Hey, finally we have spring when the date says "spring." My whole life, I've found it irritating that the calendar said "spring" and I was in the midst of snow, or wind or some such thing. Now, here we are and I've already got the pansies out!

Not that Father Ron Rolheiser is one of my favorite people - I must say, he's not high on the list at all - but we're running his column now in Wyoming. The column for this issue is very interesting and real "food for thought." The topic is overcoming hypersensitivity. He uses the classic example of Saint Therese of Liseux, and her discussion in her autobiography The Story of a Soul. When she was nine years old, she overheard her father say he wished a particular silly Christmas routine with Therese would be over that year. She was offended and after brooding for a while, relates a real spiritual breakthrough when she decided to be upbeat and positive and not pouty. Now, that might sound like a "breakthrough" in name only, but how many people go through life being offended at the smallest thing. I've known people who you can barely not offend.

It is a spiritual exercise to not always demand everything go your way - to eat what is put in front of you - it is a way of liberating your ego from self-absorption with the goal of looking toward God. It is why people fast or eat particular food, such as keeping Kosher or eating fish on Friday - there's no particular reason not to eat meat on Friday, except as a reminder of your relationship with God.

At the same time, the question is how do you know if someone is truly offensive, and you're not just over-reacting? I don't think we're called to put up with all sorts of outright abuse and that's not what being not hypersensitive means. It is interesting to try to discern the difference.