X

X

5.10.2012

What Can I Do For You?

Bob Dylan asks this question in a song he wrote over 30 years ago.
It is a question asked by any establishment that wants your business.
Delivering the goods keeps loyal customers.
It is the same with relationships.
We are generally drawn to personalities that give rather than take.
People that add peace to you rather than deplete you of it.
Examine the friends you have and I guarantee that the people on the top of this list are those that live the "For not From" mantra.

My dad was a magnet for this very reason.
People loved him.
He served people.
Every day that he went out into the world he set out to be a blessing.
Even in his work as a lawyer, he was often referred to as a lawyer's lawyer.
He was happy to help and would expect nothing in return.
And I mean nothing.  (exhibit A: my bed)

One of the things he did from the 1980's up until his death three years ago was to pray over his nine children before we went our separate ways for the day.
He would put his hands on our foreheads or our shoulders and bless us.
When we had friends over, before they left--they got prayed over too.
Aside from protection and wisdom, he also prayed that we would be a blessing to others, and
that we would be constantly aware of our actions and our interactions with others.
Today's buzz word for this is being mindful.
Kabat-Zinn, the founder of the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction program (MBSR)
defines mindfulness as paying attention in a particular way; On purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally.
It was my dad's prayer that we lived intentionally instead of mindlessly.
Clearly my dad was ahead of the times.

Homines Pro Aliis.
To Be Men and Women For Others, is a foundational element of Jesuit education.
I do not believe Bob Dylan to be a product of Jesuit education, although my dad was.
He graduated from Ateneo de Manila University.
He was truly a man for others.
It is his birthday today.
He is missed.