Kentucky Fried Chicken

Tuesday – 1st Week of Lent
Matthew 6: 7-17 “Our Father in heaven … give us today our daily bread”



“Go to school on your own. You can do it.” These were the words of my father on my first day to school away from our home. It scared me. I was only ten years old then. Riding the public jeep on my own for the first time without a companion was unimaginable. I took the challenge. But when I reached our school,
I was surprised to see that my father was already there. He smiled and said, “I was watching you all the time from another jeep and kept my eyes on you.”

Beautiful memories do lasts. I still remember those days where my father brings home Kentucky fried chicken every payday in our delight. He was indeed a good provider of all our needs. That’s my father!

Sad to say, he died six years ago after years of struggling against diabetes and stroke. I miss him a lot. I miss his fatherly care.

I am sure you have your own memories of your father’s goodness. This Lenten season, thank him if he is still alive. Unfortunately, not all fathers are good. And I pity those children who suffered a lot of pain from their fathers.

All of us are yearning for a good father. But reality bites. Not all fathers are good. Reading the gospel today, it dawned on me that Jesus wants to share His Loving Father with us. He wants us to experience His Father’s unconditional love, care and protection.

The prayer of Jesus begins with the word “Our” and not “My.” If my father protected me and provided all my needs when he was still alive, how much more of our Heavenly Father who sees and knows us well? The love of my father is just a taste or glimpse of the Heavenly Father’s constant protection and unwavering love for us.

If my father is still alive today and it's payday, I am sure he will go home with a box of Kentucky Fried Chicken to delight us and satisfy our palate. But blessed are those who earnestly pray and believe in God as their Father, God will surely protect them and satisfy their souls.



- Fr.Willy M. Samson,SJ
Carmelite Monastery
March 3, 2009