I asked Elayne Miller, the owner of Annunciation Designs, what quote she had chosen for the canvas bag she was adding to this quarter’s Little Catholic Box. I thought it might be something fun and quippy, but I never expected it to be so gut-wrenchingly relevant:
“Take care of your body as if you were going to live forever, take care of your soul as if you were going to die tomorrow.” We both sat in silence for a moment after she read it.
“Woah”, I sighed.
“I know”, she replied with a laugh, cutting the weight St. Augustine’s words had laid between us.
I didn’t get into my whole situation with Elayne - at this point, I was just exhausted from climbing up and sliding down my own learning curve. I needed a break. So, I asked her how she likes to exercise.
The scene she painted for me was so idyllic, it was everything I could do to not ask if Ohio needed another visitor this spring. She told me that every day she takes her two little boys on a walk around the neighborhood, over the road bridge, and to the water. The water ices over in the Winter but in the Spring? In the Spring, tadpoles! Once again, I noticed this pattern of rest bringing forth new life. Once again, I jotted down all I was learning from these wonderful women.
I asked Elayne how she would like to see someone use the bag she designed and included in this month’s box. She said that she sees this bag as more than just a vessel for gym clothes. She sees it as an opportunity for witness, whether that be in the locker room or on one of her daily walks.
I agree wholeheartedly and gratefully. I know that I’ll be able to go begin going for walks again in a week or so, and I think I might like to be the type of person who bears witness to those words while doing their best to act them out.