Things to do
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As you might imagine, the list of those things varied widely in scope. A couple of them made eminently good sense: "give up smoking," for example. Some were value-neutral, depending on the reader's interests: shoot a hole-in-one, go whale-watching, visit all 50 states, renovate your kitchen, stand on the Great Wall, get a Ph.D. And a few struck me as downright silly: own a set of (very fancy) linens, swim with sharks and the ultimate: "visit a nude beach."
I'll admit, though, that the ad got me thinking. Suppose the copy for this ad were mine to write? What are some of the things I'd wish for my friends, especially my Christopher friends? What would my own "things to do while you're alive" list look like?
Well, for openers I'd suggest getting to "know" the Bible. Get into the way it's put together, something beyond knowing there's an Old Testament and a New one. Take classes, join a discussion group, read about the Bible and read the Bible itself. It didn't become the world's best-selling book by accident. In every way it still speaks to us and inspires us today.
For all of you grandmas and grandpas out there, take a trip with a grandchild, just the two of you, child and grandparent. Make it at least an overnighter, and longer if possible. You'll learn that there's a real person in that youngster. And the grandchild will never forget it. Never.
Volunteer. The possibilities are endless, but let me suggest a food pantry, soup kitchen, homeless shelter, a residence for the elderly. Each one - and heaven knows there are many more - reminds us that people are hurting, in need, lonely, desolate, crippled. The good Lord surely didn't put us on earth just to travel, as that original ad suggested, to the ends of it.
But if travel is in your plans, visit the missions. It's not as involved as you might think. Volunteers go all the time, working through parishes, diocesan organizations or mission-sending societies. They don't have to be specialists, although that helps. See how the poor in "vacation lands" really live; make it more than the limo trip between the airport and the oceanfront resort. Your trip doesn't even have to be overseas. Home missions need assistance, too; so do weather victims such as those still affected by Hurricane Katrina. You'd be surprised how much your mere presence will mean.
Finally, make a retreat. Take stock of where you've been and where you're going. A good retreat will accomplish the same things that Pope Benedict XVI said Lent should do: it "stimulates us to let the word of God penetrate our life and in this way to know the fundamental truth: who we are, where we come from, where we must go, what path we must take in life." That might be a tall order, but doesn't it strike it you as just a little more worthwhile than, say, running with the bulls in Pamplona?
There they are; just five items. But the list could go on. Maybe, just like that original ad did for me, they'll start you thinking.
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For a free copy of the Christopher News Note: "Take Care Of Yourself - Body, Mind and Soul," write to The Christophers, 12 East 48th Street, New York, N.Y. 10017, or send e-mail to mail@christophers.org.
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Dennis Heaney is the president of The Christophers
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