“We have all known the long loneliness and we have learned that the only solution is love and that love comes with community.”- Dorothy Day, Co-Founder of the Catholic Worker Hospitality Movement

Several significant anniversaries in the past week have me reflecting with appreciation on the many women in my life who have shaped my heart. Forty years ago last week, activist Dorothy Day joined her fellow rabble-rouser saints in heaven. Monday was the 65th anniversary of the day when Rosa Parks courageously refused to give up her seat on the Montgomery bus, a move that is described here as “the spark that ignited the Civil Rights movement.” And yesterday marked the 40th anniversary of the killing of Ursuline Sister Dorothy Kazel, Maryknoll Sisters Ita Ford and Maura Clark, and lay worker Jeanne Donovan, who served as faith filled martyrs of the civil war that ravaged El Salvador in the 1970s and 1980s. Each of these women showed a strength of conviction and faith that I can only hope for my own children as well. I am grateful for the many women in my life who have taught me how to be brave, how to love, and how to lead.

My kids recently found a cell phone in a neighborhood park, and through the magic of the website Nextdoor, I was able to find the phone’s owner. When he came to pick up the phone yesterday, he insisted on giving me a $100 bill as an expression of his gratitude. In conversation with our kids last night, we decided to donate this contribution to Golden Gate Lab Rescue, for whom we have to thank for our family dog, Sheba. Practicing random acts of kindness is one of the principles of our family’s annual advent calendar, and I was proud of my children for our conversation and decision last night. No good deed goes unnoticed.

Here’s a beautiful 12th Century Christmas Carol, the Wexford Carol, from Irish musician Patrick Dexter. I follow him on Twitter and have found such solace in his music throughout this pandemic experience. Plus he lives in the county where my grandparents grew up, County Mayo in Ireland, which comforts me too!

If you haven’t yet read this wonderful piece penned by Pope Francis, I invite you to read it this week. A Crisis Reveals What is in Our Hearts encourages empathy, thoughtfulness and compassion. May we strive toward these important attributes in the week ahead. Blessings to you and yours.

“Appreciation can make a day — even change a life. Your willingness to put it into words is all that is necessary.” Margaret Cousins, Suffragist

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday of the year. What typically would be a household full of friends is this year instead an intimate gathering of us and the dog:) We’ll still cook all day, have a 3pm toast with the neighbors on our block, and will also begin our day with our annual Family Turkey Trot in Golden Gate Park. Although this year’s Trot consists of a virtual component, it does still feel like a San Francisco community event, for which I am grateful.

Speaking of gratitude, check out Chris Cornell’s acoustic cover of Led Zeppelin’s “Thank You” here. His angelic voice does justice to Robert Plant’s lyrics of love and appreciation. May Chris rest in peace.

I will spend time in prayer and reflection this weekend, offering thanks for all those who risk their lives in service to fighting off this pandemic. I pray that those who are ill or have lost their lives may find peace. And I’ll spend lots of time outdoors, including heading to the beach on Friday.

I hope that you also may be able to enjoy this long weekend ahead, and that you too can be in community and in communion with that which grounds you. Stay healthy!

Thanksgiving Prayer – Catholic Health Association

God of all blessings, source of all life, giver of all grace:
We thank you for the gift of life:
for the breath that sustains life,
for the food of this earth that nurtures life,
for the life-giving love of family and friends.

We thank you for the mystery of creation:
for the beauty of the Earth that the eye can see,
for the unfolding universe that draws us beyond our imaginings.

We thank you for the communities to which we belong:
for families, for friends,
for neighbors and for companions at work.

We thank you for the strangers who welcome us into their lives and whom we invite to be part of ours.

We thank you for our brothers and sisters of all ages, all races, all nations and all faiths.

We thank you for the multitude of ways that you call us to steward the gifts of creation and to serve others in your name.

We thank you for this day, for the companionship we share and the bountiful goodness of the bread we break together.

God of all goodness, we pray in thanks for your presence among us however  we gather together, and your promise to be with us now and always.  AMEN.

