St. Francis of Assisi

"For it is in giving that we receive."
St. Francis of Assisi

Maria's favorite Saint was St. Francis of Assisi (1182-1226). St. Francis
was a Catholic saint, who was a patron of animals, ecology and the
environment. St. Francis was a man, who during his life, astounded and
inspired the Catholic Church by living the holy gospel literally—not in a
narrow fundamentalist sense, but by actually following all that Jesus said
and did, joyfully without limits and without a sense of self-importance.

He dressed in rough clothes and had to beg for his sustenance. But all the while he preached purity and peace wherever he went. He visited hospitals,served the sick, preached in the streets, cared for lepers, cleaned churches, gave food to hungry and took ALL men and women as his siblings.



But perhaps St. Francis of Assisi is most recognized for being a devout friend to all creatures, big and small. To this day, the most popular image of him is in the form of a statue, that has become a universal sight readily found in the backyards or gardens of many catholic homes. (Maria got one for our home!). These statues typically depict him as a bearded little man surrounded by birds standing in a birdbath. To St. Francis every creature was sacred. He possessed an unworldly ability to connect with all animals, from the small and meek to the big and ferocious. 

That is why Maria was so attracted to the life of St. Francis. Even as a young child Maria exhibited an unbridled love for all creatures, big and small. As a young girl she would draw pictures of animals and have her share of the obligatory stuffed ones  (from a lamb as a baby to a large bison when she grew older). And of course she loved reading about them in all kinds of fictional settings as well as wildlife and science text books. As all who knew Maria will remember, cats were her favorite and she surrounded herself by them her entire life. From her room growing up  to her college dorms, the omnipresence of cats followed her wherever she went. You name it, she had it: Books, posters, drawings, even small clay figurines she made in art class. It made for easy gift ideas for her during the holidays. Anything to do with Cats would work, and I certainly obliged over the years.

But it didn't stop with cats. Maria, like St. Francis loved ALL animals. She was one of the few girls I knew growing up who actually liked insects, bugs and even snakes! (A trait her niece Sophia shares as well!). One memorable story was a trip to the Greenburgh nature center when Maria was an 11-year-old girl. One of the handlers at the center was displaying a large snake, to the fright and screams of the many kids in the center. But not Maria. She actually asked, to the slight astonishment of the handler, if she could "hold it". With my Mom holding her breathe, my big sister grabbed hold of the snake and did not even flinch when the snake’s tail slowly coiled around her small arm. Animals do sense calm when interacting with humans and
Maria's steady hand and patience with all animals allowed her to touch them…even snakes! St. Francis would have been proud.

As for all the pets we had growing up, Maria’s "hand" in getting them was always front and center. When Poopsie, our first pet, was begging to come into our house (he was a stray) Maria was the one who reached out to him, took him in and gave old Poopsie all the sliced turkey he craved (no wonder he always came by the house). And when on a rainy fall Saturday morning in 1979, the very Saturday after Poopsie died, it was Maria who at the North Shore animal shelter picked a shy little cat sitting alone in the back of a large cage. There were dozens of cats jumping and meowing for the necessary attention to be liberated from the pound. But Maria saw something in this small frail little cat with four little white paws. And when Maria made up her mind there was no going back.  And she had her sight on the little cat. She picked a good one. Sox, would become our beloved cat who lived for over 20 years. In fact, after Sox passed away, Maria immediately got the two cats my mom presently has: Molly and Goozer (the name our grandfather used to call cats). It was a perfect gift that Maria gave both my Mom and Dad.




Today, St. Francis still plays a big role in our remembrance of Maria and her spirit. At IHM church, the church Maria used to go to at home, there is a statue of St. Francis (no surprise). It faces the Grand Blvd. side of the Church. When Maria and I used to drive by the Church we would many times have to stop at the red light at the corner of Post and Grand Blvd. While we would wait for the light to change she would on many occasion (try every time) comment on St. Francis as we looked at the statue. Because of this whenever a rose blooms in the rose garden she and my Mom planted over 25 years ago, we cut them and place them at the foot of the statue of St. Francis at IHM. 

A fitting tribute to two souls who shared a remarkable love for all creatures…big and small.

Maria's Tree

On the corner of Barry Rd. and Tunstall Rd. in Scarsdale, New York stood for many years, a grand and majestic Hemlock tree. When we moved into our new home in the summer of ’76 this tall and imposing tree was instantly the favorite feature of our new home. As Maria once told me when we were kids, “We may not have the biggest house on the block but we sure have the tallest tree!”

