Shrinking little ways

I've been re-reading St Therese of Lisieux's autobiography Story of a Soul. I have loved Therese for many years: her immense courage in the face of enormous strain and pain has inspired me for a long time. In fact, I'm sure that she's had a large hand in the direction my vocation has gone over the past six or seven years.

I was thinking this afternoon one the way back to work after lunch about the Little Way - the love and faithfulness in the tiny things of life - and how that is actually harder than one great big act of love. After all that reflection, I completely failed at the test - not at work, but at home, when our small daughter had a huge meltdown (always amazes me how such a small person can make such an enormous disruption and noise!). I should have taken the Little Way into the fray, but after about 45 minutes of screaming I got cross with her and the Little Way went out the window....

However, I guess that the genius of St Therese is that, even if you fail one day to love and serve in the small things, you can always try again the next day. And the next. And the next.... because those small things come back again and again.