“One of the unexpected impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic may be that a society that feels besieged by the threat of the virus will increasingly treat scientific information, and not just scientists, seriously.” Nicholas Christakis

One day last week we paused to watch a dumpster load onto a truck. This is a familiar experience from my childhood, for my dad was a roofer and often used dumpsters at job sites. My children were fascinated- my oldest, an aspiring engineer, admired the pulley….my middle child just loves anything with dirt…and my youngest eagerly described the anticipated final steps. The driver of the truck gave us a wave as he departed, and I revelled in the sense of awe and fascination demonstrated by my children. I was grateful that they slowed me down to notice this extraordinary event during an otherwise ordinary dog walk. God is good.

Last night I finished Apollo’s Arrow: The Profound and Enduring Impact of Coronavirus on the Way We Live by physician and sociologist Nicholas Christakis. It is an in-depth reflection upon our lived experience of Covid-19. This review captures its essence well. There are many lessons to be learned from the past 9-10 months, and throughout the months ahead. Like Christakis, I hope that this experience teaches us to honor our community and adhere to data and science. I have the same hope that our political climate moving forward can be one rooted in facts, dialogue and a shared commitment to community.

I recommend a read of this heartfelt article by Molly Cahill, An open letter to the bishops, from a young Catholic who’s only known a church in scandal. She states, “My sincerest hope is that generations to follow will not have to experience the disappointment and distrust I have experienced.” In the Catholic Church, my heart goes out to young people, especially. My adolescent years were such a formative time for me as a person of faith, and are the primary impetus for my vocation as a Catholic school educator. I pray that the adults in our Church pro-actively accompany young people on their own journeys by knowing them by name and meeting them where they are. With young people, I firmly believe that our starting point needs to be their own experience. They have much to teach us.

Let us pray for our physicians, nurses and all healthcare providers and essential workers across our country. May God bless you and yours throughout this week ahead.

“May these remarkable times bring out the best in all of us.” Rachel Maddow

To what end? 

I find myself asking that question quite a bit these days and months. I recently purchased Apollo’s Arrow: The Profound and Enduring Impact of Coronavirus on the Way We Live. I understand that it examines the Covid-19 impact through 2022 and beyond. With that in mind, I have been praying for, and reflecting upon, mental and spiritual sustenance. Especially given that this is how I felt throughout all of last week: Rossini William Tell Overture Final.

However, when Saturday mid-morning arrived, suddenly the skies cleared and the winds calmed. I gloriously deleted hundreds of pictures of my kids’ schoolwork that I had submitted via Google Classroom in recent months. I then spent 45 minutes yesterday morning (prior to 7am), frantically emailing incorrectly submitted assignments to my kids’ teachers to increase their grades as the trimester closed. Characteristically, the teachers responded immediately with their flexible acceptance and support of this “late” work. I sincerely appreciate their understanding and efforts, but I was challenged to have spent my time focused on those activities.

In founding the earliest Lasallian schools, Saint John Baptist de La Salle made clear his intention and hope for all students: “salvation.” Education was provided for the purpose of salvation. In today’s vernacular, I would use the description, “libration.” We teach to liberate our students from any and all obstacles that impede them from reaching their fullest, God-given potential. 

And so today as I write, while my daughter completes her spelling worksheet next to me as I prepare for a Zoom, and our boys are at their desks learning with their classmates via Google Meet, my hope for my children is that they grow while feeling known and loved. I appreciate their teachers for I do know how much they care for my children. But to be honest, I will focus most intently on our dialogue during our end-of-day daily family walk. This experience of learning- and working- from home is so unnatural, and so I try to do whatever I can do as a dad to provide the breaks- and learning- that my kids need and deserve. Some days are more successful than others!

Pacing myself. Sustainability of mental, physical and spiritual health. Growth. These are my hopes as we endure this challenging situation. These are the reasons why we’ve purchased wetsuits for each of us, heading into the winter. We wish to access the beach like we never have before, for our own fitness and well-being. The beach is what drew me to California over 20 years ago, and it is a big part of what keeps me here. So we shall see what the winter ahead presents to us as a family. 

As we head into winter, I encourage you to reflect upon what may be your wetsuit that you can wear to support your emotional and physical health.

