Reading My Refrigerator Door

Like just about everyone else, I have stuff affixed to my refrigerator with magnets. Not a lot of stuff, and certainly not a jumble of kids' schedules, permission slips, and drawings. I have lovely stuff. Inspirational stuff. Lovely and inspirational stuff that I can no longer see because it has been posted for ages.

The other day, in an epiphanous moment, I realized that comfort was available on rather than in my refrigerator. One minute I was poised to chow down its contents, the next I found myself zooming in on this line on a posted Prayer to St. Jude:

Pray for me that I may receive the consolations and succor of Heaven in all my necessities, tribulations and sufferings, particularly (here make your request) and that I may bless God with you and all the elect throughout eternity.

At first I got a little distracted by the word, "succor," in part because St. Jude looks like he's holding a lulav and Sukkot is long gone. Next, I got side-tracked because I've always tended to confuse Sukkot with Shavuot. Shavuot is also Pentecost, which is big this year because of a friend's ordination erev Pentecost.

And then, before I could refocus on St. Jude, I found myself reading more stuff on my refrigerator door. Verse 14 from Psalm 27 reminded me to "wait on the Lord: be of good courage." Fr. Pedro Arrupe's wisdom about the practicality of finding and falling in love with God instantly redirected my priorities, as did Ghandi's counsel to "be the change you wish to see in the world."

In the end, I didn't bother whimpering to St. Jude, although I've become very interested in receiving "the consolations and succor of Heaven." Hope I'm eligible.