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The Parable of Picking Mulberries


The following is an experience one of our missioners, Tim Marcy, recently had in South Africa, working at St. Francis Care Center. In the story, Tim describes how he helps a man pick mulberries “because he wasn’t tall enough to reach them, nor could he climb the tree.” Enjoy the Reflection:

“I climbed up, got a goodly handful, and when I came down, found that he had been picking up (with some effort) some of the very ripe berries which had fallen to the ground. After giving him the berries I had picked, I remarked that eating too many berries would probably give him diarrhea, so maybe he wouldn’t want those dirty berries from the ground. He raised his finger and gave me a look and a shake of the head that I interpreted to mean something like, ‘You don’t know everything, bub.’ About fifteen minutes later, I found him in the center of a group of patients and staff, meticulously cleaning and de-stemming each berry and giving them out to those around him.
He hadn’t wanted them for himself, he simply wanted others to share in a good taste experience.”

Thank you for sharing, Tim!

To read more about Tim and his wife Cecilia’s mission in South Africa, click here to read their blog.

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We prepare and support lay Catholics for two-year international, one-year domestic and 1-2 week short-term mission service opportunities in solidarity with impoverished and marginalized communities across the globe.

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