Being Ourselves

Learning how the last shall be first

10/26/2022

Lk 13:22-30 Jesus passed through towns and villages, teaching as he went and making his way to Jerusalem. Someone asked him, "Lord, will only a few people be saved?" He answered them, "Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I tell you, will attempt to enter but will not be strong enough. After the master of the house has arisen and locked the door, then will you stand outside knocking and saying, 'Lord, open the door for us.' He will say to you in reply, 'I do not know where you are from.' And you will say, 'We ate and drank in your company and you taught in our streets.' Then he will say to you, 'I do not know where you are from. Depart from me, all you evildoers!' And there will be wailing and grinding of teeth when you see Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and all the prophets in the Kingdom of God and you yourselves cast out. And people will come from the east and the west and from the north and the south and will recline at table in the Kingdom of God. For behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last."

One of the big changes between elementary school and middle school is you begin to compare yourself to other students. Have you noticed yourself doing this? I am not as tall as he is. I am not as pretty as she is. I am not as smart as he is. I cannot run as fast as she does. Unfortunately, we keep doing this for the rest of our lives. I don’t earn as much money as he does. They live in a nicer neighborhood than my family does. Their family takes better vacations than we do.

In elementary school we were happy being ourselves. We don’t worry too much about what others do or think. But in middle school we want to be like other students, or we want to be better than others. We obsess about what other people do and what they think, especially what they think about us.

Now, when we start comparing ourselves to others we also start doing some silly stuff to be more like them. Let me give you a couple of examples from my own life in middle school. Growing up as a small boy I had this really thick, curly hair. I know you find that hard to believe today. Well, I hated my curly hair and I wanted straight hair like some of my friends had.

So, every night I slept with this hairnet on my head that flattened my hair so I could go to school and have this really cool straight hair like my friends. Well, one morning I got up late for school, and guess what happened. I forgot I was still wearing my hairnet and rant to school with it on. At lunch I was sitting and talking to my friends and reached up to scratch my head and suddenly realized what I did.

One good thing about being a dark-skinned Indian is that people cannot tell when you get embarrassed and your skin turns red. I don’t know who all noticed but I went straight to the bathroom and flushed the hairnet down the toilet. I was so embarrassed and felt so foolish. I have never worn another hairnet since that traumatic experience. But you see the silly things we do when we compare ourselves to others, and are not happy being ourselves with curly hair.

Another thing I did in middle school when I compared myself to others was start wearing glasses. Why? Well, my eyesight was perfect, 20/20 vision. But I noticed that my friends who always made the best grades wore glasses. So that was their secret to being so smart: wearing glasses! So, even though I could see crystal clear I started squinting and complaining about not seeing well. My parents finally gave in and took me to the optometrist. He tested my vision and said I had a slight stigmatism in my left eye, but it wasn’t anything to worry about.

But I said, “Ah, ha! You see, I need glasses!” And so my parents reluctantly bought me a very low prescription pair of glasses. And guess what happened to my grade in school? Nothing! But I didn’t care about the grade. Why not? Because I looked smart like one of the super smart kids in school. I still wear glasses today, not because I’m so smart, but because I’m so old. But you see the silly things we do when we compare ourselves to others rather than being content with being ourselves.

In the gospel today, Jesus gives us a helpful tool to stop comparing ourselves to others. He says: “For behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.” In other words, for those who think they are not good enough or don’t measure up to their peers, those who think they are last, will one day be first. On the other hand, those who think they are rockstars and above everyone else, some day you may be last. So, don’t get a big head when you compare yourself to others.

I think Jesus’ real point is try to be happy just being yourself. Be happy with your curly hair. Be happy not wearing glasses and making the best grades you can. Be happy being tall or short. Be happy being able to run fast or slow.

Like I said, boys and girls, this comparing ourselves to others starts in middle school, but continues for the rest of our lives. Do you see or hear your parents or other adults comparing themselves to others? But wouldn’t it be great if we didn’t do that, and could be content just being ourselves?

Praised be Jesus Christ!