The Team Dinner

My high school daughter was not having a good day.   It had begun with all the normal stresses of being a student at Wilton High School and was ending with a performance at a cross-country meet that did not equal her usual fast pace.  Her competitive spirit had been bruised.  As I drove her home, I searched in my heart for the right words to boost her up, but everything seemed to fall flat.  Then I blurted out, “Lets do the Team Dinner at our house next week!”  I think that both of us were caught off guard by this declaration.  Being a single, working mother who is on call 24/7, I often beg off committing to extra school and athletic events since my schedule is unpredictable and demanding.  However, as soon as I said the words, I could tell that it softened the hurt.

As we got closer to the night of the team dinner, I became more aware of what needed to be done.  All I had to do was make dinner for 25 high school girls that would give them the needed energy to do well for the cross-country meet the following day.  Luckily my daughter is very organized and a great baker.  On the night before the dinner, she had made three different desserts and arranged the kitchen to seat most of the team, with the others eating in the living room.   An hour before they arrived – luckily it was my day off – I had two big pots of pasta cooking, garlic bread heating, and a salad made.  Despite being a well-oiled machine in my own kitchen, I was not fully prepared for the onslaught of these VERY hungry and VERY tired girls who arrived at my door.  Each of them was dragging a heavy backpack and a gym bag and was wet from a recent downpour of rain.  The house was soon filled with chatty girls who quickly went after the dinner and within thirty minutes there was not a scrap of food left!  I attempted to maneuver around them making sure that everyone was getting what she needed but it was clear that they knew the drill.  By 6:30 pm, all the girls were gone, re-energized and ready to face the next day’s meet.

I could not help but think that Sunday mornings at St. Matthew’s has a similar experience as the team dinner.  After a week where many of us can suffer a few bruises of frustration, hurt, despair, loss, fear, anxiety, loneliness or whatever troubles our souls, we come to church seeking to be fed and nourished.  We often come dragging our “backpacks of worries or concerns” and might even feel drenched by our own inadequacies.  Yet, we know the drill as well.   Come to St. Matthew’s and be part of the “team” where all are welcomed to receive Holy Communion.   It is a simple of meal of bread and wine but through the power of the Holy Spirit, it becomes the sacred meal of the Body and Blood of Christ.  There is always enough and it will always re-energize us to face the challenges of the next day or week.   We gather as a “team” to refocus ourselves and support each other with our “team” spirit.   Together we can win the race to bring hope and justice to the world.

Mary Grace+