Standing Ovation

I saw that it's been almost two months since my last post. That doesn't mean that my interest waned. It also doesn't mean that I forgot. In fact, I've been thinking more about us. Our upcoming reunion. And how busy life can be.

Forty years flew by too fast. And now, some days, I feel as if the sun is setting on my life and I'm just watching the days go by. I know that's not true, but I'm sure I'm not the only person who has taken a backward glance and wondered, "what happened and how did I get where I am?"

But perhaps the biggest question—the one most of us wrestle with more often that any other—is what have I accomplished?

Our society today is driven by and the media focuses our attention on celebrities from every genre. They hoist aloft those they admire one day, and the next day rejoice when they fall from grace. We sometimes look for heroes, but secretly applaud when someone's story comes to a sad end. A celebrity goes into rehab or gets sentenced as any other person would for drug use or drunk driving. A sports icon falls prey to the truth about steroid use. Or any number of other examples.

I've wondered why I sometimes feel better about myself when someone else fails. And I'm not convinced I have an answer. But I do have a few thoughts.

The idea that we all want to be accepted, appreciated, and applauded is conventional wisdom. So when I fail to achieve my goals, I tend to think that others will like me less. The problem is that I draw my dignity from what I do, rather than who I am.

Our character and nature are often much more than what can be seen or appreciated by those who don't know us. Likewise, those who know us best love us in spite of our weaknesses and flaws.

I'm not sure how that explains my recent thoughts. Maybe it's the Memorial Day weekend. Or the emails I've exchanged with some of you. Or something I'd like to do. But I'm trying to remember Tim Roe and Carl Johnson.

I didn't know either of them. But I wish I could say thank you to both of our classmates who died in Vietnam. They are two of the tens of thousands of reasons I've had forty year to enjoy life. And why I have time to remember what I have accomplished. And for that they deserve a standing ovation.