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Good morning.Ìý

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When on this day in 1911, Leonardo da Vinci’s painting of the Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre in Paris, its disappearance caused understandable outcry.Ìý

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Many Parisians were distraught and, according to some reports, ignored the many masterpieces elsewhere in the Louvre, choosing instead to queue to view the empty space, where the painted wooden panel of the lady with the inscrutable smile, had previously hung.Ìý

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It’s a sobering thought that apparently the Mona Lisa had nothing like the world renowned profile we know today…until it was stolen!Ìý And I find that fascinating,

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I’m reminded of a story from the Bible that Jesus told of a shepherd leaving the whole flock of ninety-nine sheep, to search for the one that was lost…suddenly the single sheep that would have been anonymous in the flock becomes the shepherd’s sole focus as he searches every ditch and gully until he finds it and returns it to the flock.Ìý

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It’s not difficult to see the allegory filled with hidden meaning at the heart of this parable, and to realise that, often, it’s only when things are taken away from us that we start to understand their true value.Ìý

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That can be the case with possessions; many of us can remember a moment of stomach-churning panic when we discover a precious treasured gift or a family heirloom has been misplaced or even stolen. Ìý

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Yet I wonder if the allegory of the parable is most vivid when it reminds us of the occasions when we’ve forgotten about the importance of relationships…until they’re stretched to breaking point, or those times when we have taken for granted our family and friends until they have moved away, suffered ill health, or until we yearn for them in bereavement; Ìý

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Lord, open our eyes and our hearts to know the true worth and value of all that is precious in our lives today – in the people we love and in all that we treasure in the depth of our hearts, that we may be truly thankful.Ìý Amen.Ìý

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