Wednesday – 25^th Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel – Luke 9:1-6

You Are Not Alone

Walking Sticks

“Take nothing for the journey,
neither walking stick, nor sack, nor food, nor money,
and let no one take a second tunic.

For once I feel the need to take an opposite stand from today’s Gospel! 

One of the items Ginger and I have added to our ‘wardrobe’ is our walking sticks!  It may not seem so necessary if you’re living in the ‘flatlands’ of Chicago.  But down here in Tennessee, there is a definite change in elevation even in the mundane effort of walking down the driveway to our mailbox.  Whether it’s downhill or up, the addition of a walking stick makes the journey much more manageable, much less a good deal safer for us old ‘fogeys!

It serves as a good reminder that, no matter our age or health, we do not journey through life (much less to the mailbox) without assistance.  Whether we realize it, especially in moments of fear or illness or depression, we are not alone!  We all have our walking sticks in life.

The question today is who are your walking sticks?  Who supports you, guides you, encourages you? Who do you lean on when life slows your steps and weakens your faith?  Best friend?  Soul mate?  Mom or Dad?  Jesus? 

So take a walk today, enjoy that crisp cool air of autumn approaching and the sun shining through the trees, and remember -  you are not alone.  You never are!