A message from Father Don!
Dear friends,
Oy vey! The pandemic is back. It’s just like that old song: “The cat came back, the very next day, yes, the cat came back, we thought he was goner, but the cat came back, it just couldn’t stay away.” Hopefully, that cat will go away for good very soon.
The pandemic has been hard on us. We are tired of the restrictions. Some of us are fearful, and others are angry at the government or at COVID-deniers or at the unvaccinated. Probably some of our parishioners have lost their jobs or had to close their businesses. The pandemic has placed a real burden on us, and it is good we acknowledge this and are not afraid to tell others what we are feeling.
In the midst of this wearying situation, it is also good to recognize that many people are suffering worse than we are, e.g. those who have lost family members to COVID, poor countries with a limited supply of vaccines or the elderly who are housebound.
This was brought home to me personally in January when a priest friend in Malawi (Southern Africa) died of COVID. I lived with Fr Bernard Ntlale in Ottawa for two years and visited him once in Malawi. It is a poor country, devastated by AIDS, where (as of July 10) only one percent of the population had been vaccinated. Life is not fair. I live in a prosperous Western nation while Bernard lived in a poor African nation. So I was safe, and he died—Requiescat in pace.
In the midst of our pandemic frustration, it is good for us to reach out to someone in need. We all know someone who is suffering, lonely or discouraged. Let’s take the initiative and give them a call, send them a card or drop off some food. Undertaking practical works of charity will help us get through the next few months with a good heart.