Sunday Musings – February 24, 2019
Sunday has traditionally been a day of looking back over the past week and looking forward to the new week. It is a time to make room for the many blessings I continue to be given, to honor the empty spaces left my losses, to acknowledge the “sins” of commission and omission, and to celebrate redemption .
Included in the many blessings is the time spent with friends; the work of such friends and colleagues as Ron Scott who lovingly and clearly challenged many of us to peel down to another level of the racism we have all internalized; the ongoing work of local organization such as the Human Right Commission and the forward thinking of many of the members of our city council; the ongoing challenge of such groups as Project Hope, the members of which serve the homeless; the Wheeling Symphony Orchester and all who work to ensure there is music to feed the soul; the friends who brings the works of gifted playwrights to life to feed and challenged the soul and the mind; the amazing gift of those who trust me to walk with them on their journey of growth and healing; and the many gifts which my son and many others so generously offer.
This week I am especially grateful for the many hours I have spent over the years with Ann Thomas. I carry with me so much of Ann’s challenge to celebrate life while simultaneously touching the depth of the pain of racism and other hurts which we continue to inflict on each other. Many have challenged me to grow, but few do so with the humor and directness of Ann. Ann’s challenge was always accompanied by the assurance of redemption. As a nurse, a Christian and as a woman whose example demonstrated that, in fact, as the Wizard reminded Dorothy and her friends, we have all we need to claim the life we deserve, Ann was about change and not about punishment or self -indulgent regrets. Redemption was not something that was represented by the story of a man who died on a cross but an action which we need to daily offer to ourselves and each other. When I joined Ann and others for years on the racial justice committee of the YWCA, I, too, was expected, as were all the members, to recount my earliest experience of committing racist acts. The assumption was, of course, we have all learned to be racist and to use other social constructs to prove our worth at the expense of the dignity and rights of others. We were invited to the redemptive power of truth telling in an atmosphere of love. We were invited to not only verbalize but live the redemptive power of “The truth shall set you free.”
Ann died Friday, February 22 following a long journey with cancer. I must therefore accept the empty space which her physical presence leaves. Yet her loving challenge and laughter will continue to remind me to dance a life of service, joy, courage and humility.
I sometimes overuse the words blessed and blessings and yet, this Sunday there are no more appropriate words to encapsulate the reality of redemption which carries me into the new week.
February 24, 2019
Jimmy F Pickett
Coachpickett.org
Sunday has traditionally been a day of looking back over the past week and looking forward to the new week. It is a time to make room for the many blessings I continue to be given, to honor the empty spaces left my losses, to acknowledge the “sins” of commission and omission, and to celebrate redemption .
Included in the many blessings is the time spent with friends; the work of such friends and colleagues as Ron Scott who lovingly and clearly challenged many of us to peel down to another level of the racism we have all internalized; the ongoing work of local organization such as the Human Right Commission and the forward thinking of many of the members of our city council; the ongoing challenge of such groups as Project Hope, the members of which serve the homeless; the Wheeling Symphony Orchester and all who work to ensure there is music to feed the soul; the friends who brings the works of gifted playwrights to life to feed and challenged the soul and the mind; the amazing gift of those who trust me to walk with them on their journey of growth and healing; and the many gifts which my son and many others so generously offer.
This week I am especially grateful for the many hours I have spent over the years with Ann Thomas. I carry with me so much of Ann’s challenge to celebrate life while simultaneously touching the depth of the pain of racism and other hurts which we continue to inflict on each other. Many have challenged me to grow, but few do so with the humor and directness of Ann. Ann’s challenge was always accompanied by the assurance of redemption. As a nurse, a Christian and as a woman whose example demonstrated that, in fact, as the Wizard reminded Dorothy and her friends, we have all we need to claim the life we deserve, Ann was about change and not about punishment or self -indulgent regrets. Redemption was not something that was represented by the story of a man who died on a cross but an action which we need to daily offer to ourselves and each other. When I joined Ann and others for years on the racial justice committee of the YWCA, I, too, was expected, as were all the members, to recount my earliest experience of committing racist acts. The assumption was, of course, we have all learned to be racist and to use other social constructs to prove our worth at the expense of the dignity and rights of others. We were invited to the redemptive power of truth telling in an atmosphere of love. We were invited to not only verbalize but live the redemptive power of “The truth shall set you free.”
Ann died Friday, February 22 following a long journey with cancer. I must therefore accept the empty space which her physical presence leaves. Yet her loving challenge and laughter will continue to remind me to dance a life of service, joy, courage and humility.
I sometimes overuse the words blessed and blessings and yet, this Sunday there are no more appropriate words to encapsulate the reality of redemption which carries me into the new week.
February 24, 2019
Jimmy F Pickett
Coachpickett.org
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