Can life be like that for you? Is there ever a day when things are no different than the day that came before? Are you hoping that something new will happen, but it never does?
Why is that? Maybe you’re looking in the wrong places or asking the wrong questions. Lives that are spent in pursuit of glamor, power, prestige, and success usually run out of steam at some point. People who constantly need to compare themselves to others, who worry about what others may think of them, who are more aware of others’ opinions than their own, are people who see life as a burden to be endured rather than an experience to be lived. This is not new thinking. This has been said before. But we get desperate at times; we find ourselves getting weary of all the stuff in our lives. We know it, but what do we do about it? We get up every morning, just like the character in “Groundhog Day,” and do it all over again.
The solution is not a quick fix, nor is it easy. It requires a change, a big change, at every level of our being; and it requires taking risks. It means making the unpopular choice or looking out for someone else’s good more than your own. Look at the “Groundhog Day” reporter. In the beginning of the movie, he is bad-tempered and treats everyone poorly. When given the opportunity to relive the day – Groundhog Day – over and over and over, he eventually undergoes a transformation. He moves from despondency to joy, from taking advantage of and abusing others to looking for ways to help others and make a difference in the community.
Groundhog Day always comes on the same date, but will we always live our lives the same way? Each day can be a new day. God has given us the ability to make choices—choices that will lead us to life, not to depression or darkness. Through prayer and reflection we can more easily recognize the choices and more readily choose the good that can make a difference.
Sister Pat is a member of the RENEW staff, a Dominican Sister, and loves working with Young Adults as the program manager of Theology on Tap.