It’s good to be back from vacation but, if someone could kindly shut the freezer door? You’re letting all the cold escape from the arctic! Thank you to Rev. Sara MacGilvra Branom for leading worship the last two weeks and all those who stepped up to pick up a few extra responsibilities. It’s always good to get back to things running smoothly.
While we were on vacation, I managed to keep abreast of much of what is going on in the world and our country. My prayers are with those whose loved ones perished in the two aviation accidents in Washington DC and Philadelphia and those who are still impacted by the California wildfires. I also watched and read some of what is going on in our country as we move into a new, uncharted political era. The following reflection emerged:
Lives Are Involved
“Maj. San D. Francisco”
That is the name that was engraved on the 1/2-inch shiny silver band I wore on my wrist through a large part of my youth. I quite frankly don’t remember when it was that I joined the throngs of youth who sent away for POW/MIA bracelets. It was an effort to help remember those who were imprisoned or missing in action in Southeast Asia. I wish I could say that I was extremely passionate about the cause but, the reality is, it was the trendy thing to do. After years of wearing the bracelet, even after the US’s involvement in Southeast Asia came to a close, I eventually took it off and kept it. Over the years, it has disappeared but there’s still a memory of it around my wrist. I’m sure that subtle reminder of someone I never knew but whose name I carried through a portion of my life is nothing compared to the memories of those who actually knew and loved San DeWayne Francisco.
After reading Kristin Hannah’s “The Women” (which I highly recommend), the memory of wearing that bracelet rose through my soul and I turned to the internet. I had never found out what actually happened to Maj. San D. Francisco. I learned that he was a year younger than Greg. I’ve learned that he had a wife and a son. He was a fighter pilot. Shortly before taking R&R to meet his wife and son, he volunteered to fly one more mission and was shot down on Nov. 25, 1968 (I was not yet 11 years old). He was captured by the North Vietnamese and later killed by shrapnel from American bombs. There are ongoing efforts to find his remains. I once carried the name of a man whose remains have been lost for more than 55 years. Information from “San DeWayne Francisco Memorial Archives, Central Washington University Libraries.
At the time I sent that $2.50 to get my POW/MIA bracelet, I had no idea what the war in Vietnam was all about (Quite honestly, I still don’t think I know much about it). By the time I realized that there was a big wide world beyond my experience, this war was a just part of that broader reality. As far as my limited civic knowledge was involved, it was simply part of normal—in other words, no big deal. So, too were peace protests, love beads and teens sending $2.50 in the mail to purchase a trendy bracelet with some stranger’s name on it.
Eventually, (thank God!) I came to realize that what might come across as just part of “normal” is actually a really big deal for those whose lives are impacted by it. Every big decision that is made that changes rules and policies has the potential to be a big deal to someone which means someone’s sense of “normal” is about to change and usually not for the better.
Because I have chosen to follow Jesus, there’s a question that keeps emerging in my soul: “Who is the least among us that will be impacted the most?” (If you’re not sure if this really is a Jesus thing, check out Matthew 25:31-46)
There are a lot of potentially really big policy and rule changes in the works. So many that the shifts can feel overwhelming and out of control. They are coming at us so fast, we run the risk of falling into the “it’s normal” abyss. Remember, it will not be normal for many people, especially those whom Jesus would have considered among “the least.” For his day, Jesus identified them as the hungry, the thirsty, strangers (also known as foreigners), those without clothing (also known as those without… anything), the sick, the imprisoned. I’d say that list is still pretty valid for today.
Let’s keep asking the question of ourselves, one another and those who are saying “yes” to these policy and rule changes, “Who is the least among us that will be impacted the most?”
Have a blessed, safe and faith-filled week.
Rev. Lynne