Tuesday, December 25, 2012

CESOTW - December 25, 2012

What could be a more precious sight than children on Christmas? Their joy is irreplaceable on this most magical day, and it becomes yours. They are arbitrary little things, grasping onto that last-minute stocking stuffer while the big present you spent half your Fall planning goes ignored. I takes them awhile to soak up That Which Santa Brought. It cannot be forced upon them. As always, they do things at their own time. It is only later in the day, when everyone's tied up in the kitchen and they've taken inventory of it all, that they fix their attention on That Which They Like Most. It's such a joy to catch them when everyone else has vacated the living room for appetizers and wine and the fire has died to ashes. The pressure to exhibit happiness is off, and it is only then that they begin to play on their terms instead of yours. How much louder do they sing when they don't know you're listening?

Your Christmas Edition Early Evening Song of the Week for December 25, 2012 draws its title from the holiday and its inspiration from the faces of the young on Christmas Morning. An early-mid climax from the Who's opus 1969 masterwork, Tommy, this gear-shifting anthem jumps into my mind every year when I open my eyes on the morning of 25 December. To be certain, a Christmas song that ponders the fate of a deaf, dumb, and blind pinball champion makes for a quirky holiday tradition! I hope that You and Yours have had a blessed Christmas day. 


Thursday, December 20, 2012

SOTW - December 21, 2012 - Newtown

We human souls toil painfully to explain bad things. Our minds struggle with the hows and whys of inexplicable evil like that visited on Newtown, Connecticut last Friday. It is among life's angriest endeavors, one that is ultimately to no avail. It's beyond us. But one emotion cuts through the confusion and helps us make sense of our human role in these events. Compassion for the victims is the Guidestar that leads us through the agony. Whether we stand at Ground Zero staring at those thousands of names carved in bronze, or watch the faces of the 20 precious Angels now with God (and the brave Guardians who went with them) float from our television screens into Eternity, comisseration for those lost and those left behind takes over. It helps us heal.

Newtown, a nation of 300 million and a world beyond shares your pain. We cannot explain why, so we will not try. We can only hold our arms out for you and pray for your comfort in this darkest hour. We pray that these lives were not lost in vain, and that the un-fillable void they've left behind can be displaced in part by a national resolve to act; to do what it takes, whatever the cost, to stop this scourge of violence in our society.

I do not purport to be a wise enough man to have the Answers, to know definitively what the source of this problem is and what will work (and not work) to wipe these tragedies away. But I do know that we are facing a very real, present, and dangerous problem. This is no time for closed minds and obstinance. Staying the same course will bring these tragedies to other communities, sooner rather than later. So, as a nation, what are we going to do? We must decide.

Your Early Evening Song of the Week for December 22, 2012 carries a message of empathy and awareness. Newtown, we hear your cries. We are there with you, and we are listening. God bless you in your time of need.