MY GOD, MY GOD, WHERE ARE THE POMEGRANATES?

You know you have a choice about how you respond to a situation when you are attending a Palm Sunday service in a Roman Catholic church in Italy in Italian, of course!

I recognized the service, no problem; but, we have had only 3 Italian lessons. The first thing I translated came out as "My God, my God, where are the pomegranates?" That's when I chose to enjoy the service WITHOUT trying to translate every word. I was used to being in church on Palm Sunday. I was used to communion. I was used to sharing the peace. I knew some of the tunes of the songs and could hum along or sing the English version very quietly. I could fill in the blanks of the sermon. The people were very welcoming, and most tried as hard to communicate with us in English as we tried to communicate with them in Italian. It was a lovely service and a lovely experience.

So, this week, we decided to return to the church next door for the Easter service. The famous translation of today was, " That peacock needs a vacation!" But, I was prepared to put my "progressing Italian" aside and embrace another beautiful service with beautiful people in a beautiful building.

Our relationships in Italy are not determined by our situations here, they are determined by how we choose to respond to them. We would not have changed a thing.

Buona Pasqua!

Colleen