Priorities

by Mother Theresa

People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered;
Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind,
People may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;
Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some false friends
and some true enemies;
Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;
Be honest and frank anyway.

What you spend years building,someone could destroy overnight;
Build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;
Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;
Give the world the best you've got anyway.

You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God;
It was never between you and them anyway.


This was written by Mother Theresa and is engraved on the wall of her
home for children in Calcutta.

Riverview

The entire Santa Clara Group has now arrived here at St. Ignatius College at Riverview. Johny Figueroa arrived serendipitously on the same flight as Sharif Matar. The other seven of us, in order of arrival on "Terra Australiensus," are Andrew Conner, Richard Jaramillo, Mark McGregor, SJ, Christopher Dirago, Jim Reites, SJ, Trung Pham, SJ, and Phil Hurley, SJ. On July 4th, we saluted American Independence Day at "The Terrace." Today, we are joining Lithuanians in the celebration of their Independence Day. Many groups left this afternoon for their pilgramages or service experiments; we are scheduled to depart tomorrow for Western Sydney.

Santa Clara University: Magis 2008

"Magis" comes from Jesuit motto "Ad Maiorem Dei Gloriam;" "For the Greater Glory of God." We are nine pilgrims, come here to Australia from California to acheive greater understanding of ourselves and the world. Over the course of our nine day "experiment," we will have the opportunity to hear the stories of indigenous Australians living in Sydney, as well as refugees from war-torn Sudan. Through conversation and reflection based on the Ignation spiritual practices, we hope to prepare ourselves for the issues facing our globalized world today.