Gathered With Mary

The Ascension, celebrated today in many dioceses, or the 7th Sunday of Easter, elsewhere, leaves us with a group of bewildered disciples who are forced to face the unknown in their world without the physical presence of the master and teacher.  What do they do?  They return to a familiar place, the Upper Room, and, as Jesus had instructed them, pray for the Holy Spirit and WAIT.  Gathered around Mary, the "Bride of the Holy Spirit," they find security in her presence and in the presence of one another.  We can imagine their trust growing as they contemplate the past three years and see the pattern that Jesus gradually unfolded before them.  His words begin to make more sense as they discuss them and pray over them.  Mary's calm and soothing presence reassures them and helps the waiting become more tolerable.  Impatience settles into peace, into readiness.
So too we WAIT for so many things, the date of a surgery, the return of a family member in the military or away at school, for the repair man to fix the broken dishwasher.  We might use these times as did the Apostles: to be with Mary, reflect over the many good things that have brought us to this point in our lives, and to become more aware and grateful for the presence of the Holy Spirit, especially the Spirit's gift of peace.
Bro. Rene