Lk 9:43b-45
43While [the crowd and the disciples] were all amazed at his every deed, [Jesus] said to his disciples, 44“Pay attention to what I am telling you. The Son of Man is to be handed over to men.” 45But they did not understand this saying; its meaning was hidden from them so that they should not understand it, and they were afraid to ask him about this saying.
Reflection:
They were all amazed at his every deed. We sometimes love to see the good and the beautiful and deny the painful and the ugly part of reality. We have eyes and ears for what pleases us. But we close our hearts to what we do not like to accept. While this may be helpful at times, we need to face all of reality and put both our feet on the ground.
After an enjoyable experience, my friends remind our group to be ready to go back to reality, to wake up and face the real world again. Life has its ups and downs, its bad and good sides. We cannot have everything all the time. Even Michael Jordan sometimes missed an easy shot.
A Roman commander riding back home to cheers and accolades after a successful campaign would be accompanied by a subordinate at his back constantly reminding him, “Sic transit gloria mundi!” (“Fame is fleeting!” or, literally, “So passes away the glory of the world!”)
Have nothing but bitter gourd or ampalaya for dinner tonight.