Viatorian Community
Winter 2010
Volume 15, No. 1
Provincial Perspective I am an incurable romantic. I know that might sound a bit funny coming from a priest, but it is true. I am also a bit prone to nostalgia. My confreres with whom I live at the province center will tell you that they can often find me on our outdoor patio, listening to the “golden oldies,” singing and dancing (well dancing might be a bit of a stretch, how about swaying back and forth) to the Supremes, Tommy James and the Shondells, Elvis, and Tina Turner – just to name a few. I listen to the oldies, thinking back to those days long gone, reflecting upon times with old friends and with family members, during the 60’s and early 70’s. Those days seemed simpler than today, much less hectic, and less stressful. At times, I find myself longing for those days to return – those grand days of yesteryear. Now that we have turned the page to a new calendar year, I am struck by the realization that life back then was really not all that different from our life today. In fact, life back then held problems of its own, challenges that produced stress and schedules that seemed awfully hectic. I only have to remember what my mother was going through managing six children all under the age of fifteen. Talk about hectic and stress! Yes, life back then really was not all that different from life today – it just seems different. The simple fact is this - the important things – the really important things, remain the same – generation after generation – namely, faith in God, connections of love of family, loyalty and trust in one’s friends, finding meaning and purpose
in one’s work/ministry, and a desire to live in peace and harmony with those we encounter in our daily life. These enduring values and virtues remain constant and real. So, when I start getting nostalgic, and getting lost in trying to recapture the feelings of the past, I will remind myself that the present, too, holds great promise and meaning right before my very eyes. And so, as we begin a new year, while it is good to look back on the past for a moment, it is even more important to look forward with the promise of what is yet to be. And, I am reminded that this promise finds its root and meaning in Jesus Christ. He is calling each of us to create a world where those constant core values are shared and lived in our everyday lives. It is in this that the memories of the past and the promise of the future merge into that one reality called life. Happy New Year! May your future be as wonderful as the very best days of yesteryear. In Saint Viator and Fr. Querbes,
Rev. Thomas R. von Behren, CSV Provincial