OUR GRADUATION DAY is the DAY of our DEATH. This is the thought that came to my mind as I was participating in a Funeral Mass that was offered on May 4, 2011 for the repose of the soul of our Auntie, Mrs. MERCEDES C. MANUELA.
Our Auntie died on May 2, 2011 at the age of 98 years. Her span of life is, indeed, a long one. Her death occurred on Monday, the day following the celebration of the Feast of the Divine Mercy, the Second Sunday of Easter. Rev. Fr. Andres Gumangan who presided in the Funeral Mass pointed out that it is significant to note that her name “Mercedes” means “Mercy” and hence, she must have been blessed in a very special way by God’s Divine Mercy.
I was inspired by this thought of a GRADUATION DAY on the Day of one’s Death with the following reflections:
1. Every human being who comes into this world is enrolled in the UNIVERSITY OF LIFE. This is a School where everyone has to go through as he grapples with the realities of everyday life. How one conducts himself as he faces the real world becomes his unique personal experiences. These personal experiences then would somehow affect his way of living and his perspectives in life.
2. One’s enrollment in this University is for life, from birth to death. It begins when one enters this world thru birth and ends when one departs from this world thru death. Hence, the duration of one’s enrollment depends on his own life span.
3. The diploma or certificate to be conferred on one’s Graduation Day depends not on how much knowledge one has acquired, nor on how much one has accomplished, but on how much love one has given to whatever he has done. To cite an example, Saint Therese of the Child Jesus, who lived for only 24 years, was canonized, because as a simple nun she performed her various domestic duties with all the love she could give.
4. The overall consideration in evaluating one’s Final Grade in this University of Life is “THE WILL OF GOD”. Thus, I believe, that the question everyone has to answer on the day of his death is: “How well one has lived in accordance with the Will of God as he perceived it in his everyday life?” This is a personal question every individual being has to answer based on his own personal life.
5. The Real Graduation for everyone, then, is on the Day of his Death, for it is on this day that his Final Grade will be meted out to him depending on how much love he gave in living his life according to God’s Holy Will.
I wish everyone a HAPPY GRADUATION DAY!
by: Salvador 'Buddy' Cagurangan
May 4, 2011
