I know people often complain about Mondays, but for me, I enjoy them. My busiest time of the week is generally the weekend, so Monday becomes a “catch-up” day for me. On Mondays I almost always have Ben with me too (as I do today) so my Mondays also include a few bottles, diapers (all for Ben), and a lot of Nick Jr and Disney channel playing in the background.

But Mondays in fact, help to reflect a truth in my life. As many people know, I talk a lot about the importance of family, and being involved in the lives of your children. And of course, I believe that you can’t just “talk the talk,” but you have to “walk the walk” as well. Over the course of my life I have seen very few clergy model that in a healthy way, often only reinforcing the stereotype that clergy children will be the “wild ones,” or the ones who will misbehave. That can’t be, and won’t be the case for my children. I am certain they all would tell you (especially 7-month old Ben if he could talk) that I spend a lot of time invested in their lives!

In fact, many of us have been blessed by the Lord with the gift of children, and clergy or not, our call to care for them and instruct them is the same for us all. Of course we all know that being involved and invested in our children’s lives is no gaurantee that they will turn out to be model adolescents and adults, but the odds are sure quite better when we try. In fact, the Bible talks A LOT about our responsibilities as adults to not just care for, but to instruct, our children. And we know from psychology that our role is in fact VITAL to our children’s development and future!

As for me, today I will spend time singing “Get on the Bus” along with the Doodlebops (Ben’s favorite song), dancing with the numbers train, and maybe a little later working as a homework aide, coach, counselor, or as a mechanic for my daughter’s car. In between, I will “catch up” while I enjoy it all.

God has blessed me with a great family and with the opportunity to choose to be an involved parent (and husband). So thank God for Mondays!! Ben and I enjoy them, and I really do get a lot of QUALITY work done!

I hope and pray you make the most of the opportunities that the Lord is providing you!

God Bless!

Fr Tom+