The Good Life

Here is a link to a recent blog post at one of my favorite blogs. If you have a few minutes, it's well worth the read. I think Jen hits the nail on the head when she explains that a good life is not about racking up a bunch of unique and exotic things and experiences, but rather, a good life is measured by how one loves. Jen writes:

"The way I used to see it, life was measured by the number and type of experiences you had, how many cool things you did. Like most people, I had a "bucket list," a collection of experiences I wanted to have and things I wanted to do before I died..." "After I became a Christian, my outlook changed. Thanks to Christian teaching, I came to see quality of life as measured not by the number of fun things you do, but by how much you love -- period. I came to believe that even if you lived your whole life in the same small town, if you took every opportunity to open yourself to love -- even to people you didn't like, even when it felt uncomfortable -- that your life would be not only better but even more exciting than someone who spent her life jet-setting around to exotic destinations all over the world in pursuit of experiences."

I relate to the bucket list. I once had one too. And of course there are places I'd still love to see. But I'm so glad that I now realize that checking these things off "the list" is not what makes a good life. There was a time in my life, not so long ago, when I mourned not being able to go back to Rome or Paris. I am grateful for those experiences and they were wonderful and rich, but none of them come even close to spending a lazy Saturday with our little family. Sadly, I think many people miss this. I believe this is one of the reasons we do not value children as a society. Children get in the way of stuff and stuff, we wrongly think, is what it's all about. But a Christian life is meant to be something different. In the end, our life won't be measure by the stuff we've collected or the cool places we've gone, but by how much we have loved. It's as St. Therese of Liseaux puts it: The important thing is to do little things, no matter how small, with great love.