two unfurling ferns

Few of us will end up martyrs. But if we yearn for self-gift, another way of living becomes possible, now and for everyone. We are children and parents, husbands and wives, friends and community members. We will be called to leave work in the middle of the day to rescue a stranded friend, to stay up at night to feed a baby, to come to choir practice or a long-planned party on days we don’t feel like leaving the house. We will care for others in the hardest moments. Whenever we are broken open by true love for the divine or for other human beings, the seeds of more generous lives can be planted and the shoots can begin to grow.

A nonbeliever grapples with self-sacrifice.