Lives Well Lived

I haven't written much lately because I haven't been very inspired. I've been bogged down in my own little world, and the older I get the less interesting that is to me. Whatever it is - it certainly isn't inspiring. But today I was inspired. We had an 80th birthday party for our priest - Fr. Nicholas Letten. It was really a celebration of the lives of two people, Fr. Nicholas and his wife Barbara. I watched them today as story after story was told about them, and was moved to tears many times. Lots of people showed up, but only a fraction of the ones they've had an impact on. There was music, skits, food, laughter, and tears. It was a family affair and I felt lucky - no, blessed is the better word - to be there. To see the fruit of lives well-lived is inspiring. It's like reading the "Lives of the Saints" because it makes selflessness and repentance an attractive thing - not something tiresome and scratchy. It made me want to turn my back on my cramped little world.