February 16, 2025: Life is Like a Roundabout

LIFE IS LIKE A ROUNDABOUT

Did you know that two roundabouts will be constructed in downtown Zimmerman this year? I like roundabouts. Some people don’t. I remember when the first roundabout was being constructed at the north edge of Princeton. It was great, for the same people who were complaining about our two parishes merging had something new to complain about. Anyway, I need four volunteers to demonstrate how a roundabout works.

[invite 4 kids up have them go around the altar, entering and exiting like cars do on roundabouts. Each holds a card with a letter on it representing a car model . . A for Audi, Y for GMC Yukon, L for Lexus, P for Porsche]

Roundabout can teach us lessons. Not only that sometimes in life it feels like we are going round and round in circles in our lives, and we just want to get out of the craziness. But they teach about the lessons that Jesus talked about in the gospel.

Now remember, these are Luke’s version. Most often we hear Matthew’s version, which are called the Beatitudes. Here there is a sharper tone. And Jesus once again turns everything upside down. The world tells us that wealth, power, and status are the keys to happiness, but Jesus says something radically different. He calls the poor, the hungry, and those who mourn “blessed” because the Kingdom of God belongs to them. Just like in a roundabout, we have to adjust our perspective and embrace what may feel counterintuitive.

A is for Awareness. Just as in a roundabout, you can’t just barge in, you have to be aware of others. Same thing with life, we need to become more aware of others. And to be aware that sometimes, there will be people who don’t like us. Parents, you may often experience this from your kids. You are not going to be liked by everyone and sometimes some harsh comments come at you of Social Media or in gossip. Jesus said in the gospel, it’s OK, you are blessed. Your invitation is not to hate them back, or try to get even, but be true to yourself and trust in God who always likes you. As the first reading says, we are asked to put our trust in the Lord. To put our hope in the Lord.

Y is for Yielding. In a roundabout, we yield to others before merging. Life can’t be about rushing to get to the front all the time. It’s not about thinking of yourself, then to think of others. Some of our Catholic politicians get confused about this lately, which prompted Pope Francis to issue an open letter this past week to US Bishops reminding all of us that taking care of others, especially the less fortunate is core to what it means to follow Jesus. It’s not something we do after we take care of ourselves. The gospel demands it as a priority like the story of the Good Samaritan as the Pope says. The Pope also criticized the massive deportation of immigrants and from that the MN Catholic Bishop have issued guidelines for us to follow. We’ll be publishing that next weekend.

L is for Learning. You need to learn how to do a roundabout, this comes with experience and they get easier as we learn how to use them. We are all called to learn, that’s the point of the list of woes in the gospel. For riches, or being filled up with possession, or even laughter are not what’s most important in life. Woe to any of us if those are our only goals. There is something deeper.

P is for Patience. Sometimes you have to wait a long time to enter a roundabout. Same thing in life, things don’t always go as planned. Sometimes, it’s slow. Other times, it’s faster than we can handle. But Jesus calls us to stop thinking about ourselves only. Maybe there is someone you know who is still mourning a loss. There is no correct amount of time. Be patient. And maybe you could try to be more patient with those people you live with.

I predict that when the roundabouts are being constructed in Zimmerman, we will have detours to face. Life is all about HOW we handle detours. For example, when I gone on vacation, I received the news that the buyer for our church has pulled out. That is rough, BUT it just means that there’s something even better for us. Things don’t always go as we want; OK we take a detour. I’ve heard that if you want to know what make God laugh, tell him your plans.

But if we try to put all those letters together [have kids stand side-by-side to spell AYLP], we might have to make some adjustments. For God has good things in store for you. So make changes as you need. And trust that God will take care of things. So what can we learn? [have kids stand side-by-side to spell PLAY]. As Jesus said, “Rejoice and leap for joy, your reward will be great in heaven!”