Fr. Frank Majka, SJ – The Bridge

Seeing Stars

The man I saw in the LA airport lounge recently looked relaxed, but the people twenty feet away were very excited as they talked among themselves and pointed to him. Finally, one of them approached and said, “Excuse me. Aren’t you _____?” I didn’t hear the name or recognize him, but I gathered he was some sort of TV or movie star.

Two things struck me about this episode. The first was this famous person didn’t look that different from anyone else. He was just another traveler waiting to board his plane, unless, of course, you knew something about him. Then seeing him was something special.

The second was that no other people in the room were getting the same attention. No one was pointing excitedly at them. No one was asking for their autographs or the favor of shaking their hands. Of course that’s understandable. After all, we aren’t all stars.

Or are we? God seems to think we’re pretty special, having created each one of us in his image and likeness. Shouldn’t each one of us should be appreciated for that and shouldn’t we do the same to everyone else in return? For the fact is, in God’s eyes, we are all stars.