“One only Holy Spirit of Father and son…renew in our day the wonders of Pentecost, grant that people of every race and nation may understand one another, and as one, proclaim the praises of God.” – Carl K. Moeddel

Yesterday I spent the day listening to a few webinars while I worked. I also enjoyed watching a virtual prayer service from one of our Lasallian schools. And last night I played guitar with my neighbors for a few hours before returning home to watch the news. I’m trying my best to attempt to be grounded amidst so much uncertainty in our country.

Several nuggets of wisdom emerged from what I heard yesterday. Soccer star Megan Rapinoe eloquently spoke of the significance of honesty among her best coaches, along with the lesson of resiliency she has learned in recovering from injuries. Nurse and activist Sara Franti advised that we “know our values, practice courage, and embrace self-compassion” to support our emotional well-being. Her husband, singer Michael Franti, performed a few of his songs as well. This is one of my favorite new ones from them: “I Got You.”

Today and throughout this week I will be heeding the below sage advice from Dan Rather. I am reading his book, What Unites Us, and I follow him on Twitter, too. I admire his integrity. May our week ahead be filled with peace.

From Dan Rather:

“My gentle counsel is be big on hope, pray (if that’s your way), stay steady, have patience, and don’t forget to breathe. If you can, listen to your favorite music, read a book or poetry, and if the weather is nice, take a walk.”

“We often judge ourselves harshly for what didn’t get done while overlooking the marathon we completed. Look again. With grace.” -Dr. Thema Bryant-Davis

This morning I listened to an excellent Catholic School Matters podcast. My colleague Dr. Tim Uhl interviewed George Couros, an educator, author and thought leader. George provided excellent advice for educators to “Focus on the people you serve. Connection is first. Everything else is second.” I couldn’t agree more from my vantage point as a parent and schoolperson. You can listen to the podcast by visiting the Catholic School Matters site here.

Speaking of connection, today’s Gospel writes of Jesus’ invitation to his twelve friends to accompany him as apostles, to be seekers and learners together. Jesus was a master networker, and to this day continues to bring people together seeking a common purpose of respect, love and community. It is worth noting that before he made this invitation, Jesus had spent time alone. He had escaped to the mountain to pray and reflect.

The importance of reflective practice strikes me as a foundational element of sustaining ourselves throughout this pandemic experience. With so much strife in our world, I find myself continually re-focusing my centering practices of self-care, prayer, reading and writing. I hope that these resource below provide sustenance for your journey.

SONGS

La Vida Es Un Carnaval- Celia Cruz

“Life is beautiful, you just have to live it.”

Hallelujah – Luke Sulic ft. Evgeny Genchev

ARTICLES

Here’s How the Pandemic Finally Ends

How to Manage Feelings of Uncertainty About the Future – MindShift

Five Simple Ways to Manage Stress This Year

In Schools, Are We Measuring What Matters? | Edutopia

NAIS – Trend Lines: Communicating School Value When Learning Is Online

Storytelling Can Make or Break Your Leadership – HBR

“Enlightenment must come little by little – otherwise it would overwhelm.” ― Idries Shah

This week I’ve been reflecting quite a bit on pacing myself throughout this pandemic experience. Some if it is influenced by my recent re-read of Your ‘Surge Capacity’ Is Depleted — It’s Why You Feel Awful: Here’s how to pull yourself out of despair and live your life. My thinking also is informed by the break I was privileged to take last week- two days off felt like a lifetime!

I’m focusing more and more on gratitude, and that for which I acknowledge my appreciation for what God provides me. In the past two weeks I’ve seen coyotes in my neighborhood, a whale rising up out of the ocean, deer in the woods, and on our daily family walk yesterday my kids were so excited about seeing a cricket. The picture above represents one of my favorite views of San Francisco, taken from our neighborhood park yesterday. I love where I live and feel blessed to spend this special time with my children.

Otherwise, like most others, I continue to be saddened by toxic discourse in our world. I am exhausted, and most weeks I feel like a ping pong ball bouncing back and forth among Zooms and phone calls and uploading homework to Google classroom while reinforcing 3rd grade math or 4th grade science or the middle school reading of Macbeth. One day at a time, counting my blessings along the way!

