Remembrance

Yesterday we remembered St Nicholas, today it's Pearl Harbor Day.  I suspect readers of these reflections are fully aware of the import of this day and of the shock that Americans of that era felt.  The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor was swift, bold, and devastating.  Reminders of the world that event ushered in are still with us in ways large and small.  But the miraculous thing to me is that after a bloody, prolonged war, two enemies found a way to reconcile themselves.  Not out of some misguided adherence to "peace" but out of a recognition that full out hatred just wasn't worth the effort.  My Dad was a great example.  He enlisted on Dec. 8, 1941 and left the army in 1946 as a captain.  He served through the entire war.  Yet a few years later, he was doing business in Japan.  Rather then let old animosities rooted in the past linger, he decided to focus on the opportunities that might be available in the future.

As we move deeper into Advent I encourage all of us take some time to reflect on how we might be wasting time on fruitless animosity.  Perhaps we can do better.  With God's help, I'm sure we can.

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