Dear Little Flower Students and Families –

It is hard to believe that our Easter break is upon us. For those of you who have been watching, Fr. McCaffrey and I and a few special guests here and there have been doing prayers and announcements daily in the morning and evening since we moved to the Flexible Learning format. We call our show the launchPad, as it reflects how we’ve had to take off quickly into our new frontier.

This morning, I reflected with Fr. Joe how the experience of Holy Week and our lead up to Easter is such a powerful metaphor for the experience we are all living right now. We know that this is, for so many reasons, a sad time. The uncertainty of so many dimensions of our life plays on our worst fears. We are all trying hard to follow the recommendations for staying put, social distancing, in effect…being still. But we are not a still people – especially Little Flower people who just are go, go, go all the time.

As we enter the Holy Week experience, we are so blessed that we know the end of the story, and it is a happy end, with the celebration of the Resurrection of our Risen Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. But to get to that happy ending, there is so much sadness we must endure – his humiliation, his betrayal by those he loved most, his sad good-bye, his death, and most profound perhaps from a mother’s lens, the devastation of those, especially his/our Blessed Mother, who had to bear the grief and loss of burying a child. We know these coming days we’ll experience a lot of tough stuff to get to our Easter miracle.

It probably stands to reason that we have a ways to go in the sadness of the COVID-19 situation before we can get to the happy ending. The news suggests that there are some tough weeks ahead and to stay the course with all they are asking us to do in order to get to our rainbow’s end, or find our silver lining. I ask you to join with me and support all the recommendations that the experts are making so that we can indeed get to the other side and to our happy end.

I also remarked to Fr. Joe this morning on the launchPAD that this weekend marked the passing of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame musician, Bill Withers, who died on Saturday at 81 (nothing related to COVID-19). Withers is remembered for many iconic songs of the 1970s that have great resonance in these modern times.

“Ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone. It’s not warm when she’s away”

(Bill Withers, © Universal Music Publishing Group, BMG Rights Management) is the opening line to his classic “Ain’t No Sunshine”. That is certainly how we all feel not being physically at Little Flower with all our friends, colleagues, staff and students.

“Lovely Day,” another of Withers’ great hits reminds us

“Then I look at you and the world’s alright with me. Just one look at you and I know it’s gonna be a lovely day.”

(William Harrison Withers, Jr./Skip Scarborough, © Warner Chappell Music, Inc. Royalty Network, Golden Withers Music.)

When I see our students’ faces on the videos they are posting on social media or when I get the chance to be with one them on our live feeds, it does remind me that however we can be together, the world is indeed alright with me! Withers’ biggest hit, “Lean on Me” is the ultimate expression of art imitating life as we move into our holiest week of our liturgical year.

“Sometimes in our lives, we all have pain. We all have sorrow. But if we are wise, we know that there’s always tomorrow. Lean on me when you’re not strong, and I’ll be your friend. I’ll help you carry on. For it won’t be long, ‘Til I’m gonna need somebody to lean on.”

(Bill Withers, © Universal Music Publishing Group, BMG Rights Management)

We’re all feeling a deep sense of the unknown right now and with that comes sadness. We are remain optimistic for a happy ending, but we know to get through the portal to the other side, the journey may be a tricky navigation. I ask you to reflect on the words of this great American musical icon and be there for someone to lean on you, and have the grace to lean on someone else when you need it. That is how we’ll get through this – stronger, more firm in our conviction to one another, the love of Christ, and to Little Flower.

I wish you and your families a blessed, safe, still and healthy Easter and I look forward to connecting when classes resume on Tuesday, 4/14/20.

In gratitude-

Jeane McNamara

Technology Issues?

If your daughter is experiencing any technical difficulty with her chromebook or if we can help you to troubleshoot a technology issue at home, please reach out our Technology Director Patrick Voytko at [email protected] and he’ll get you a speedy fix.

Add in the piece about the lawn signs from L & F