READERSVOICE.COM aims to give a few samples from secondhand books found in opshops and the occasional Bookfest in Brisbane.

Here are a few samples from Stars to Steer By, written by Father Terry Brady, a Redemptorist priest born in Queensland. It’s an 81-page book of his personal reflections and poetry. It has no publication date, but it looks like it was self-published maybe in the 1990s.

One of his reflections was on time.

He wrote: Many years ago in a north Queensland town there lived a catholic man who had planned to build himself a luxurious new home. He was a builder himself and was building his home in between other jobs, so he was a busy man – too busy to fit in Mass on Sunday, at least that was his thinking.

The work continued for several years and was eventually nearing completion. Only the roof remained to be placed on, when contrary to all health indications he died suddenly of a heart attack. For years his intended home remained in its unfinished condition without a roof, a mute testimony of a plan that occupied all his time and all his interest – a plan that failed.

We need to remember that time is a gift from God, a precious gift with a limited span. If we refuse God his share of our time, it could turn out to be wasted time.

-continued next page

-readersvoice.com