Feasts of Saints Peter and Paul

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in the Lord,

As I stand at this time of my departure with a wide range of mixed emotions upon leaving this blessed place of Old Mission San Miguel, I feel overwhelmed with the gift of all that the time, place, and most of all, each one of you mean to me.  It is with great sadness, mixed with profound gratitude, that I leave here and all that I have come to know and love during this time.  I have been blessed to be with you.  I want to especially express my deepest gratitude and thanks for the wonderful, beautiful, and joyful send off you gave to me last Saturday evening.  The spirit of love, faith, and friendship that I felt was overwhelming as I was so filled with joy from each one of you and what this showed in the beauty of our parish family life.  I want to thank all of you who worked to bring this celebration about, each one contributed a most special part to the love that was there and that was in the gift of who you are.  I want to thank Remie Campomenosi, Juana Fisher, Jesus Celedon, the Choir from the Spanish Community, the girls from the Mexican Folklorico Dance Group, the Filipino Community, and all the people who had a part in giving themselves in such a beautiful way.  I thank you all most especially for the generosity of the Money Tree that you gave to me.  I was overwhelmed and moved to tears when I opened each of your cards.  Thank you from the bottom of my heart and all my love.  You have given me a great gift, a gift of love and faith!

I want then to leave you with these thoughts which are so beautiful and inspirational and they are meant for each one of you.  These are words given by Pope John II in an address to the Franciscan family.

God loves you!  Every breath that you breathe is sacred; every breath is God gifting you with life and saying, "I love you".  With every breath that you breathe, God is hugging you from the inside out.  Practice reconciliation.  Nurture a reverence for life.  You are special!  You are unique!  You are loveable!  Your life is an unfinished work of art.  Make you life extraordinary by doing little things with great love.  Don't be afraid!  Dream!  Life demands your passionate response!  Commit your life to making a difference, to making the world a better place for your being here.  Make peace.  Build justice.  Live simply.  Take responsibility.  Do not accept the seeming flow of history...make new history!

I love you all very, very much!

Fr. Larry Gosslin, O.F.M.