4) "Think about the third person"

It's a perfectly blessed idea, and I'm more than a little bamboozled that it seems new to me--and I'm about to celebrate yet another birthday. I should have heard of it before: "Think about the third person."

Tish Harrison Warren's gallery of New Years resolutions in the NY Times last week includes this fourth one, from Rev. Jonathan Mitchican, who cites what he says is a centerpiece of Catholic social teaching, "recognizing that we are all connected as human beings and that our own well-being is tied up with the well-being of others."

If that feels rather Ralph Waldo Emersonian, a bit over the top, "over-soul-ish" transcendental tripe, maybe a little loopy liberal, he adds this: "One small way to live that out is to pause before taking a particular action to think about the third person who will be affected by it." In other words, Father Mitchican says it's not a bad idea to widen your consideration a bit in what you say or do to include not just the person with whom you're communicating, but also some third person who's an earshot away because there are always bystanders. Hence, "think about the third person," that other person.

Makes life more complicated. But then, that's the point.

I don't remember the exact occasion, but once upon a time, Saint Teresa was speaking to some folks, remembering specifically the laggard behavior of the disciplines on the night in which Christ was betrayed. He had pointedly asked them to stay with him during this dark night of his soul, to be there for him should he need them. But, entirely pooped I suppose, they'd all nodded off, leaving the Savior perfectly alone. You'll remember the story, I'm sure, a sad one, the first of many that world-altering weekend.

Mother Teresa described the scene once more, then asked her charges not to fall asleep on the job, not to check out, not to throw in the towel on doing the Lord's work: "Be the one," she told them, "be the one" who is awake.

I remember thinking right then that I should have a cardinal red t-shirt with that line, that demand in bold white print: "Be the one." That's all, just "Be the one."

Saint Teresa didn't mean that little meditation for me. She likely never heard of Iowa. I've spent many hours with Saint Teresa in the last decade or so, and, alas, I've forgotten a ton of what I've learned. But for reasons I'll never quite understand, that one phrase stays with me on an imaginary t-shirt: "Be the one."

Just googled it. Guess what I found?--this:

If they've got it in XL, I'm in.