This month we want to reflect on the limits that characterize the life of any person in the world.
When I discuss a topic, it is my habit to start with the etymology of the word that defines it. “Limit” comes from the Latin word “limes” and indicates a dividing line, which acts as a border, a term that cannot and must not be exceeded. The limit is born with the person, it is natural to him and does not take away his value.
However, when the limit presents itself, we feel guilty and discouraged. We have the want and the desire to succeed in everything; since this is not possible, we also try to hide our limitations, even from ourselves to avoid feeling inadequate and frustrated.
How different our feelings would be if we lived the limit as a providential gift of God! When I do not arrive at something, it is time to let the other or maybe even “the Other” intervene. In my life, my limit is the “space for collaboration.” Where I do not arrive, you arrive and vice versa.
I learned that when I do not know how to do something, I either invite someone else to do it for me, or I imitate step-by-step those who have the competence. The limit then becomes an opportunity for unparalleled sharing and communion.
The proverbs of popular wisdom confirm and summarize all this: “Unity is Strength”; Yes, because each of us is limited and for this very reason he has a particular and specific gift that makes him unique and unrepeatable.
However, to experience the limit as wealth, it is necessary not only to know what has been said in theory, but to let it penetrate the marrow of our bones. That is, to practice daily in the art of being humble, true, and authentic without masks.
Where do we start? First, it is necessary to know ourselves. We know ourselves not only by returning to who we are, but also, and above all, by comparing ourselves with the Word of God. What do others say about us and how do we reflect on our behavior. Our behavior, how we act, reveals who we are. We then give a name to what constitutes our limit, we identify what we do not know how to do and then with healthy realism we accept that we do not know how to do something and ask the other to intervene. By doing so we will create true communion.
There is an aspect of the limit that torments us and that cannot be treated in this way: it is the limit of time. The fact that everything ends and that we too are destined to end when we die. Who among us, thinking of his time limit, does not remain incredulous and bewildered? However, the Gospel comes to meet us and announces the Good News: Christ has defeated death.
It is therefore a question of living concentrated, and not lost in the present moment and filling it with love. We live lost in the present when in order not to think, we become addicted to that pleasure or that other. We live focused on the present when we make the fundamental choice of orienting our existence to God and we always look for the best way to express our love. In short, serenity comes from living the following motto: “live the present moment and fill it with love.” Only love remains, only what I do with love and for love remains.
Everyone thinking of the future is frightened because the thought of the future is not reality; therefore, we think about our future without God’s help. When the future is present it will be inhabited by God because God is only in reality; then we will be able to live it and to live it well because like St. Paul we will say: “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Galatians 2:20).
Suggested resolutions for this month
- Each day, every now and then, I will stop and refocus in the present moment to live it with awareness and fill it with love
- Whenever I feel limited, I will try to ask humbly and simply for help
This month’s meditation is by Sr. Tiziana.
