Catholic Hermit: God Reveals Himself

"This day" the Lord yet again revealed Himself to this rather pain-pummeled, humbled down, nothing consecrated Catholic hermit.  The Lord reveals Himself in so many ways to each of us, day and night.  Psalm 43 (v. 1-2, 3, 4) of today's Mass readings greeted me upon waking before dawn.  His Real Presence sings to us, so especially through the psalms yet also in other hymns glorifying God.

"R. Hope in God; I will praise him, my savior and my God.
Do me justice, O God, and fight my fight
against a faithless people;
from the deceitful and impious man rescue me.
R. Hope in God; I will praise him, my savior and my God.
For you, O God, are my strength.
Why do you keep me so far away?
Why must I go about in mourning,
with the enemy oppressing me?
R. Hope in God; I will praise him, my savior and my God.
Send forth your light and your fidelity;
they shall lead me on
And bring me to your holy mountain,
to your dwelling place.
R. Hope in God; I will praise him, my savior and my God.
Then will I go in to the altar of God,
the God of my gladness and joy;
Then will I give you thanks upon the harp,
O God, my God!
R. Hope in God; I will praise him, my savior and my God."

Prior to awakening, my guardian angel was reminding me in a dream to get my glaucoma eye drops.  I'd neglected to get up (a painful process spine-wise, plus putting on the brace) for a fresh bottle, stored in the refrigerator until opening for a month or so of use.  In the dream I was in higher level pain; then I was awakened to this world of here and now (as we realistically call this temporal realm) and reminded to take the regular meds before pain out of control.

I made it through without the additional medication a second night, and this time without an hour of obscene pain taking every ounce of my temporal and spiritual life to get under control as had been the case the morning before.  God does reveal Himself to us and answers our calls for help; he reveals Himself in the little details of our daily, temporal lives.

After reading the daily Mass Scriptures and particularly exuberant with the Psalm selection, I fell back to sleep for another length of time, getting me rested until the next medication dose.  In that time period, somehow my phone registered that my aunt, age 96, had called.  I never heard a ring, and it turns out when I called her after what would be her lunch time in the assisted living facility, she said she'd not called.  Well, that could have quite a temporal explanation; cell phones are not exact in function.

However, she needed to express the frustration of the residents of this expensive retirement home, for they hired a dietary/meal company on a five-year contract, and in 10 months, five lead cooks as well as assistants have quit.  The current cook is as incompetent as the past ones.

I listened with much attention and commiseration, for it is an injustice, really.  The cheap white bread, the thin soups, the iceberg lettuce, the servings of canned green beans and peas--little variety in vegetables and not a healthy representation of the food groups, have become dismal to these elderly, ailing people who are paying out several thousand dollars a month for a room and basic care.

It upsets people who are old and unwell, to be taken advantage of financially and also to have disgusting meal fare when their meal times are often the only regular interaction, socialization, and earthly enjoyment of which to look forward.  

We talked over ideas.  The residents have several times complained; there have been meetings in which they gave their input and ideas, to no avail.  I did get my aunt to laugh by saying they could organize a protest, sit in wheel chairs and walkers with seats out by the trafficked road, placards decrying the terrible food and high price of living there.  (It is known as the most lovely facility of its kind in the area.)  Or, I said if the residents would be in agreement, they could threaten to withhold their monthly payment.

Another frustration became humorous in the hypocrisy of the facility providing a program for the residents in which they were told of all the healthy foods and snacks along with exercise that help an elderly person make the best of final phases in life.  My aunt had inquired, then, "Why aren't we given healthy snacks to eat, even at this program, instead of these white-flour sweet rolls dolloped with jelly?"

But of course, we came back to prayer.  I said this is something we must pray about--for God cares about the injustices and even the smallest of details in our daly lives!  God reveals Himself to us in real and actual ways.  He hears our plaints and moves in the bodies, minds, hearts, and souls of us human beings.  He also moves in our minds, hearts, and souls to reveal Himself in our spiritual needs and for our spiritual good, our spiritual growth.

My aunt and I encouraged one another to do our little exercises.  Although 28 years apart in age, we are each with our suffering, struggling to gain strength and stamina physically.  We ended our conversation with words of hope in God, of love for one another, and with determination that our next action would be to get up and do the minor exercises--grateful that we can mobilize our bodies at that much!  Oh, my!  How far more limited could we be!

I'm absolutely thrilled with "this day" in which I'm far more aware of the various ways in which God reveals Himself to us.  He is everywhere!  He is within and without my soul, my body, my heart, my mind.  He is All to my nothing.

I dare say, the phone call, I realize, is one of three in a week.  Each involved aspects of God revealing Himself, one way or another, without needing to delve into theology.  God's revealing to us is quite natural when we are seeking Him and increasingly knowing that He is revealing Himself to us in ways we can delight in discovering!

God bless His Real Presence in us!  Hope in God!  I will praise Him, my savior and my God!