Sometimes, it’s really hard to know whether the work we do as teachers really have an impact. You can only hope that eventually, some seeds will bear fruit. But mostly you don’t know… until someone tells you. Last month, someone emailed me after a conference. He said, he was inspired by my talk – that it was like God was talking to him. That blew me away because my talk was not at all religious -it was on innovation! Even if I still don’t understand how that happened, that was a precious gift to me. When I feel tired or discouraged, I think of that message and it becomes my happy thought. :-)
Come to think of it, the same is probably true for priests and pastors - except that their classroom is the church and they use a pulpit instead of a lectern. I wonder if they, too, ever question whether they make a difference.
Yesterday, I attended the funeral mass of Fr. Guido Arguelles who was Asst Chaplain in UP when I was in UPSCA. Fr. Bernas gave the homily and he recounted Fr. Guido’s penchant for singing Italian arias and Irish ditties, telling corny jokes, his passion for the poor, and his deep prose that you need to digest in small bites. Fr Guido is also famous for his fiery tirades against corruption all throughout a mass. As I chuckled at the memories of Derps, it dawned on me that perhaps my own interest in corruption was indeed shaped by listening to his weekly homilies and his admonishment to do our share.
Serendipitously, I am now working on a proposal to get funding for a research on corruption. If we get the funds for this, Fr. Guido – this project is for you. You are probably now serenading the angels (whether they like or not) but I want you to know that your words didn’t fall on deaf ears.
Come to think of it, the same is probably true for priests and pastors - except that their classroom is the church and they use a pulpit instead of a lectern. I wonder if they, too, ever question whether they make a difference.
Yesterday, I attended the funeral mass of Fr. Guido Arguelles who was Asst Chaplain in UP when I was in UPSCA. Fr. Bernas gave the homily and he recounted Fr. Guido’s penchant for singing Italian arias and Irish ditties, telling corny jokes, his passion for the poor, and his deep prose that you need to digest in small bites. Fr Guido is also famous for his fiery tirades against corruption all throughout a mass. As I chuckled at the memories of Derps, it dawned on me that perhaps my own interest in corruption was indeed shaped by listening to his weekly homilies and his admonishment to do our share.
Serendipitously, I am now working on a proposal to get funding for a research on corruption. If we get the funds for this, Fr. Guido – this project is for you. You are probably now serenading the angels (whether they like or not) but I want you to know that your words didn’t fall on deaf ears.