Stones Remembrance and Re-membering
Memorials are important. I 've stood beside the war memorial in the town where I live each Remembrance Sunday and watched year after year the same people return to view names etched in granite.
The stone holds the names secure but we humans, we hold the pain of the generation in our hearts.
When we think of the Season of Remembrance; do we not find ourselves in a strange sort of way ' re-membering ' the family members we have lost we bring them to life as part of our own identities? In doing so are we not connecting ourselves to the fact that bad things happen in the world and acknowledging none of us are exempt yet recognizing we live to do good.
"Remembering". Invites me to consider how I should respond when I think of those who have lost their lives seeking to keep the peace; we must all, then be under a human obligation to live our lives well.
If a fellow human being has lost out on the joy of family life,
of friendships ,
of being alive,
of being free to be breathe,
to laugh,
to cry - to love.
Why would I , or anyone else waste life , or foolishly squander energies on things that have little purpose or meaning? To do so is to abuse the gift we've been given.
We who claim to be Christians, we are further obligated to live in such a way that we become peacemakers and as individuals - reconcilers. We are called to live at peace so that others can live in peace.
As a Christian Remembrance reminds me that I must live life as one who is always in debt, debt to God for all I have received at his hands including ' that peace which passes all understanding', furthermore, I am also in debt to those who gave their tomorrows so that I might live my today.
Everyone who possibly can should not only wear a poppy but also make a point of attending an act of Remembrance even if in doing so we are inconvenienced. Surely, it's the least we can do as an act of gratitude to "The Fallen."
Posted By: h On: 14 Nov 2012 At: 9:42pm
Good thoughts and very true!