Dear Friends
I recently received a beautiful reflection on how to live which was attributed to Pope Francis. I planned to use it for the bulletin letter prior to Thanksgiving. I admire Pope Francis greatly, but the passage attributed to him is not by him, but is the English translation of a Portuguese text entitled “Palco de vida” attributed to the Portuguese poet Fernando Pessoa (1888-1935). I looked at all the Vatican sites and other sources for the writings of Pope Francis but found nothing. It seems that in September 2015 the Facebook page of the Missionary Community of St Paul the Apostle and Mary, Mother of the Church, a Catholic group in Kenya, shared the same passage, attributing it to Pope Francis – the first time it was ascribed to him. Since then, it has regularly appeared in social media giving Pope Francis the credit. This is like all the statements attributed to Saint Francis which he never said. For example, “preach the gospel always, when necessary, use words.” Saint Francis never said it, but someone did.
So, while this is not from Pope Francis, it is still filled with wisdom. Here is an English translation of Pessoa’s reflection:
“You may have flaws, be anxious, and even get angry, but never forget that your life is the greatest enterprise in the world. Only you can keep it from failing.
There are many people who need, admire and love you.
I wish that you always remember that being happy is not having a sky without storms, paths without accidents, work without fatigue, love without disappointments.
Being happy is finding strength in forgiveness, hope in battles, courage when afraid, love in disagreements.
Being happy is not only appreciating the smiles, but reflecting on the sadness.
It is not just celebrating the success, but also learning lessons in failures.
Not only having joy in applause, but finding joy in anonymity.
Being happy is recognizing that life is worth living, despite all the challenges, misunderstandings and periods of crisis.
Being happy is no longer being a victim of the problems and becoming an author of history itself. It is crossing deserts outside of yourself and doing so being able to find the oasis hidden in your soul.
It is thanking God every morning for the miracle of life.
Being happy is not being afraid of your own feelings. It’s knowing how to talk about yourself.
It’s the courage to hear a ‘No’ and be confident enough to receive criticism, although sometimes untrue.
Being happy is to let the child living within you to live freely, joyfully and simply.
It is having the needed maturity to say ‘I was wrong’.
It is having the essential courage to say ‘forgive me’.
It is having the indispensable sensibility to say ‘I need you’.
It is the ability to say ‘I love you’.
It is having the humility of receptivity.
Perhaps you want life to be filled with opportunities to be happy. And when you go astray, start again, doing so you will discover that being happy is not about a perfect life, but about using tears to irrigate tolerance, using losses to refine patience, using failures to sharpen prayer, using obstacles to open the windows of intelligence.
Above all, never give up hope, never give up on the people you love. Never give up on being happy, because life is an incredible spectacle, even if it gives you dozens of reasons to demonstrate the contrary.
Are there stones on your journey? Guard them carefully, one day you shall build a castle.”
Peace and Happy Thanksgiving,
Fr. Damian