IN FAITH
Reflections On The Passing of Seasons
The ending of summer and the startup of school is on most of our minds, once again. Summer has seemed shorter this year, and it seems that we never quite had June, though I do recall the wheat being harvested not too long ago.
How we experience time is so subjective. For a teenager doing something that he or she doesn’t want to do, time seems to drag endlessly. We wait for that right person to come along, who may one day be our spouse. And we wait for age “21” so that we can officially become “adults.” And then when we reach that magic age, we find out there is a whole lot more to being adults than simply being older.
We go through out twenties establishing careers and families. We work on becoming competent in our field of choice. And slowly, but surely we begin the walk toward self-mastery, which always seems just a little bit beyond our grasp, if we’re honest.
Sometimes we wonder if we’ve ever quite grown up. But, then there are moments in our seasons, when we know we have. It’s not so much that we’ve “arrived,” but rather that we understand what it means to be a human being, a father or mother, a grandparent, a member of a community and part of a faith body.
It’s not just the graying of hair, or the gain of weight (which somehow seems to sneak up on us, even though we watch what we eat—(that was ice cream, wasn’t it?). And it’s not just the stiffness, which accompanies us as we get up in the morning, or as we get out of our cars after long drives. (I had a former parishioner, who was in her 80’s, who spoke about “Uncle Arthur,” i.e., arthritis).
We witness the passing of parents and others who mean so much to us. And it saddens us to see them go. But, when we reflect on all they gave to us, and how much a part of us they are, we know that what they were has been passed on—through us.
And then we understand if we have a sense of responsibility, that it is our turn. It’s our turn to give to others what has been handed down to us. We learn that life is not just about receiving or taking. It’s about giving back what was given to us. Oh, it’s true, hard work always goes with the territory. But no one is truly a “self-made” person. We may have had to pull ourselves up by our bootstraps several times a day. But, even if our fathers (or mothers) were mean to us, like Johnny Cash expressed in his old song “A Boy Named Sue,” (and usually our parents weren’t mean quite that mean) we realize that we had to take the good and the bad together, and make the very best of ourselves, using the gifts we were given, strengths and weaknesses combined.
So, pardon my rambling. But, I’m really talking about “coming of age.” If you haven’t quite arrived here yet, your day is on the way. It may sneak up on you slowly, like for most of us. But, when your time comes, to step up to the plate, and accept the position of “head of the family,” or “elder of the clan,” do your very best. And, as a former parishioner said to me in 1993, “Chris, don’t look back.”
And if you have built your life upon solid principles, you’ll know that even with the passing of seasons, some things remain constant. Those are the things to which we must cling.
“A voice says, “Cry out!” And I said, “What shall I cry?” All people are grass, their constancy is like the flower of the field. {7} The grass withers, the flower fades, when the breath of the LORD blows upon it; surely the people are grass. {8} The grass withers, the flower fades; but the word of our God will stand forever.” (Isaiah 40:6-8 NRSV)
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