Barre Congregational Church
Home30 Park Street
Barre, Massachusetts
This Month's Message From Pastor Margaret - continued
I looked around and saw the faces of my people, the familiarity of the surroundings
and language and sounds, and it all brought the biggest smile to my face. At that moment, nothing else
held much significance aside from being in the presence of those who are integral to my life and will
always remain so. It brought a sense of tranquility to my mind, and I recognized the importance of
valuing those simple moments and people who reconnected me to my homeland. The experience of
the long and exhausting flights, followed by the drive home, was soon forgotten, because seeing my
loved ones who made me who I am today was complete food for the soul.
I began to think how precious those moments are with the ones we love …maybe the gifts we brought, the
plans we had to do stuff weren’t all that important when we could just sit around and chat and laugh around a barbecue? I have a big family, which is awesome. At times we wondered how to arrange to see them all, since they had their own things to do. To our surprise it worked out well, and we were able to see almost all of them. We must acknowledge that there are some among us who do not have those connections for various reasons, and sometimes life does not feel that good for some. I am so mindful of not having my father there anymore, and there were moments of sadness still, even after all those years, or my beautiful niece whom we lost also a decade ago, but I noticed how my folks have learned to live and remember them, and the little ones grew into young adults, and some got married and now we have more little ones with their cuteness that brings more joy and more food for the soul. And this all helped to connect with the ones there who have their own stories to tell. I realized how lucky I was, but also how important it was to remember those who do not have these relationships with loved ones.
These simple moments remind me of the simple life of our Lord Jesus Christ. He did not have a big family but made it a point of reaching out to those around Him, stopped and talked to strangers, visited those who needed some comfort and friendship. His life was not easy, of course because of His mission and challenges He faced, but He was surrounded by many who saw how He cared for them. So, when He needed the company of friends, He took the time to visit them, dined with them, talked and laughed. They fed His soul, and He did theirs. In life we have those who have always been a part of us, who bring a smile to our faces, but then we meet new people, make new friends, and they too become part of our lives. We expand our horizons, and we open our hearts and souls to experience the joy others have to offer. May God bless each one of us with loved ones who will feed our souls, make us feel grounded and at peace.
Peace and blessings,
Pastor Margaret Keyser
