Michael J. Oleksa (1947–2023)

** I listened to this book in audio version **

I prefer to avoid the news, don’t watch a lot of television, and hardly pay attention to headlines. Some might argue that it leaves me uninformed, though I have enough trustworthy people in my life who keep me abreast of things in the “need-to-know” category. As a person who has had a tendency toward anxiety, I prefer to look for what is “pure, honest, noble, just, pure, lovely and of good report,” (Phil. 4:8) and keep my thoughts on those things.

The title of this book piqued my interest, because it picks up on what some of us miss - that there are wonders, every day, if we have eyes to see, ears to hear, and minds to understand. Father Michael Oleksa’s “Stories of God’s Providence” points mostly to autobiographical moments in his own life where, upon reflection, he (and now we, the readers or listeners) could see how God was working. I appreciated the reminder to use that lens, to pray and to trust that there is more going on in any given situation - how even an incidence of pickpocketing could lead to greater things.

A wise man once told me that, wherever I was, I should look for the golden nugget that was being offered at that time. This book is full of examples of golden nuggets. From Alaska to Romania, from seminary to retirement, there are glimpses of providence, not just for Father Michael, but for all of us.

This book is worth reading, for the reasons above, and also for the pieces of history and cultural education that it also provides. I found the information about the internment of Aleuts during WWII informative and surprising - there are parts of American History that haven’t been written into our history books. It’s always good to learn to see beyond what is presented directly, to learn more about others, and to increase in compassion.

I only gave 4 stars for performance of the audiobook because there are obvious differences in the quality of audio and the volume of speaking between chapters. The differences do not impact the story or what’s offered, but I couldn’t give it a 5 for performance because of that.

I hope that anyone who chooses to listen to this would also enjoy it! It was a book that I was comfortable allowing my children to listen along with, and one that we would listen to again.… (mer)