“The cut flowers continue to pour out their beauty as they die near the altar. From the moment they are cut, they are already dying. They use the remnant of their life to worship, shine forth in beauty, and direct our attention to the beauty of the Lord’s Eucharistic sacrifice. This is a great sign of how we are to enter into the sacrificial silence of the Offertory. We, too, are dying, already a day closer to death than when we first believed. (Rom. 13:11). And yet each one of us is also beautiful, a living reflection of the face of Christ. We each have some beauty left to offer, and we can allow our lives to be silently with Christ and point to His beauty, the source of all beauty.”