Note: The photo to the left is a stock photo of a child with cerebral palsy. I have blurred the face for privacy reasons. I have no issues showing photos of children, but I will not have it said that I use photos a child's affliction for any purpose than to make a point. I will not make that point at the child's expense, or the parent's.
What goes before is the reason for what will come after. What is now is simply the answer to choices made before. Fate is the consequence of where society, nature, God, and our own decisions, have brought us. It is the answer to my favorite question, "Why?" For example: Give me a reason as to why should we leave here. Explanation might be: If we do not leave here, it will be our fate to die here. In this explanation, our fate, the answer, bodes the question of why and reveals the reason for our fate.
I wanted to be so much in my life. I had childhood dreams of being a fireman, policeman, pilot, and such. My vision was so bad as to preclude such careers from my path. My "destiny," the explanation that would be the answer to my living, would lie elsewhere.
I bemoaned my poor vision for most of my life. Why was I destined to physically not qualify for many careers I would have enjoyed? I was very surprised when the military took me regardless of my eyesight and the vehicle accident which damaged both knees and my leg. The surgeon was that good putting me back together, glasses corrected my vision to 20/20, and the draft was ongoing for the Vietnam conflict. Basically, they needed more bodies to throw at the enemy. Screw that... I joined the Air Force.
My eyes have seen things many people won't, or don't. I tend to look at the world differently. Maybe it's because I've had to look at the world through eyes requiring constant knowledge of where my glasses were, or I was legally blind. Looking at things differently may be my sense that was sharpened by being handicapped. Whatever the reason, I was treated to another message reminding me life hasn't been all that bad. It was a message reminding me that, no matter what destiny we find ourselves fulfilling, no matter what explanation to our lives we find our destiny explaining, it can put what our lives have become into some perspective.
My recent perspective on life came yesterday during our 20th Anniversary "Cruising the Coast" celebration in our little town. The main avenue was packed with vintage cars, vendors, and the usual parade of mankind. Beer and cigars flowed freely from my usual haunt, and I volunteered to man the outside beer taps which was the best vantage point to take it all in.
I noticed a young man, probably between the ages of 12 to 16, in a walker similar to the photo above. He was endeavoring to keep up with the couple ahead of him, probably his parents, and doing a fair job of it. They stopped at the Air Force Reserve recruiting tent set up just next door, and that is when it hit me. As much as he might dream of flying, he would never realize it. Nor would he realize the much simpler accomplishment of just wearing a uniform. These careers would be forever out of his reach. His destiny would lie elsewhere, God bless him.
As I watched his mother put an Air Force Reserve promotional chain around his neck, he smiled and studied it before they moved on up the street. He was dealing with his lot, and his lot was so much more than anything my life had thrown at me. My destiny had brought me to this point in my life. My destiny was the explanation for everything I had been through. It had made me who I am, and will make me who I will become. Seeing this young man put it all into perspective for me and reminded me to appreciate all that I have, even if it is just my health.
This is not the first time I have been reminded of my blessings in life, and certainly not the first time the message has come to me through the guise of the infirm, and the young. I have no idea what path this young person will find to follow, or how long that path will be. He will have to understand the explanation for his existence and, hopefully, destiny will provide a clear one even if it is only to remind the rest of us how precious what little we have may be. I think we also have to look at our own lives and consider, daily, what message we may be offering other people to make some sense of their own destiny. Is our message a positive one of appreciation, hope, love, and tolerance, or are we just more of the droning babble of conversation and another of the faceless multitude in the colorful parade of humanity?
What is your destiny, or do you even care?
Editor's Note
(re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card)
Before you go getting your panties in a bunch, it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider another viewpoint.
It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and then engaging in peaceful, constructive, discussion in an arena of mutual respect concerning the opinions put forth. After over twenty years with military intelligence, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.
We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we do afterward, and what we learn from the experience.
Pastor Tony spent 22 years with Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, and instructor. He is founder of the Congregation for Religious Tolerance and author/editor of the Congregation's official blog site, "The Path," which offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's own personal, spiritual, path toward peace and the final destination.
As a young man I also had 20/200 eyesight and was very dependent upon my glasses, but now whereas many seniors must fumble for their reading glasses, my vision has corrected itself to near 20/20! That said, I'm living proof that if one lives long enough one may "see" things differently.
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