Monday Morning Musing: Witnesses

I've been thinking as this day begins, of all of the things I've witnessed in my lifetime. Part of this is trying to take some time to reflect on current events. (Thank you, Mr. Carter, my Jr. High Civics teacher, for teaching us how to look discerningly at current events.) And some of this is just the nostalgia that comes with reflection on a quiet morning while anticipating the waking of my grandgirl.

This witnessing is rumbling around in my spirit because I've been thinking, vocationally, about the Psalm assigned in the Revised Common Lectionary for this coming Sunday. It's about God's relationship to David; this Psalm (89: 20-37) lays it out as unending love for David, no matter what. I'm drawn to verses 36 &37 "His (David's) line shall endure forever and his throne as the sun before me; it shall stand fast forevermore like the moon, the abiding witness in the sky."

I'm grumbling about what the future might hold and if I'm honest with myself, I'm afraid in the midst of it. I don't want that sleeping grandgirl to be raised in a nation where she has no autonomy over her body; where she could be denied healthcare or other basic rights just because of who she loves. I want her to have the freedom to be EQUAL to everyone else. I don't want her to live in a place where guns designed to kill many easily are idolized and used in terrifying ways.

Still, each day, it seems that we witness actions and decisions that are creating a country that is not and will not be great by any standards.

I remember, though, that I've witnessed our history swing back and forth as we struggle to move forward and grow as people sharing a common land. I remember that hatred and violence have taken leaders from us in shocking ways: JFK, MLK, and others. I remember that George Wallace and Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan also survived attempts on their lives. I remember that I have witnessed us having to march for equal rights repeatedly, over and over again, and I wonder how the moon, that abiding witness in the sky, can bear any of it.

I also remember on this new day that I've witnessed so many beautiful things. I've witnessed great love and new life. I've witnessed joyous homecomings and the anticipations of great adventures. I've witnessed lots of college football national championships (Roll Tide!). I've witnessed hummingbirds at rest and cardinals in the snow. I've witnessed my own children as they've grown into fine and good adults - there is, perhaps, no greater thing to witness as a parent. I've witnessed this nation make remarkable (if currently at risk) strides for equal rights for its people. I've witnessed people working tirelessly for those rights.

I don't have a lot of great advice for this season; but I do know this. We must continue to bear witness, like the moon, to those things that shine with goodness in the midst of the darkness. When we are weary, we must rest....and then.....we must continue the work. We must remind one another of all that we have seen and heard and lived through so that we all remember together that we can make it through again. Together. Us and the moon, abiding witnesses to what is good.