their mom’s hands or patting her shoulder. The husband puts his arms around her. Later the mom swaps with her son so that he could be next to his dad for a while. Many times, the taller sixteen-year-old daughter rests her head on her petite mom’s shoulder.

I’ve found my prayer. The mom is the sun to her family. Through her nurturing, she brings light into their lives. They are one and growing in love. The mom's heart is felt in the sweet quiet moments in a church in a pew in a prayer.

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It's rare for a 16-year old daughter to be that affectionate with her mom. The stereotype of being lost and then, one day, being found doesn’t always have to be. What magic or grace does this mother possess?

 

So, okay, that’s me, but this blog is about not just about one guy, but what other guys think as well.

After I became thoroughly confused as to what to do in church and tried the same on you, I thought an expert could inspire us to find our path again.

Dana Carvey as The Church Lady will highlight the wrong path to take during Christmas.