The tree in many ways served as the constant backdrop of our youth. Maria, myself and our friends spent countless hours climbing it, seemingly going higher each time we did. From the top of this tree you could see the roofs of most of the houses on Barry Rd. and the distinctive belfry tower of Edgewood school two blocks away. We loved collecting the tree’s unique pines that served as small projectiles in a variety of games we played. During the winter months we’d throw them into the fireplace watching them crackle and make the holiday fires even more special.

But as special a tree as it was, when we moved to Scarsdale in that summer of ’76, it was by then a very old one. Belying its tall and magnificent stature was the fact that age was catching up to it. In the first few years we lived in the house we couldn’t ignore that it was decaying before our eyes. And when the Melee bug epidemic of 1982 came, (that decimated many of the Hemlock trees in the region), we were forced to acknowledge that our favorite tree would have to be cut down sooner rather then later.

Of course we kids didn’t want to hear it but the subject came up that winter and the subsequent ones that followed. In time my brother Dan went off to Cornell and Maria was soon on her way to Bryn Mawr. By the mid 80’s I was the only “kid” in the house and even I had stopped climbing the tree so much. Still, occasionally I would find myself late at night climbing the tree and thinking about the years gone by and knowing that the tree’s days were numbered. When I started college Maria observed to me that our beloved tree needed to go. I thought, “oh god not you too.” But my sister a lover of all living and beautiful things knew it was time and so I would be the last family member to finally give in. Maria assured me that she would pick a new tree, one even grander then the one we had, one that we would love even more. I assumed with Maria taking charge that she would get another “Hemlock”. After all, we both adored the tree so much it wouldn’t make sense to get different kind.

But soon after we decided to chop down the tree (of note, nothing is sadder then seeing a tree that probably lived for 75 years get chopped down in 10 minutes) I was taken aback when I came home a month later to see the new “tree” Maria got with my Mom. It wasn’t a Hemlock; it was a different variety altogether and smaller (not more then 5 feet!). In fact the stump alone from the freshly chopped down hemlock was almost as tall as this new tree planted next to it. I couldn’t believe it. What was Maria thinking? I quickly argued with her choice of tree but she calmly assured me that while it was true this new tree would never be as big as our Hemlock, but it would be Spectacular in ways that the old tree could never be. She assured me that this new “cherry blossom” tree would be, for one week each spring when it blossoms, the most beautiful tree in the neighborhood. She pointed out that these trees were "tourist attractions" in Washington DC, and that every spring cherry blossoms surrounded the Jefferson Memorial on the Tidal Basin in a sea of pale pink and white, and that they were famously a gift from the Japanese government in 1912. This to me was all very “interesting” but hardly a consolation. Our old tree was gone and now we had this. It was hard to imagine this puny tree having the gravitas and grandeur of our childhood tree and for what?-one week out of the year? It just made no sense. I let it be known that I thought it was a big mistake and vowed never to bring it up again. (although I did harbor resentment toward Maria because of it).

In the years to come I’d come home during the spring, for Easter or weekend visits but for whatever reason I always seemed to miss "that week" when the tree was in full bloom. Maria would always say the same thing “you missed the tree in full bloom again! You should have come out last week you brat!” This went on for a few years until the spring of ’94, when I was walking to my parent’s house from the train. And just as I turned the corner onto Tunstall Rd. I looked up and there it was, Maria’s tree in all its glory! I stood there gazing and could not help but start to laugh; I had to admit it, my big sister was right and now I would have to let her know.

I ran into the house and called her to apologize and gave a full mea culpa of my ignorance and lack of faith in her judgment. She quickly offered an “I forgive you” and “I knew you’d come around.” (It had been five years since she and my Mom planted the tree) “I just didn’t expect you to come around so soon”. Typical Maria humor.

Although Maria is no longer with us here on earth, her tree, “Maria’s tree” is still here. It is living, growing, breathing and for at least one week of the year, like it’s predecessor, is the most spectacular tree on the block. In Fact today April 26th 2008 the tree is in full bloom. Sometimes the biggest tree in the forest is not necessarily qualified to be the best. In fact a small cherry tree can compete with the tallest tree on the block. One of may lessons I learned from my big sister. A lesson I live and breath every spring.

"You are gonna need to get a bigger boat..."

This past Sunday Roy Scheider, one of the most popular actors of American film in the 1970s, died in Little Rock, Ark. He was 75. Of the many films in which Mr. Scheiders appeared in, the 1975 movie Jaws stood out as one of Maria's favorite performances. Of the many memorable scenes and lines of the film her favorite was this iconic moment...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OnaZ8r3p8g