It is the heart that sees

The Gospel according to Matthew talks of the women who went to the tomb in the dead of the night. It was as if, for them, the death of Jesus did not cut the ties that bound them to Him. For indeed, what is the sense of going to the tomb? They certainly had very exhausting days and the most logical thing to do was to have some rest. But can anybody who has lost a significant part of oneself rest? You may reason out with your mind, but the heart says otherwise, and it is always the heart that wins. Probably this is the reason why we need to mourn, to give time for the heart to say farewell, to let the heart take its own time to say goodbye.
To say farewell to someone who has been an important part of one's life is one of the most difficult things to do because the love in your heart is still present but the object of that love is no more, at least physically. To mourn takes time because it follows no program. It has no timetable.
I admire those women-followers of Jesus who did not choose to take a short cut, but who, instead, faced their pain. It takes a lot of courage and honesty. And they were rewarded. They managed to see the life that was bursting forth.
Why is it that in other parts of the Gospels, the apostles and the disciples saw Jesus but they did not recognize Him; instead, these women, when they suddenly met Jesus, "came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshipped him." They recognized Him.
Indeed, it is true, "only the heart sees what is essential that is invisible to the eye."
And so I respect the time that my heart needs to mourn, but I will not forget that it is not sorrow nor death that has the last word.
This is the message of Easter. Sorrow is a necessary part of life; but it is love that has the last word.
I will remember Blessed Teresa of Cacutta's words:
Remember that the passion of Christ ends always in the joy of the Resurrection.
So when you feel in your own heart the suffering of Christ,
remember the resurrection has to come, the joy of Easter has to dawn.
Never let anything so fill you with sorrow
as to make you forget the joy of the Risen Christ!