At Mass

A passage from the Gospel heard at Mass today gave me pause to think:

"Now one of the criminals hanging there reviled Jesus, saying,
"Are you not the Christ?
Save yourself and us."
The other, however, rebuking him, said in reply,
"Have you no fear of God,
for you are subject to the same condemnation?
And indeed, we have been condemned justly,
for the sentence we received corresponds to our crimes,
but this man has done nothing criminal."
Then he said,
"Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."
He replied to him,
"Amen, I say to you,
today you will be with me in Paradise."

In what way have I committed crimes?  Unfortunately, I can think of far too many.  Most of my crimes are those of not being compassionate enough towards others, especially those I love.  I regret all the missed opportunities I have had to be more "present" with those I care about.  I do not mean just the general, physical presence... but more the opportunities I have missed to be more emotionally with people.  I do keep asking forgiveness for this and for all my many sins, and I do try to work each day to become better, although it is often hard.  I do so very much try to understand and find ways to not miss out on these opportunities.  I wish I would be stronger at it and better at being "there" more deeply.  Actually, I want to be more deeply intertwined with all aspects of my life as well.

PipeTobacco