Is it better to know that there is sorrow ahead and tell people, or just let people be in the moment and experience life as it comes?   

I am a disaster planner by nature and catastrophize in vivid color. The world has a lot going on and it can be plenty scary to consider.

Kids going off to college in my house have every extreme first aid item available, laundry emergency remedy, legal paperwork, car repair item, and extreme clothing—whatever is necessary to face anything.

At the same time, I tell them to go, have fun, and be safe, knowing that their life experience should be formed as they go along. “Don’t pre-worry” is a mantra.

Jesus knows what’s coming and I think he wants the disciples to be in the moment. There will be time for suffering later, but for now carry on. I can only imagine that he sees how deeply the future will impact them, the sorrow that will lead them to the brink of despair. It’s like he wants to give them just a little more time to have a normal life.

In today’s world we are faced with uncertainty and doom, depending on who you listen to. Jesus is reminding us to have faith and live with love in our heart. Spread the joy and enjoy being with each other, because there will be time for sorrows soon enough. 

—Nora Dabrowski is a regional advancement director for the Midwest Jesuits working in the Detroit and Cleveland areas.

Lord, prepare our hearts for you as we enter more deeply into our Lenten practices. Amen.

—Jesuit Prayer team