Sermon for Sunday - March 2, 2014 and So Little Time

Photo by Crystal D'Zamba

It kind of says it all, yes?  And no matter how much you think you feel young, you are old.  The older you get, the faster time seems to move.  Those things you were putting off till later aren't going to get done.  For most of us a "bucket list" is something we talk about but never actually put down on paper.  And, when you look in that ever present mirror to make sure you like what you see, there's this old person staring back at you with a frightened look on their face.  You are old.

For me, I think this hit home last week when I almost lost my dad for the second time.  I did the math.  I figure if I live to be his age right now, I have at least 23 years left.  I think about how long ago 23 years was.  I was 37 years old in Sicily, working the Intelligence side of Desert Shield, the forward staging of men, supplies and equipment in preparation for Desert Storm.  A year later I was back in the U.S. briefing B-52 bomber crews headed for Desert Storm.  My son was 15, my daughter was 5, and it was yesterday.  The day after that my marriage ended, and the next day the twin towers of the World Trade Center were destroyed.  Somewhere in yesterday are 17 years of working in the civilian sector.  It was yesterday, damn it!  It doesn't seem fair.  And, I am old.

Dad and I went into town to have a beer today.  We had that beer, walked across the parking lot to a sushi place, made the sushi chef laugh when we reminisced about Japanese brews, had another beer while eating a couple of sushi  dishes, and laughed some more.  Yesterday we had stopped so he could buy mom some chocolate for their 61st anniversary.  She almost lost him a week ago on the evening of her birthday.  Another wake-up call, this time for all of us.

There is so little time on this earth, for us to grow, learn, find a path, love and live.  There is so little time for us to tell those around us how much we love and cherish them. "Turn around and they're gone and we've no one to hold."

Where have you gone my little boy little boy where have you gone my sonny my own
Turn around you're two turn around then you're four
Turn around you're a young man going out the door

Where have you gone my little girl little girl
Pigtails and petticoats where have you gone
Turn around you're tiny turn around then you're grown
Turn around you're a young wife with babes of your own

Where have they gone our little ones little ones
Where have they gone our children our own
Turn around and they're young turn around and they're old
Turn around and they've gone and we've no one to hold

"Turn Around" lyrics by Donnarumma, Paolo/Munter Damiani, Giovanni  

One day I will turn around and dad won't be there.  One day I will turn around and mom will follow.  One day my children will turn around and I will have gone.  I am glad they both have someone to hold.

Love everyone, and tell them you do, often.  Tell them when you are alone with them, not just in passing, and make them listen to you, not just hear you.  Make them remember how much they mean to you.  It will be a memory for a lifetime, and there may be no tomorrow.

Those around me know how very much I love them.  I still find the need to repeat it more often.  As I get older I feel this need increasing exponentially.

So little time.

God bless you all on this fine Sunday.  Call your family and bless them with your love.