At CRSM, we are celebrating Lent. How do you celebrate Lent? How do you celebrate a period of the liturgical year that starts with ashes on your forehead and a reminder that, “Remember, you are dust and to dust you will return.”? A priest friend of mine describes Lent as an annual tune-up, a time to take stock and check your alignment with God. Are we focusing on those things that bring us closer to God – people, nature, actions, habits that make us more loving persons – and prioritizing them? The old dust-to-dust refrain is really just a reminder that we have an opportunity in the here and now to use our talents to make a difference in the lives of others. But that time is limited. This earthly part of each of our spiritual journeys has an end. In Latin America, they have a saying when it’s your birthday, “Un año más, un año menos.” One year more, one year less. Ouch!
Back to celebrating… Our Ash Wednesday service followed a Taize prayer structure that originated in 1940 in Occupied France. It is a combination of repetitive, almost mantric songs interspersed with scripture readings, petitions, and prayers. Just before the final song, there is a five-minute period of complete silence. FIVE MINUTES! Have you ever tried to sit still and silent for that long? How about in a large cafeteria with 419 students and 60 or so faculty and staff? Sounds impossible, doesn’t it? Miracle or not, the entire CRSM community sat together in just such an extended period of silence without fidgeting, without nervous coughing, or clearing of throats. There was something mesmerizing about it. We were all connected to one another in the pure quiet. The quietness was its own kind of presence among us, a strong feeling we were all part of something much bigger than any of us. When the first note of the last song was struck, I swear there was a collective desire for the silence to just keep going.
What does it say about our students that they can pull this off – to be so reverent and contemplative? I truly believe our young people hunger for instances like this when we can slow down, disengage from our devices, and seek peace. I also think it says much about the sense of community and belonging we work so hard to build at CRSM. When we talk about practicing cura personalis (care for the individual) and being “persons for others” and striving for collective success and being committed to justice, we are really sending an overt message that we recognize students as spiritual beings and encourage them to make the most of their human experience – for themselves and others.
Our students know how to seize an opportunity. What makes CRSM so different from the other schools in our area is that everyone wants to be here. Who wouldn’t?
- Our students are going places. With college acceptances still coming in, 100% of the Class of 2024 have already been accepted to at least one Bachelor’s program. That’s the fifth class in a row!
- Our students are making a difference. Weekly community service trips to the food bank and soup kitchen continue while another group of students starting a Big Sisters/Big Brothers program at a local grade school.
- Our students will build a better world. A panel of three alumni were in this week talking about careers in Healthcare: one was a Physical Therapist, one was a Registered Nurse, and the third is starting Medical School in the fall.
As I watched our students file back to class this past Ash Wednesday with smudges on their foreheads, I was reminded of a quote from Carl Sagan, “…the nitrogen in our DNA, the calcium in our teeth, the iron in our blood, the carbon in our apple pies were made in the interiors of collapsing stars. We are made of starstuff.” And we are on our way to becoming new stars. What a privilege it is to spend time among them – they are stars reaching for the stars! That’s a Lenten celebration to be sure.