Education – Influencing Desires

As we celebrate today the feast of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, many thoughts come to mind.  I often think of St. Elizabeth in terms of beginning the Catholic School system in our country, and rightly so, but something different strikes me today. As I read a little about her life this morning, I was struck by the profound impact her friends had on her.  After the death of her husband, it was the care and concern of her friends in Italy who led her to embrace the Catholic faith.  Something about the way they lived drew her to desire such active faith in her own life.

Upon further reflection, perhaps this is what education is all about. We work with individuals to help them grow in their desire to be their best selves. When I think about the educators in my own life who had the most influence on me, it was those who influenced my desires and set me on a path of discovering those desires.  Some of this happened in a formal classroom setting and some happened in the “classroom of life.”

Who are the educators in your life who have influenced your desires, calling forth the very best in you?