SURPRISED BY JOY
“The poor have the good news proclaimed to them.” – Mt 11:5
Last weekend, I was surprised by joy. I was not the only one it snuck upon. It visited at least two dozens of us. Twenty-two of us, adults and kids, crossed the border into Tijuana, Mexico to finish building a house for María de Los Ángeles and her husband as well as her children and grandchild.
Like other December Casa Building trips, our task was to paint the house and surprised the family with furniture. Yet, the weather was uncooperative. It rained the entire morning. We were unable to paint the outside of the house. We could not whisk the family away, move all the furniture in, then surprise them when they entered the fully furnished house as in previous trips. Instead, we sequestered them in one of the rooms, squeezed the unboxed furniture and appliances in the kitchen area, and awkwardly invited the family to come out. What followed caught many of us by surprise.
María burst into gentle and profuse tears, tears of gratitude (which the above photo barely captures). Later, she shared that since her childhood days, she dreamt of living in a “solid house”. It has been a consistent prayer that she entrusted to God all of her life. She couldn’t believe that God’s promise is being fulfilled so unexpectedly and abundantly.
María's faith and receptivity touched all of us. Her gratitude was contagious. Xavier, my precocious eleven-year-old nephew, spoke what we all felt within: “I feel guilty for taking many things for granted. What we gave the family (beds, couch, kitchen table, refrigerator, and stove) I already have. But I’m not thankful for them.” María’s readiness to receive and heartfelt response triggered in all of us a greater sense of gratitude. For the rest of the weekend, our group became increasingly joyful. Laughter erupted spontaneously and genuine care flowed abundantly.
It took me a week to realize what David Steindl-Rast wisely observes: “The root of joy is gratefulness. It is not joy that makes us grateful; it is gratitude that makes us joyful.” It also took a week to dawn upon me that the poor in today’s Gospel is not only needy families like María’s, but those of us who have many blessings yet have not received them as gift. María is poorer in material things but richer in receptivity and gratitude. Our group from the US is richer in possessions but poorer in gratefulness. When we meet at a greater depth of being and receive one another as gifts, something unexpected happens. Joy slowly swells, as the infallible sign of divine presence, as God coming near.
Joy is something that sneaks up on us. We can’t find joy; it finds us. It surprises us, often through gratitude for ordinary blessings.
Today, will you let gratitude surprise you? Will you let joy visit you unexpectedly?
Photo credit: John Tran