It is human to yearn for a return to “normal.” Yet sometimes following any disruptive event, a return to normal becomes impossible. What typically emerges from these events is a new normal that is based on what we have learned from that disruption. -Jim Dillon

In Charting a course to a (better) new normal, the importance of dialogue, openness, learning and considering “new rules” to follow are presented as key factors for persevering throughout this continually changing landscape of life today. I mentioned in a meeting last week that I feel as if I am re-inventing myself as a father, husband and educator, on a weekly basis, as changing conditions and new realities present themselves. Some anchor habits like exercise, music and journaling remain constant while schedules and professional and personal demands change on an ongoing basis. My challenge is to adapt with flexibility and patience.

As Halloween approaches, as a family we spend much time discussing what this holiday may look like. While door-to-door trick or treating is not an option this year, it is important that we mark this occasion for our kids (and for ourselves). And so we’ll order costumes, determine some type of candy giveaway, and enjoy the time together. Zoom pumpkin carving play dates are also in the mix for time well spent throughout this month.

Enjoy these resources for reflection throughout this week ahead.

SONGS

Sarah Jarosz – I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For

O God, Will You Restore Us? (From Lamentations: Simple Songs of Lament and Hope)

ARTICLES

4 Focus Areas for K-12 School Leaders This Fall

Making Space for Your Students’ Perspectives

Oliver Burkeman’s last column: the eight secrets to a (fairly) fulfilled life | Life and style

On My Mind: Shifting the Culture of Overwork to Self-Care

The Black wealth gap

“The Lord Jesus appointed seventy-two others whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit. He said to them, ‘The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest. Go on your way.'” -Today’s Gospel (Luke)

Yesterday I attended two insightful Zoominars.

“Whiteness and the Catholic Church” was sponsored by my alma mater, the University of San Francisco. This discussion invited participants to practice deep self-awareness along with continual reflection around race, place and history. Panelists discussed “how to create a sense of co-responsibility for all.” I enjoyed this scholarly and prayerful experience.

Last night my kids’ school sponsored a mental health workshop for parents on “Cultivating Resiliency.” Our guest speaker, a psychologist colleague and friend of mine, outlined helpful parenting strategies for coping with the ongoing experience of “ambiguous loss” that we are all undergoing. She asked us to determine our families’ “North Star” while considering “Five years from now, what will be my family’s story?” That’s a great question! We were also reassured of the resiliency of children, and how stable relationships with adults make such a difference when it comes to trauma-informed care. My family is blessed in this regard.

So as we go “on our way,” as invited by Jesus in today’s Gospel, I ask you: “What is your North Star for the weeks and months ahead?”

The journey to the wellsprings of hope is really a journey toward the center, toward the innermost ground of our being where we meet and are met by God. –Cynthia Bourgeault

This past weekend I had a Zoom meeting for one of our school’s Board committees, met up with family friends for a picnic outdoors, and viewed my oldest son’s Student Council speech for the virtual election. It was nice to take a break from 3rd grade Social Studies and 4th grade Math, but I have to commend my kids and their teachers. We are all so exhausted but continue to strive to make the best of distance learning. I can’t believe it’s still September because some days it already feels like December! That must be wishful thinking😊 At least Autumn is here.

From Reflections of Autumn (and its Lone Appearance in the Bible)

The autumn of life is a great time to focus on God’s wonderful blessings.

The seasons come and go, so focus on the God who remains unchanged and unchanging. “LORD, You have been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever You had formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God” (Psalm 90:1-2).

There’s a lot of unwelcome change in our world. Moral and societal changes bother us most when we turn on our television or glance at the magazines. We’re painfully aware our kids are growing up in a world far different from the one we knew as children…. But amid all the changes, one thing, one person, never changes—our eternal God.

ARTICLES

Five Ways to Get to Know Your Students in Virtual and Hybrid Environments

Four Core Priorities for Trauma-Informed Distance Learning.

I’m a Catholic School Parent. Please save our urban schools.

Parents as Essential Partners in Pivoting their Child’s Education & Fostering Remote Learning

Systemic racism is real, and all Americans play a role in addressing it