Little Francis had a lesson for his Gramps yesterday, on the cusp of Triduum.
We were strolling outside, and passed close by the flowering dogwood in the front yard.
I’ve seen—and appreciated—its beauty every spring for the past 30 years or so. But not Francis.
Yesterday was his first-ever encounter with the delicate pink petals. The cross-shaped petals, which some say are a heaven-sent reminder of the blessings of this holy season.
And you should have seen Francis take in that beauty.
He was mesmerized.
He wanted to enter into it.
He wanted to consume it.
I was fascinated by this little one’s first-ever experience of dogwood-in-bloom—in part, because it reminded me of the slender volume I’ve been reading this week: François Mauriac’s Holy Thursday, An Intimate Remembrance.
A gift from a friend, the book has been a blessing to me during this Holy Week. It’s been a reminder to slow down and appreciate the incredible Mystery we encounter during the Triduum. A mystery so big that it takes us three days to break it open.
Only that’s not the way we typically experience Triduum.
Like a flowering dogwood we’ve seen every year for the past 30, we tend to pay scant attention. We give it a nod. We mutter a prayer of gratitude, perhaps.
But as Francis reminded his Gramps, there’s something truly extraordinary happening here.
So stop a moment.
Settle in.
Consume it.
You will be blessed beyond measure when you do.
Let us pause now…to recall that we are in the presence of the Holy & Merciful One.
IHS
With Us Still 
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