Becoming Real

One of the best parts of summer, at least for me, is co-habiting with the bunnies that play in the backyard and endlessly graze on grass and other vegetation.  It doesn’t bother me in the least that they occasionally eat a prized flower or plant.  I’ve had a fondness for these little guys from the time I was a boy.  Cherished childhood memories.

I don’t recall reading The Velveteen Rabbit when I was growing up.  Interestingly enough, in my graduate degree program, it was a required reading for one of my courses.  Like for most of us who have read the story, it is the Skin Horse who steals the show when he says to the Velveteen Rabbit, “Real isn’t how you are made.  It’s a thing that happens to you.  When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real.  Once you are Real, you can’t be ugly, except to people who don’t understand.”

The people we serve at Catholic Charities are real.  While they might have had ugly experiences in their lives, they are not ugly people because we have taken the time to understand them, see them, care about them, and love them.

We all have a fundamental desire for connection.  Whether you’re the CEO of Catholic Charities or someone who is panhandling on the corner, we share the same humanity and have the same need to be loved.