Do the Most Good.

There's a woman who has been on my heart and mind almost constantly these last few days. And while I never knew her personally, her life has been remarkably impactful on my own. Perhaps you have heard of this Catholic wife and mother, Sarah Harkins. A quick internet search will give you a glimpse into the recent happenings in her life and in the lives of her family members, and I hope you will take a moment or more to pray for the repose of her soul and for all those who mourn losing her, specifically her husband and young children. And, if you feel so inclined, you can donate monetarily to the family here.

I hope that you will take some time to work through any grief you have over this recent happening; sometimes we experience great sadness and confusion even if we ourselves did not know the person. I think this is particularly true if elements of that person's life resonate closely with our own, and that is why I have been thinking of Sarah so often these last several days.

I am not going to attempt to convey the heartbreak and suffering that her family is experiencing, nor am I going to speculate on the affliction that her husband and children are now forced to live through. But there are some striking things to me about her story that I've been reflecting on as of late.

It seems to me that one of the greatest tragedies in this already confusing and devastating situation would be to chalk it up to a horrific event and then leave it at that. It would only make this situation worse to say, "Wow, how could God let something like this happen?" and then harbor anger and then forget about it. Instead, what can we learn from this? I went through some moments of confusion as I wondered, 'Why would God allow for a person doing so much good for His Kingdom to be taken from this earth, especially at a time in which the Church desperately needs the witness of people like Sarah?' And it is a valid question that is worth considering...but, in the end, the reasons behind this event are not mine to know. But I do know that God speaks to His people in a multitude of ways, even in the midst of sadness and pain; we just have to be willing to listen to what He desires to say.

I am most struck by some of the seemingly smaller aspects of this story as I find similarities between Sarah's life and my own...we are both Catholic homeschooling mothers who desire large families (if it be God's will), we both are active in our parishes, we love the Church. But something strikes a different chord with me -- Sarah did the most good in her short time on earth. She poured herself out to her family, her parish, her volunteer organizations. Her life was a great witness to her faith, and it isn't because she held positions of prestige, had letters behind her name, or could run a 5-minute mile (or maybe she could, but it's not important). She did small things extraordinarily well, saying 'yes' to Our Lord in the various contexts that comprised her vocation as a wife and mother. And those small acts of generosity bore great fruit in the lives of those blessed enough to know her as she lived what some would call an ordinary life. Saint Josemaria Escriva has summed this up well:

"...the holiness that Our Lord demands of you is to be achieved by carrying out with love of God your work and your daily duties, and these will almost always consist of small realities."

May the soul of Sarah and all the faithful departed rest in peace. Amen.