I was sitting in Tims when I heard a teenage girl ask her father “Is Black Friday a holiday?” When he assured her that Black Friday was not a holiday and that she would have to be in school she seemed puzzled as she was sure that it was. After a little bit of back and forth he suggested that maybe she was thinking of Good Friday. She conceded that it was Good Friday that she was thinking of and then asked the obvious question: “What’s the difference?” And her father didn’t have an answer. He probably knew what Black Friday was, after all it has gone from being a strange American phenomenon to becoming an important part of the retail culture in Canada in just a few short years. But Good Friday? Not a clue.
That was a reminder again for me to not take for granted the continuing spiritual heritage of our community or country. But on second thought I’m not sure I would have been able to articulate the actual meaning of Good Friday before it actually meant something to me.
The crucial thing isn’t that people can simply explain events like Christmas, Good Friday and Easter but that they actually have the opportunity to experience why those events are so important.
Have a great week and remember: To see what is really possible, you will have to attempt the impossible.