Neediness is the scourge of the postmodern person.  A lack of openness to the transcendent and a reliance on the “self”—whatever that is—leads many of us to awkwardly grasp after people and things in order to feel safe, seen, and secure—yikes!  When we recognize our need for the living God, however, these relationships come into focus.  Our clutching fist, desperate for something to quite literally hold onto, is transformed into the open palm of companionship and communion.  Our spinning brain, obsessing about how we will stay psychologically afloat amidst the adversity and unpredictability of life, becomes a steadfast container for meaning and beauty.  Our neediness, in a word, is replaced by a wonderfully vital and human exigence, and our lives begin to move forward again.  In the week ahead, let’s obey the command of Jesus by releasing the people and things we have unwittingly taken captive (Lk 4:18).  We shall discover that a true need is nothing more than preparation for a gift from the fingertips of the one who is positively and constantly needy for our salvation (Mt 6:32).  Ave Crux, Spes Unica.