The Gift of Labor

               Three years ago, a job was one of those things that was a given in life.  My husband had been employed for over 20 years with the same company. I had full time employment for most of my life, except when I decided to move from Detroit to Washington DC and that time of unemployment was short, perhaps three weeks. My relationship with work was related to my paycheck.  Now, my relationship with work is primarily related to dignity and fulfillment.

               On the first work day of January 2011, the CEO of my husband’s company announced that he was reorganizing the company and eliminated my husband’s department.  It was a shock.  After spending 20 years with the same company, the challenge was that ALL of his contacts were inside the company.  And so over the next 32 months, began to build a network of individuals and pursued a job.  He was employed for a short period, but for the most part, looked for work.

               It was difficult for us, for our family, for our finances, and for his dignity.  He is employed on this Labor Day.  At Mass this morning, Fr. Clint McDonell talked about how work is a gift and a way for us to sanctify our lives.  How much more I understand this idea of gift, than before his unemployment.  How much more careful we are of how we spend our gifts.  Not just careful with money, but also with our time and our talents.

               We receive many gifts during this time.  We have learned to be creative in giving Christmas and birthday gifts, to read books from the library and watch vintage movies on TV.  We better understand what others experience when they don’t have work.  We also have found great joy in volunteering.  We have decided to down size our home so that we will have more to give to others now, and when we retire.  And we want our work, whether employment or volunteer to further the kingdom of God.

               How the concluding prayer at Mass today resonated with me:

             “Having been made partakers of this table of unity and charity, we beseech your mercy, Lord, that through the work you have given us to do we may sustain our life on Earth and trustingly build up your Kingdom.”

Enjoy this day of rest!

Pure Gift

                I recently heard someone refer to an experience in his life as “pure gift”.  I may have heard this term before, but didn’t pay attention to it.  This time, I halted in my tracks and need to ponder the meaning and search my life for time of pure gift.

                The “pure gift” received by this individual was a vacation.  He was invited to go on vacation by a friend who had been given the use of a timeshare for a week.  Out of the blue, someone offered him the use of airline miles, if he ever had a need. The week was filled with great weather, terrific friendship, favorite activities and joy. 

                Pure gift is the way I now would describe last year for my family, although it was difficult to think of unemployment as any sort of gift.  If you read this blog, you will know that my husband was unemployed for most of 2011, being laid off in early January just three days short of his 21^st anniversary. Although he received a generous severance package, the shock of not going to work was difficult.    

                By early April, it was apparent that this search was going to be much more difficult than originally thought.  We enjoyed the time together as a family.  He attended every one of our son’s basketball, baseball and football games and became involved in a men’s faith group at church.  He also spent much time with his parents, who live with us.  And the two of us had more time together than we have had since early in our marriage.

                In June, the job search took a back seat to my father in law’s failing health.  My husband had to take my father in law to the emergency room on Father’s Day.  We didn’t realize that he would not return to our home.  Weeks of hospital care, interspersed with re-hab in a nursing home, ended in early August when his father died.  Without a job, my husband was able to spend many hours with his father and mother during those weeks.

                September came, and we were hopeful that a job would be just around the corner. Fortunately, my business had picked up considerably, which meant we were able to take a smaller amount out of saving each month.  Although he had a number of interviews, including some second interviews, in early December, we began to look at our savings, to determine where we would take money from to live.

                Then, on a Sunday, he had an interview.  By this time, I wasn’t paying too much attention to first interviews.  It was good to see my husband in a suit as he headed out the door.  He received a job offer the next day.  When he had me listen to the voice mail, I just looked at him.  Just as suddenly as he became unemployed, he was employed.

                He has been back to work for two months.   I am so thankful for the time of unemployment.  We still had some money left over from his severance package, he walk the last days with his father in a way that would not have been possible had he been employed.  His relationship with our son and with me is strong and his relationship with God grew exponentially. 

                Truly this is pure gift.

What is a Gift?

                For some reason, gifts are on my mind today!  I spend part of the morning at the post office mailing the last of the out of town gifts for the year.  I am very excited and happy about the gifts that I/we are giving this year. 

Just after Thanksgiving, I saw a contest on the web titled, “My horrible holiday gift” contest sponsored by a hotel chain. In anticipation of the “thousands – if not millions – of awful, embarrassing gifts that will be received” by Americans this Christmas, it will reward gift recipients for sharing their stories on line.  People can trade in less-than-desirable gifts for “valuable prizes”.

This is what we have come to, expecting to receive what we don’t want and finding a way to turn it into what we do want.  Dictionary.com defines gift as “something given voluntarily without payment in return”.  It occurs to me that Christmas gift giving is no longer voluntarily and many of the anticipated “horrible” gifts arise because individuals select gifts out of sheer panic, or because an advertiser has enticed them to purchase the item, or because they feel obligated to give a gift and don’t know what to get.

My favorite gift that I ever gave my mom was a Philadelphia Phillies six dollar coffee mug purchased in San Francisco.  My mom loved baseball and I visited many major league baseball parks with her after my father died.  When we went to a game in Philadelphia in July – in a year long before internet shopping - they didn’t have any mugs.  She was devastated. Yes, she was so sad.  In October that same year, I was in San Francisco for work and had a free evening.  As I walked along the waterfront, I happened upon a store that sold sports souvenirs.  Tucked in a corner, on a shelf that I could not reach, was one Philadelphia Phillies mug.  I bought it, wrapped it securely in my luggage and kept it safe until December 25^th.  I could not wait for her to open it and when she did, she shared my joy! 

This year, due to the economic conditions in my family – we have joined many others in downsizing this Christmas.  I carefully shopped throughout the year when I found something that I thought would be a perfect gift.  Although we spent much less this year, I am very excited about the gifts we are giving.  Most of the gifts I mailed today had been purchased in advanced, I just was not organized enough to get them wrapped and packaged before today!

With just six days before Christmas, maybe it is time to take a time-out from the Christmas (holiday) madness and consider what it is that is really being exchanged.  After all, those original Christmas gifts given to Jesus were things that he would need, given in love.   It is my prayer for you today, that if you are in the middle of the Christmas madness that you take a deep breath and remember that a gift is given voluntarily.  (Just as Jesus gave us the greatest gift – voluntarily!)

Wishing you much peace in these final days of Advent!