Monday, April 04, 2005
I just wanted to interrupt the little Portfolio Period, to remember a special someone who passed away last Saturday morning. Our Pope, John Paul II.I hold a special place in my heart for the Pope. He went to my country, the Philippines, twice, and according to him and his friends, he holds a special place in his heart for the Philippines as well.Anyway, I have always seen him as someone to look up to. He really fits in his title: Father. He has always acted like a father, towards his millions of 'children' in the world. He has traveled all over the world, to lend a helping hand. He was a fighter for peace, and he has touched the lives of millions.Yet he never viewed himself extraordinary. He was a very simple, humble soul, and a wonderful man. He was caring, and had a very witty sense of humor. As someone (I forgot who) very aptly put it, "You feel like, when you are with him, that God is in the same room with you... but somehow it is like you are still with someone who is one of us."I am very saddened, yet relieved, by this. I know that millions feel the same way I do: saddened because they have lost their Pope, yet relieved at the same time, knowing that he is at peace in Heaven. It is obvious, because of the large numbers of people who have gone to St. Peter's Square to pay their respects, and the feel of sorrow all over the world. From the Americas, to Europe, to Africa, and to Asia, people have stopped in their busy lives to pray for the man who made a great difference in humanity. I can understand their grief, but I feel that perhaps it is time, sine the Pope himself said, with his last breath, "My mission is accomplished." And indeed, he has accomplished it greatly. He has touched so many lives and brought light into the lives of many. Now that light has been extinguished.I am relieved however, that the Pope is finally where he has longed to be: in Heaven, in the arms of our Blessed Mother Mary. He is happy and at peace at last. God has taken him from us, from his earthly life, but has brought him to a greater place, to the regions unknown to human comprehension, known simply to our minds as Heaven. I cannot say that I know how the Pope feels now, but I feel somehow that he is watching over me and the rest of the world, smiling his famous gentle smile, and praying for all of us.We have lost a precious man in our lives. But I know that he is finally free from his earthly bonds, and has risen and finished the journey to eternal life. And I am content, knowing that when the time comes, I, too, will make that journey home, and will see him again.~~ EruanneCurrent mood: wistfulCurrent music: 'Ave Maria' (I'm not sure who the original author of this song is)
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