maria j garnica (june 8, 1912 - april 27, 2008)

this week i was present at the ultimate food and drink, the catholic rite of communion. a hapless priest who didn't know my grandmother at all tried to deliver an appropriate homily during her funeral mass which included the sharing of the body and blood of christ the savior, and her assumption to the everlasting flock. while the mass is a celebration of our promise of eternal life, i contemplated my personal transition and transformation; what am i doing in the world of form? how well am i taking care of my body, my resources, my planet? what is the gap between what i say and what i do? what challenges me to be completely honest and accountable? my grandmother was at her crossroads and so was i. she lived a life full of change. she moved far from her birthplace in navarra, spain to ciego de avila, cuba; then lived and died in ohio, usa. along the way she married once for 64 years; had 2 children, 6 grandchildren and 9 great-grandchildren. she was a strong woman of principles and simple joys. i wonder how she would have answered some of these questions? or if she would have considered them at all. as the societies we live in become more technologically advanced, we have more opportunities to speculate about our lives beyond the mundane. i sat in that pew and knew that in 20 years time i didn't want to be more disappointed by the things i didn't do than by the things i did. in the words of mark twain, i knew i had to "throw off the bowlines, sail away from safe harbor, catch the trade winds in my sails. explore, dream and discover".

MY GRANDMA AND GRANDPA GARNICA
LOVE YOU BOTH, SEE YOU IN MY DREAMS