Far too often I fall into the trap of merely existing. I trudge through the day, through my work, just doing enough to stay afloat. There is often no vivacity, no struggle on my part for something more. And the entire problem is me. I am not fighting for Something, Someone, greater than myself. I am not straining, willing to risk everything, to pursue Truth. I settle for mediocrity.
On a rare occasion, maybe you've felt this way too, I feel alive. It's like a little taste of the way I long to live my life...fully alive. But in reality, it's a compartment. I feel alive in this one compartment, maybe when I pray, maybe when I play sports, but this vivacity doesn't penetrate all of my daily activities.
“The faith given to me in baptism suggests to me surely: by yourself you will do nothing, but if you have God as the center of all your action, then you will reach the goal.”
Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati has become a model for me, a saint I can relate to in almost every area of my life. His words here, beckon me to pursue the one Person who can awaken every aspect of my life. If I come to know Christ, if I encounter him (or maybe better said, "am open to encountering him"), I can't help but be changed. If I come to know Christ and He becomes my core, my desire for "having life to the full," will be satisfied.
If you don't know much about Bl. Pier Giorgio, I encourage you to read up on him. He is a patron of youth and a Third Order Dominican (which is why his pics are plastered all over the wall in the school cafeteria). He is known as the "ordinary Christian" who lived all aspects of his life with courage. You can check out this bio on the Third Order website http://www.3op.org/frassati.php.
This pic of Pier Giorgio has the words, "Verso l'alto" scribbled on it. He wrote this phrase, which translates to, "Toward the Heights," on the picture near the end of his short life. It is a reminder to us that as we struggle to climb the mountains in our daily life, our hope comes from the Lord, who gazes upon us and draws our gaze upward to Him...if we are open.
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