First Communion

My oldest daughter is receiving her first communion tomorrow. I'm bursting with excitement and, to my great joy, so is she. Ever since I read St. Thérèse of Lisieux's account in Story of a Soul of how she anticipated her first communion, I've wished that mine could have been something like that.

At the church I grew up in, people began receiving communion after confirmation (or at least it seemed that way to me at the time). My parents didn't go to church, and so I slipped through the cracks and was never confirmed (still haven't been -- don't tell anyone). So my first communion came on a day when I just decided that it would probably be OK. I can't even remember it.

Now I don't have any delusions that my daughter's anticipation is anything like St. Thérèse's. Frankly, it would scare me if it were. But at least she knows what it's about. Plus, the church gave her a copy of Daniel Erlander's wonderful book, A Place For You, which I highly recommend for adults and children alike.