Simon said in reply, “Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing, but at your command I will lower the nets.”

Luke 5:5, New American Bible

How did you do it, Peter? Up all night, casting your net time after time, sailing across all of Lake of Galilee for a catch. You come home empty-handed, and a road-mired rabbi you’ve never seen before tells you to cast your net again.

And you do.

I show up day after day, work hard to help my students learn and succeed. But each day, I struggle to believe that I make a difference. Each day: the same disruptions, same lackluster results, same struggles.

The inescapable Greek Chorus in my head carries on: “You can’t do this. They’ll find out. They’ll fire you.”

Where did you find the strength of spirit to believe, Peter? How did you say, “yes,” when every instinct in you said, “no?”

How can I?

spring dawn
a lone drop falls
from the deck

more by FRANK J. TASSONE

photo by Alexander Andrews