May 26th

     Recently I visited an elementary class in a Portuguese Catholic school.  The children began their day with a practice called “the good morning” (o bom dia in Portuguese).  After signing themselves with the cross, the students took turns reading aloud from a short passage in John’s Gospel.  There was a brief reflection on why the image of a good shepherd was an apt metaphor for Jesus.  The children then said a Hail Mary and an Our Father.
 
      I thought the memorized prayers ended “the good morning,” but I was wrong.  The children pulled out notebooks in which they had, the evening before, responded to three questions:  For what are you thankful?  What would you like to ask of God?  What are your fears?  Two answers struck me.  One boy asked God to help the homeless in his town, to give them a place to stay and “luck.”  Another child said he was afraid because his grandmother was sick.
 
      This movement from prayerful reflection on Scripture to consideration of the lives of others and concerns in their own lives touched me.  Perhaps this daily practice could lead not only to um bom dia but also to uma boa vida (a good life).