Traveling Light

Ivonne J. Hernandez invites us to let go of old baggage that might be holding us back. 

If you ever watch people at the airport, you can easily guess who is a frequent traveler and who is not. Those who travel often seem to carry less stuff with them. They zoom past the security checkpoint and quickly grab a cab at their destination, while the rest of us are waiting in the baggage claim line. Young people going on an adventure also travel light. The term “hauling luggage through Europe” just doesn’t have the same ring as “backpacking through Europe.” How come some people can travel for months with only a backpack while others need to check two huge bags for a weekend trip? Perhaps a combination of too much stuff and too little trust makes us attached to things, rather than attached to God. 

We are often very attached to our stuff, and not only material things but other things as well. We are attached to places, to people, to our way of seeing things, and to our way of doing things. We carry around so much baggage, baggage from our past, and extra baggage for the future “just in case we need it.” All this makes our journey through this earthly life cumbersome. What if we trusted that God would provide for all that we need? What if we kept in mind our final destination, our true home? 

Thinking about death 

I find it interesting that our society seems to be fixated on certain aspects of death, like zombies and haunted houses. Yet, when it is time to talk about preparing for our own death, many think it is morbid and turn quickly to avoidance. How often do we think about death? A few times a year? A few times a month? A few times a week? Every day? And when we do think about death, what do we think? How do we feel? Is there curiosity, anger, fear, sadness? Is there avoidance or resignation? Is there ever a welcome? 

Death was not part of nature; It became part of nature. God did not decree death from the beginning; He prescribed it as a remedy. Human life was condemned because of sin to unremitting labor and unbearable sorrow and so began to experience the burden of wretchedness. There had to be a limit to its evils; Death had to restore what life had forfeited. Without the assistance of grace, immortality is more of a burden than a blessing. (Saint Ambrose, From a book on the death of his brother Satyrus, Office of Readings for All Souls Day) 

When we remember our loved ones who have passed from this life and pray for their eternal rest, we also strengthen the hope that we too will rise again with Christ, not only on the last day but also today, as we rise from our pain and our fears.  

Letting go of fear 

Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting? (1 Corinthians 15:55) 

I have discovered that the more I bring my fears to prayer, the more they lose their grip on me. Losing my father at the young age of nine, the reality of the separation we experience when a loved one dies was too much for me to deal with at the time. For many years I avoided looking at that wound. I became an expert at distraction and escape, but God had a different plan. The very wound that made me feel abandoned, became a source of love and grace.  

Hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the holy Spirit that has been given to us (Romans 5:5) 

This love that was poured out on the Cross is in the cup He gives us to drink (cf. Mark 10:38). When we accept the pain and suffering that life brings, and bring it in prayer to God, we find the love that casts out all fear (cf. 1 John 4:18). And it is that love that will transform our wounds into rivers of flowing grace, into witnesses of His love. 

Listen kindly to our prayers, O Lord, and, as our faith in your Son, raised from the dead is deepened, so may our hope of resurrection for your departed servants also find new strength. (Collect Prayer for All Souls Day) 

Growing in trust 

What if we let go of what is holding us back from following Jesus? Instead of walking away sad like the rich young man (cf. Matthew 19:22), we might see the richness God has for us right here, right now. If we looked up for a minute from all the stuff that keeps us busy, we might see Jesus loving us from the Blessed Sacrament, telling us He is all that we need, telling us that whatever circumstance God is allowing in our lives at this moment is for our good and that if we let Him, He will guide us home. 

While we are already making plans for the holidays, during the month of November, the Church turns our attention in a special way towards Heaven. We remember our loved ones who have gone before us; we pray for those in Purgatory and ask for the intercession of those in Heaven. By reminding us that we are pilgrims on a journey, that the things of this world shall pass, we are invited to let go of the heavy baggage holding us back so that one day we can “enter through the narrow gate” (Matthew 7:13), to the road that leads to life. 

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Copyright 2024 Ivonne J. Hernandez
Images: Canva