The Smile

“Sometimes, Kristine,” she said, “when I go into church and sit, I just look up at the altar and the crucifix, and I smile at Jesus. That’s all I do, I just sit and smile. I think Jesus likes it when I do that.” Then she presented me with a gift, two small framed pictures. One was of Jesus as a little boy and the other was of Mary as a little girl. I recall that time as if it were yesterday. To think my favorite teacher had that intimate a relationship to Jesus, and her exchange of a smile spoke volumes to me about God and His personal interest in the details of a person’s life.

The pictures were my most valued possessions for years, but the memory of Sister Mary Benigna will never fade. The impact of those words have lived with me, even though I heard them over sixty years ago. Now, every so often when I am in church, I look up at the crucifix, and I sit there and smile at Jesus. That’s all I do, I just sit and smile. I think Jesus likes it when I do that.