As I was driving up and down the North Thompson Valley the other day with my list of events and interviews to cover, I was struck by the incredible feeling I have experienced often in my lifetime driving on Highway 5 which has taken on new meaning for me in recent years with so many horrific accidents and fatalities happening. But on this incredible fall day, with such vibrant colours, trees of golds, oranges, yellows and occasional red, the sky so clear of smoke, vividly blue with those white billowy pillow clouds floating overhead – it all appeared so perfect.
Turning on the radio, just in time to hear more of the news – too late, I listened with sad horror as the descriptions of war in Israel seemed to blare into my soul. With a severe pang of guilt I thought, how fortunate we are – how blessed my grandchildren are, to live here, in Canada, I switched to a music station trying to drown out the images now imbedded in my brain of senseless killing.
Let’s be real. War has been present throughout time. We all acknowledge this, yet I think we fool ourselves into thinking with over confidence at times that things have really changed, and then the prejudice, hatred, bigotry, greed, bias swirling around the earth like a vicious, unstoppable and unforgiving storm, sweeps through another part of the globe, like fast moving lava from an erupting volcano and we are astonished once again. How can this be? How did this happen? Why? Our sense of reason, compassion and rational thought scream through the waves of grief, our own building anger at such atrocities with such helpless frustration! What can we possibly do? How can we help? When will it stop?
These thoughts flooding my brain and heart as I head into the office today, to write and the image of a child seeing an elder drop something at the store parking lot I just left pops into my head. Pulling away from Momma, the little one goes over to the lady leaning heavily on the support of her grocery cart beside her car, as her bag bursts open spilling her purchases beneath her feet and this little one rushes over to quietly help. One by one, handing the oranges, a can of tuna, a small carton of milk, some candy to the reaching hands of this woman, now smiling and patiently thanking each and every hand off from child to elder. And at the end of this little exercise, with her Momma smiling proudly near, she grasps the legs of the lady in a huge small hug of just pure, obvious, innocent love. A moment frozen in time and for one brief moment things fell into place. A perfect, innocent peace made possible by one little set of hands making everything that day just a little bit better.