I was prompted a few weeks
back to go through and empty out my desk drawer. It had been far too long since I had
de-cluttered it. I had forgotten the hidden treasures it contained. Then I saw them –
about 15 of them. Suddenly, I realized how long it had been since I last went
to prison.
Odd, isn’t it. The one place I
visited where I was always immensely blessed is filled with men and women whom the
majority of us would never voluntarily choose to have anything to do with - no
matter that our Faith teaches that all of us, including the greatest sinners
among us, were created in the image and likeness of God and that each of us, without
exception, by and through the unearned and undeserved grace of Almighty God,
can, despite what we might have done in the past, become new creations in Him who made us. Every
one of us – no exceptions! We must, of course, humble ourselves, acknowledge
our sins, ask for God’s forgiveness, resolve not to sin again and perform the
proscribed penance.
A difficult concept for many of us adults to accept but one
which little children are more readily open to hear and understand. How do I
know?
For years, we would deliver hand
written notes and drawings from young children and distribute them to the inmates
attending our prison retreats - men separated from their own families because of
their criminal conduct.
There were no names on these
sheets of paper. No way for anyone to identify who sent them or from whence
they came. It would be impossible for anyone to trace and find the child who
took the time to reach out to an unknown, sinful and often forgotten human being.
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