To the Band of Brothers: October 12, 2020
Good morning!
Do you have a happy place? This is how they refer to that place you can go to every once in a while to just relax, let your hair down, and put your feet up. Just a few days ago, I made a reference to the show Cheers and it being a place where “everybody knows your name.” Your happy place is actually a place where no one knows your name. At least it is for me. No one knows who you are so there is no need to always be on your guard and mind your Ps and Qs.
I actually have a couple of places that fit the bill. My favorite is in North Carolina. Many years ago, my parents built a cabin high on a mountain on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Just a few minutes away from Boone, it was intended to be a place where the family could go to get away from one thing: Miami. Don’t get me wrong, we love Miami, but every once in a while you simply need a break from the traffic (the drive from my house to the school is atrocious), the Reggaeton (did I spell that correctly?), and the humidity (my glasses are fogged up as I write).
The cabin was christened Villaverde, after a summer home my grandfather’s family owned in northern Spain on the coast of the Bay of Biscay. I have fond memories of this place. Like the time we snuck onto the football field at Appalachia State University and played football with my brothers using a shoe as a ball. I ran for a touchdown, fell, and banged up my knee so badly that I spent the rest of the trip lying on a couch praying the rosary with my grandmother, while my family went skiing. Or the time we went tubing at Hawksnest in Seven Devils and, for our last run, we all piled up together on the same tube, knocking people over as we made our way down the mountain.
Most of the time, the best moments were made up of simply hanging out in the cabin doing very little. Roasting marshmallows, watching movies, playing cards, and, of course, eating to our heart’s and belly’s content. But the one thing that was always striking and made this happy place so happy was being in the mountains. I don’t know what it is about those geographical phenomenons, but they are so relaxing and never cease to impress. Maybe it’s because South Florida is so flat and the mountains offer such a beautiful contrast. Maybe it’s because the mountains demand peace and quiet. Or maybe it’s their sheer beauty as they rise from the ground and seem to stretch so high into the sky, giving you a closer look into heaven.
One thing is for sure, being on a mountain reminds you of how small you really are. There’s an interesting play between the admiration they inspire with their beauty and the humility they demand with their majestic presence. You are allowed to climb them, but you may do so only if you respect their peace and quiet. You can’t be cocky on a mountain because, if you are, it will quickly put you in your place. The mountains don’t let you focus simply on yourself because their beauty demands you focus on them.
The first reading at mass yesterday was taken from the book of the Prophet Isaiah (25:6-10a). In it, the prophet refers to “the mountain of the Lord.” The Bible is actually littered with references made to mountains. Interestingly enough, they seem to be places where extraordinary things happen. Moses spoke to God in the form of a burning bush on a mountain (Exodus 3:1-6), Jesus was transfigured on a mountain (Matthew 17:1-8; Mark 9:2-8; Luke 9:28-36), and every time Jesus went to pray by himself he went up a mountain.
In this case, Isaiah is referring to Mount Zion, the mountain in Jerusalem where the Temple was located. In his account, he speaks about the peace and joy that all men will experience. He refers to everyone being provided with rich foods, juicy meats, and choice wines. He explains how on this mountain, God will destroy the veil of death and how He will wipe away every tear from our faces. The hand of God will rest on this mountain and finally, peace will reign. Isaiah seems to describe it as the place where God and man meet and the two shall kiss and be united. If you think about it, it seems he is ultimately describing heaven.
Makes sense to me. The humility and quiet the mountains demand are exactly the conditions necessary to encounter God. When we are no longer focused on ourselves and can focus completely on God’s majesty and grace, all kinds of violence, wars, and conflicts slip away and all creation can live in peace. In an earlier chapter of Isaiah, the prophet claims that on the mountain the cow and the bear will graze, the lion and the ox will lie down together, and the baby will lay his hand on the adder’s lair (11:7-9). Where could such peace and tranquility exist unlike anywhere else on the planet earth? On the mountain of the Lord. It will truly be a happy place.
Auspice Maria
BELEN JESUIT PREPARATORY SCHOOL
500 SW 127th Avenue, Miami, FL 33184
phone: 305.223.8600 | fax: 305.227.2565 | email: webmaster@belenjesuit.org
500 SW 127th Avenue, Miami, FL 33184
phone: 305.223.8600 | fax: 305.227.2565 | email: webmaster@belenjesuit.org
Belen Jesuit Preparatory School was founded in 1854 in Havana, Cuba by Queen Isabel II of Spain. The task of educating students was assigned to the priests and brothers of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits), whose teaching tradition is synonymous with academic excellence and spiritual discipline. In 1961, the new political regime of Cuba confiscated the School property and expelled the Jesuit faculty. The School was re-established in Miami the same year, and over the next decade, continued to grow. Today, Belen Jesuit sits on a 30-acre site in western Dade County, only minutes away from downtown Miami.