Unexpected Aspects of a Forced Retreat

The other day I was unexpectedly surprised to notice silence in the middle of the day!

Yes, silence.  It may not seem like much, but I live very close to Mattapan Square.  Although my house is on a secluded side street, the noise of buzzing motorcycles, trucks, buses and emergency vehicles is so common that the absence of them struck me as strange.

So, I began to ponder the wonders of this strange time of staying inside away from friends and family.  It is a kind of “retreat” and I suppose we can take it as a religious retreat if we choose to see it that way.  Of course, for some of us, healthcare workers and essential workers this is NOT a retreat at all.  We must fervently pray for those who are keeping the world together.  Pray that a sense of peace and meaning can be found amidst the noise and tumult of this time.

I was planning a religious retreat only a few weeks ago.  It was to take place last weekend.  It was cancelled, of course.  The funny thing is that the content of that retreat I was planning – was going to help us find methods of discovering our inner voice.  The inner voice where so often God resides.  It was supposed to encourage silence and focus for our inward lives.   No one could have known that the Coronavirus would hit us in this powerful way, leaving everyone in an odd state mentally, physically and emotionally.  Separating us from the hustle of everyday life, alone and away… like a retreat.

This is an opportunity to open our hearts and minds and our senses…. to the wonderful blessings we have been given.  Today I can hear the birds singing.  I get to spend many hours with my grandchildren Nino and Eli.  I am teaching them.  What a great and wonderful experience. Their joy and laughter shiver through me like a balm.  I watch as they sparkle when a new concept is grasped.

Each of us today has an opportunity to focus on what is important and who is important to us.  I pray that we do not squander this time but bring it into our consciousness so as to enhance our lives and bring us to a new understanding of God at work in the world.

We have a chance to FaceTime with people we may never thought we would and to listen to each other.  To talk on the phone.

Most of all, though we are all kept inside, we now have an opportunity to ponder the gifts we have been given.  Gifts that are not earned but are simply there.  Grace.  God’s Grace will bring us through this time of challenge.  While in it, we are called to BE PRESENT to the experience.  Feel the immeasurable love that God has for us and to give in ways we never thought possible.  To Love one another through this incredible time of need.

My heart goes out to you all.  It is a heart full of peace and joy (most of the time) at being able to see and hear all of you in a different way.

God Bless you.

The Rev. Joyce Caggiano