Today I give thanks to God for all of you: for the parish we all call home, our spiritual family. I thank God for our beautiful home. I once heard this: ‘Never wait until the end of life or when someone passes to say something nice, good and kind about the person. Today and everyday, let us take the opportunity to bless (blessing means good word) each other, to say good things about and to them, sincerely. As I celebrate my Anniversary on this Thanksgiving weekend, I look back with gratitude to God for calling me to serve, for the people whom I’ve met on the road of life who taught me, who led me to Jesus, who through their life of virtue taught me the most valuable lessons of life. Thanks to my Mom and Dad and the countless others. To everyone in our parish, your life of Sacrifice and love has been a great inspiration. As you gather to celebrate as a family, please send my love and regards to your loved ones. May your celebration be filled with love, joy and laughter. Happy Thanksgiving! Your brother, Fr. Obi Must I Go to Mass Every Sunday? Eucharist- Means to give Thanks! The above question was put to me by Jimmy - a young medical student in Vancouver. It's been few years now but this weekend as we celebrate thanksgiving, I recall the question. I met the young man at St. Paul's hospital where I did my Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE). We became friends and would often talk about religion, about God, about spirituality and soccer, of course. Becoming increasingly busy with studies, one day Jimmy asked me: " Sly (that’s what he calls me), must I go to Mass every Sunday? This was my reply - Jimmy, you don't have to go to Mass every Sunday. You must not but if you care to know, I'll tell you why I go. As I lay in bed last night, I was unconscious; I didn't know where I was. This morning I woke up, opened my eyes, I can see, I can feel, I can breathe, I can eat. You and I have a wonderful opportunity of studying, but so many in our world would love to but have no means. In fact, one out of hundred has no college education. One out of 3 in our world are dying of hunger. One out of three have nowhere to lay their head at night. I'm sure you know Hasting Street. You see, whenever I walk by there, looking at those people on the street, I often think to myself 'that could be me.' Jimmy, you know, I didn't give myself life. Someone gave me life. The things that have come to me in life, I consider them to be blessings and grace. I merit nothing. It's not because I have worked better than others. Some work so hard but still don't have the blessings you and I have. When I look at all these wonderful blessings from God, deep down my heart, I really want to give thanks to God. Mass is called Eucharistic Celebration. And Eucharist comes from the Greek word 'Eucharistein.' And so, I attend Mass to give thanks not simply as an individual but more so with my community because I'm a being-with the other, not a being for myself. Jimmy smiled and left. I was looking forward to seeing Jimmy at Mass on Sunday, but he wasn't there. I was disappointed. I thought I did a good job in convincing him but that didn't seem to be the case. I phoned Jimmy after Mass. His phone rang but no one picked it. I phoned the second time, and someone picked it. It was his mom. Could I speak with Jimmy, I asked. With a shaky voice, she replied: " Jimmy is in the hospital." "What happened" I enquired. "Please come to the hospital", she told me. I rushed to the hospital. There was Jimmy lying in bed with lots of medical equipment all around him - tubes thought his nose, machine monitoring his heartbeat, his whole body covered with bandage. His mother told me what had happened. After our talk on Wednesday, Jimmy went out with three of his friends. They had a terrible accident. He and one other were lucky but the other two were not. They died instantly. As tears flowed down my eyes, I hugged his mom, stayed for some time and prayed for him. I visited him from time to time until he was discharged. Upon his discharge, Jimmy was feeling better but still was not able to walk well. We were all happy to see him out of the hospital and recovering well. We had another deep talk. "Jimmy, you've been through a lot these past few months. What does it feel like to be out of the hospital? "After a moment of silence, he said, "Sly, I'm living on a borrowed time. I just want to make the very best of every time, every moment I have left in this life. Every moment is a blessing. You were right, I didn't have to go to Mass but now I desire to go." Apart from Sunday Mass, Jimmy attends Mass during the week when he can. He sits near the statue of our Lady because he believed that he was saved through the intercession of our Lady. The night of the accident, Jimmy had in his pocket the Rosary grandma gave him years ago. A medical doctor now, Jimmy is in Tanzania doing a missionary work - serving his neighbour and spending his life in gratitude to God from whom all blessings flow. Fr. Obi