A Year of Change

As the world welcomes a new year, I find myself doing little more than changing the calendar. The most notable changes that I experience tend to come not at the turning of the year, but in its midst, spread across days and weeks that don't attract widespread attention on their own merits. That being said, I did participate in two events that made global news this semester, though the role they played in my life was far more significant than what my presence contributed... a humbling counterpoint to my general desire to give more than I receive. In the main, I approach 2014 with the goal of maintaining and deepening the good things that have gotten underway at various points along the course of 2013.

Boston Strong display
Copley Square

Running: Eight months later, I still have a hard time talking about the Boston Marathon bombings. Even though I finished an hour beforehand, and all of my friends and family escaped harm, I'm reminded of that day every time I walk, cycle, or run through Copley Square. But it's not just the tragedy that I recall; it's the way that the city and its people displayed newfound solidarity in subsequent days and weeks. Now that I'm a proud resident of Boston, I feel part of the effort– even responsibility– to sustain that sense of community in my travels around the city.

MAGIS pilgrims
Rio de Janeiro
July 2013

Pilgrimage: It's been an interesting ten months in the Catholic Church, and for those whose attention has been captured by the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI and the words and actions of Pope Francis. I had the privilege of spending three weeks in Brasil with thousands of pilgrims from Jesuit colleges worldwide, and sharing in an experience of not only global Catholicism, but also the global human family. I'm happy to be maintaining contact with a few of those friends, scattered from Philadelphia to Montevideo, as we go about our lives of study, prayer, recreation, and work in the company of family and friends. Even though my hiking pack has spent much of the last five months in my closet, my ordinary walks in Brighton often remind me of the extraordinary steps I took in Brasil.

Conservation land
Weston MA

Happily, this year is ending as last year did... in the company of good Jesuit friends, sitting by a fireplace, waiting to salute the stroke of midnight. I hope to undertake the new year with renewed devotion to prayer, to community, to family and friends... building on the best moments of 2013. After a year of change– moving from Worcester to Boston, shifting from full-time work to full-time study, meeting new friends and taking on new projects– it's the fundamental and unchanging things that give me life and joy, and help me to confidently welcome everything new and unexpected that comes my way. Happy New Year, and many blessings to you in 2014!