I bet you have heard the saying, “Good fruit does not fall far from a good tree.”
Where does this saying come from? It comes from the Word Made Flesh, Jesus Christ. He said, “You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles? So, every sound tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears evil fruit. A sound tree cannot bear evil fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, you will know them by their fruits” (Mt 7:16-20).
Recently, a 4-year-old girl named Peyton Kathe, a preschooler at North American Martyrs School in Lincoln, received two winter coats for Christmas. After learning of her good fortune, Tom Kathe (her grandfather) asked, “Which coat do you like best?”
“Both!” She replied.
Grandpa then suggested, “Why not give one of your coats to a little girl who does not have one?”
At this suggestion, her eyes widened and she answered in the affirmative and immediately wanted to go and give one of her two coats personally to another little girl who needed one. I should mention that there was a cute, matching t- shirt to go along with the coat.
We know, as Christians, this behavior does not come out of a vacuum. After the seeds of faith, hope and charity were instilled in her soul at baptism, they were obviously nourished by the loving and generous examples of her parents and grandparents; otherwise, this response most likely would have not happened.
In addition to the above, this was a teaching moment which will affect her as she grows into the loving Christian woman God is calling her to become, someone who is selfless and not selfish. That said, my gratitude extends not only to her, but to her parents and grandparents.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our supporters who because of their generosity we are able to help the many individuals and families who come to us in crisis on a daily basis. Why? Because, good fruit does not fall far from a good tree.
