As I walked to the bus stop on a September, Tuesday morning almost 18 years ago, I was exhilarated by the sweet feel of the awakening day. That feeling embraced me as I began my work at the National Office. Then I entered our chapel for devotions and my world changed.
Something terrible was happening in the United States but no one quite knew what it was. Because my computer was the only one linked to the newly emerging Internet, I became the point person for keeping everyone as up-to-date as I could.
Several of us went downstairs to watch in shocked silence as the horror unfolded before us on a TV set in a store window in the mall below our offices.
When those twin towers crumpled, something crumpled in many of us. We would never again look at the world in quite the same way.
I had always been a bit of a news junkie. Keeping up with the events and ideas of the times is part of what an editor does as second nature. As the dissemination of information on cable TV and the Internet expanded so did the time I spent with them. Before bedtime, I reviewed several news sources and did the same as soon as I got out of bed and again and again through the day. I was afraid that I would miss out on something and be caught unaware.
Over time I began to realize that instead I was missing out on important things in my life, too often unaware of the sweet feel of an awakening day. I was becoming overwhelmed and depressed and I noticed that the same thing was happening to many of those around me.
That’s why I plan to keep a copy of our feature article in this issue as a way to reinforce some of the healthy habits that I’ve begun to embrace such as unplugging now and then and creating space and time that help me to get grounded and be better able to cope with the tragedies and terrible events that sometimes come our way.
Peter Kuhnert reminds us of what is at stake for us and for our children and he provides us with strategies that can sow hope in us and in our world. He writes, “We need hope if we are to foster the sustained attention, trust and shared decisions that we need to tackle some of our world’s most challenging but solvable problems.”
His article also helped to remind me that this is what we are meant to do and will continue to do In Mission for Others because of our evangelical faith. Our mission can be paraphrased as being people who share the good news of hope with others living with us in this troubled world.
Glimpses
There are many hopeful items in this issue. Here are a few.
In She wore flowers in her hair, p. 9, a teen’s suicide prompts new possibilities for others.
Confessions of a fellow sailor, p. 24, reminds us that we are not alone in the storms of life.
As we begin discussions about Public Ministry in the ELCIC, Parishes 3.1.0 helps to reframe that discussion, on p. 18.
Kenn Ward, Editor
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