by Robert Llizo
St. Joseph, spouse of the Virgin Mary and Foster-Father of Christ, has always intrigued me. He comes on the scene, plays his role, and then is never mentioned again in the gospel narratives. He is a man who is called to do one task, difficult, for sure, but one that does not win him any earthly glory. He is a man who is called to simply put one foot ahead of the other in the performance of his duty, and he does that one thing very well. My father once told me that it doesn’t matter how many people know you at your death, as long as those few who knew you remember you as a man who did his duty, in loving service to his family and his friends.
Then there are others who are called to play their role in a bigger, more public arena.
If you have seen the film on Queen Elizabeth II, The Queen, starring Helen Mirren, you may remember a candid conversation she has with her Prime Minister, Tony Blair, where she reveals that she was raised with this lesson in life: “Duty first, self second.”
Where did she learn this?
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