Work

The four day Labor Day Weekend in the United States signals the unofficial "end of the summer."  Labor Day is a holiday, but not for everyone; federal offices and banks are closed, but retail stores remain open, featuring "fabulous Labor Day Sales."  If schools have opened already, they are closed today; others will open "the day after Labor Day." .
Working or not, this day might be the occasion to reflect on our work. There are some people who are unhappy at their jobs and hate going to work, but must do something to feed themselves or their families.   Many do not have work. Some "overwork" and never take a break, bringing paper work home with them at night, or using weekends to "catch up on work", or to "work around the house." Others love their work, their fellow workers, their "bosses" and find creative expressions of their energy and talents at their jobs.
As Marists, "the love of work" stems from our origins...as St. Marcellin was a hard worker and gave manual labor a place among the means of spiritual growth for his followers: to foster discipline, inner strength, and the opportunity to learn to get along with others and work as a team. The Book of Genesis shows God the Creator working for six days:  good enough for him, good enough for us.  IF we  see work this way, we might consider taking this outlook  to work with us, sharing our enthusiasm, encouragement, optimism and joy with our fellow-workers and helping them to enjoy their work and do better at it. Building "Team Spirit" helping others to be grateful for their jobs is a ministry we can all perform.
Bro. Rene