Chekhov and the resurrection story

I have a great site. My two year old sister (who calls me mamma lestee or mamma celee) is helping me learn Luganda. Just like any two-year-old, she’s got lots to say, I just wish I knew what it was. My other sister is in secondary school and has showed me how to cook the most delicious meals. My third sister has taken me on walks and shown me the ins and outs of boarding a taxi to get to work. Then of course there are the other sisters (nuns) who are like my third, fourth, fifth, sixth and so on… mom.

Last Sunday I went to Mount St. Theresa Church for a mass in English. The homily was given by a brother from America and he gave a warm talk about knowing Jesus. The gospel was about the apostles not recognizing Jesus after he had risen from the dead and Brother said he thought Luke wanted to emphasize how difficult it can be for anyone, let alone the closest friends, to see Jesus. He talked more about our struggle to find Jesus in people or in actions that don’t seem to have any love or truth in them.

Then I read a short story called “The Duel.” A story about two men (so different they came close to being the same) ending up in a… you guessed it… duel. The story finished with what I thought Sunday’s homily meant for me. There are many times I think I recognize love-Jesus-truth and I’m full of joy. Then there are times I feel exasperated by what seems to be illogical or inhumane behavior/what people sometimes call the “Ways of the World.” From some of the things I’ve seen here, I think I will have to keep in mind that I want to find the truth-love-Jesus and it won’t always be as easy as waking up with the sunrise. Here’s the ending of the story:

“…the agitated, black sea. It hurls the boat back…she takes two steps forward and one backward, but the oarsmen are stubborn, they ply the oars indefatigably and aren’t afraid of the high waves… It’s the same in life… In searching for the truth, men take two steps forward and one backward. Suffering, mistakes, and the tedium of life thrust them back, but the thirst for the truth and a stubborn will drive them on and on. And who knows? Maybe they’ll reach the real truth…”

(I tried to remind myself of this semi-hopeful, stirring passage yesterday when my bike broke for the third time in a 30 minute time frame. “How does the search for Jesus-love-truth fit into this incredibly irritating scenario celeste?” Is what I asked. Then i laughed at myself for imagining throwing the bike in a ditch or a bush or rubbish pile. “You could use some patience and peace celeste” I said. Then I smiled thinking that maybe I had found a good part of life.)