into the gallos of night, we lurk
searching for some meaning to our lives
hoping that some day
we will find some empty space for us to live in
it seems endless
like being the rope in game of tug o war
we do not know which way to go
for if we choose the wrong
we may be locked up in this world
once more
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
The Departure of Father Frank
A little over 10 years ago, my wife Tracey of 5 years asked me to go to mass at the school down the street from our home and take our 8 month old baby daughter Rileigh. Mass was to be held in the gymnasium and it was to be conducted by the St. Peter Chanel Mission. "Mission, what the heck are we doing going to a mission?" was my initial thought. But anyone who has experienced the joy of a new baby daughter that you want to show off OR anyone who knows the "look" that you will get when you disagree with an Italian girl knows what the outcome was. At the time, we did not go to mass every Sunday but when we did, it was to a nice church like St Thomas Aquinas (where she had been going since birth) instead of going to mass in a gym in a run down little school. It was just down the street and it was what she wanted to do...enough said.
We dressed the little bobbin in a pretty dress with a hat and and went to mass. From the moment the priest opened his mouth, I knew I was home. A young Irish priest who tended to pronounce some extra consonants at the end of each word by the name of Fr. Frank McNamee was presiding. And I, of mediocre faith at the time but as proud an Irishman as there has ever been, felt a connection and a motivation that I had not experienced before. After mass, Tracey and I shook hands with him and I proudly introduced myself "Sean Patrick McDonough, father", he said "Ahh, your one of us!" "Yes I am, father", I said as he blessed Rileigh's head and smiled! After the handshake line, we met a girl who had gone to high school with Tracey and she told us about how they were starting a new church and that we ought to join the "mission" and become part of their church. Since it has been many years and a few Irish Whiskeys ago, I do not recall when we actually joined the parish but meeting Father Frank and Yvette Paris that day had changed our lives forever but we just did not know how much.
As the mission had grown and there was talk of a church and maybe a school, we kept abreast as much as we could. It was not until we saw the biscuit shop on the corner disappear and noticed there were no more cows in fields as we drove up Woodstock Road that we knew something was happening in our quaint little town of Roswell. Every time we would attend mass, Rileigh would "light up" as she saw Father Frank. And to this day...she still does and for that matter...I do too and so do most people who meet him.
As our family grew with Aidan being born in 2001, so did St. Peter Chanel. That year, I drove 18 hours straight and came to rest in my driveway about 4 am on Friday morning the 14th of September after being stranded in NYC for 2 days. Let me explain...you see I was standing at the base of the Twin Towers only minutes before they collapsed. In the following months, the first company that I had started 5 years earlier had also collapsed after losing our main client who was located near the WTC. I needed guidance and inspiration and at that time, did not know where to get it. Not knowing what is to come and what, in our lives, will change from day to day and month to month is unsettling and oftentimes stressful but having our faith and the St. Peter Chanel Parish community made the difference in our family then, and continues to today.
St Peter Chanel where...WE ARE FAMILY! Its a great way to start each mass especially when it happens to be true. Introducing ourselves to one another before mass and holding hands when we pray the Our Father are all amazing little components of why this parish, this family is the way it is and moreover, it is a testament to the "father" of our parish.
Times go by and things change. Everyone knows and accepts this fate. As I received a phone call from a friend who told me of the news of Father Frank being promoted to a new parish albeit close by in Atlanta, my heart sank, my eyes welled and I just looked at my girls and wondered how I would tell them. In this tumultuous world, there is a certain stability that human beings need in order to function with purpose and resolve and that stability comes from being a part of this community, this parish, this family. We are and will continue to be your family and that is not going to change no matter where you go Father Frank! We love you and wish you all the best.
We dressed the little bobbin in a pretty dress with a hat and and went to mass. From the moment the priest opened his mouth, I knew I was home. A young Irish priest who tended to pronounce some extra consonants at the end of each word by the name of Fr. Frank McNamee was presiding. And I, of mediocre faith at the time but as proud an Irishman as there has ever been, felt a connection and a motivation that I had not experienced before. After mass, Tracey and I shook hands with him and I proudly introduced myself "Sean Patrick McDonough, father", he said "Ahh, your one of us!" "Yes I am, father", I said as he blessed Rileigh's head and smiled! After the handshake line, we met a girl who had gone to high school with Tracey and she told us about how they were starting a new church and that we ought to join the "mission" and become part of their church. Since it has been many years and a few Irish Whiskeys ago, I do not recall when we actually joined the parish but meeting Father Frank and Yvette Paris that day had changed our lives forever but we just did not know how much.
As the mission had grown and there was talk of a church and maybe a school, we kept abreast as much as we could. It was not until we saw the biscuit shop on the corner disappear and noticed there were no more cows in fields as we drove up Woodstock Road that we knew something was happening in our quaint little town of Roswell. Every time we would attend mass, Rileigh would "light up" as she saw Father Frank. And to this day...she still does and for that matter...I do too and so do most people who meet him.
As our family grew with Aidan being born in 2001, so did St. Peter Chanel. That year, I drove 18 hours straight and came to rest in my driveway about 4 am on Friday morning the 14th of September after being stranded in NYC for 2 days. Let me explain...you see I was standing at the base of the Twin Towers only minutes before they collapsed. In the following months, the first company that I had started 5 years earlier had also collapsed after losing our main client who was located near the WTC. I needed guidance and inspiration and at that time, did not know where to get it. Not knowing what is to come and what, in our lives, will change from day to day and month to month is unsettling and oftentimes stressful but having our faith and the St. Peter Chanel Parish community made the difference in our family then, and continues to today.
St Peter Chanel where...WE ARE FAMILY! Its a great way to start each mass especially when it happens to be true. Introducing ourselves to one another before mass and holding hands when we pray the Our Father are all amazing little components of why this parish, this family is the way it is and moreover, it is a testament to the "father" of our parish.
Times go by and things change. Everyone knows and accepts this fate. As I received a phone call from a friend who told me of the news of Father Frank being promoted to a new parish albeit close by in Atlanta, my heart sank, my eyes welled and I just looked at my girls and wondered how I would tell them. In this tumultuous world, there is a certain stability that human beings need in order to function with purpose and resolve and that stability comes from being a part of this community, this parish, this family. We are and will continue to be your family and that is not going to change no matter where you go Father Frank! We love you and wish you all the best.
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