By Rev. Pete Hyde
It is already in the 80s outside and the humidity is higher than the temperature. I sit at the table in the breakfast room enjoying the first cup of coffee of the morning. Neil Diamond sings “Cracklin Rose” on Alexa. Just outside the breakfast room window, a rose bush has burst into bloom with six new red roses stretching their delicate, velvety petals toward the sky. Each one is perfectly formed and pointed toward their creator as if raising their hands in praise and thanksgiving to God. A tangle of jasmine has taken over the flower bed. An azalea bush is showing its new growth as a promise of a full bloom of pink flowers to come in the spring. The willow tree hangs its branches like a light green curtain. The sun is peaking in and out of the clouds of a Florida morning. I pause for a moment to just relax. “If I Could put Time in a Bottle” by Jim Croce plays on the radio, followed by the “Sounds of Silence” by Simon and Garfunkel. “And the people bowed and prayed to the neon god they made.”
Most of us grew up, lived, and continue to live out the mantra of “work hard and you can be a success.” We set for ourselves unrealistic goals and objectives that became the priorities of our lives. They often took precedence over the really important things in life, like our spouses, children and grandchildren. These work/success priorities also took precedence over our relationship to God and our call to serve Him. Even after retirement, many have filled their lives so full of activities that God and family have many times not been given a chance to reenter the priority list. The words of the song have come true. “And the people bowed and prayed to the neon god they made.”
As a gift to my son on his graduation from law school and to my daughter on her wedding day, I gave each one a leather-bound journal in which I reflected on and recorded memories and thoughts of their growing up years. One of the reflections I shared in each journal was my regret for spending so much time “working” and the priority “work” had taken in my life as they were growing up. I’m not saying we didn’t share special, God-given times, but I truly believe there could have been many more of those special times.
Neil Diamond now sings the ballad “Morningside.” The old man dies and no one notices. “They simply turn away.” But they find an old oak table “built with nails and pride” and on the underside they find these words “for my children.” The words become his epitaph – “for my children.”
We cannot live with “what if” any more. “If is for daydreams,” as Roger Whitaker sings. We can, however, move from “what if” to “what can I do to make things different?” Regrets will weigh us down like the branches of the willow tree outside the window. Our striving to make a new day and look forward instead of back will raise our heads towards heavens like the blooms of the roses as they stretch toward God with all their might. In doing so, they bring beauty and light and inspiration to all who would notice and learn. Anne Murray sings, “And I think to myself, what a wonderful world.”
“Come to me all who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.”
“Those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not be weary, they will walk and not faint.”
Let’s take some time to reflect on the labors and priorities of our lives. Take a moment to tell your spouse you love them. Touch base with your kids and grandkids today. Most of all lift your eyes toward heaven like the roses and thank God for the blessings and gifts His creation, love and mercy.
Rev. Pete Hyde serves as chaplain with the South Walton Fire District
