first of all,
to look at the other
requires us
to stop looking
at ourselves.
but it is only from a lower position,
in the act of looking up,
that we can
a d m i r e.
in looking down,
we have created
pedestals,
declaring
a greater and less than.
to truly love
is not to have attachment
to positions,
roles in relationships,
or status.
to serve
not out of piety
or privilege.
but an honest
reverence
and adoration
for the other.
the pain -
yet the l o v e -
mary felt
looking up
to her son,
suffering.
the cross represents
the lowly,
yet
she
still
looks
up.
only by being lower than the other,
are we at an angle to possess
admiration.
God came,
in flesh,
to prove this point.
"jesus took off his outer garments,
tied a towel around his waist,
put water in a basin,
and began washing the disciples feet."
how often do we respond like peter?
"you shall never wash my feet,"
he says.
unafraid of the power and worth
of God's love
and to be truly seen
by the highest among all.
jesus responds to peter,
and to us,
"if i do not wash you,
you have no part of me."
God loves his own
who were in the world,
until the end.
do we not wish to share
our joy and truth
with those we love?
and we feel rejected
when our beloved
doesn't want to engage
in our passions.
don't reject this, dear disciple.
let Him wash your feet.
let Him love you.
let Him serve you.
let Him look up at you,
in admiration.
-so we may do the same-
a master is not greater than his servant,
and a messenger is not greater than the one who sent him.
be ready to
h u m b l e
yourself before the other -
love requires it.
it began:
jesus was looking up at mary
while in the manger.
and when it was finished:
mary was looking up at jesus
on the cross.
although in posture you may be looking down
at the sick
in a hospital bed,
at the poor
in a corner of the street,
at your loved one
in pain.
may you continue to look up
from your soul to theirs.
a l w a y s
find
something
to
admire.
no matter how small.
and hold onto that.
for
this -
is how to maintain
the dignity
of the human person.
