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Sam: "It's like in the great stories Mr. Frodo, the ones that really mattered.
Full of darkness and danger they were, and sometimes you didn't want to know the end.
Because how could the end be happy?
How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad happened?
But in the end, it's only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass.
A new day will come. And when the sun shines, it will shine out the clearer.
Those were the stories that stayed with you, that meant something.
But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now.
Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back only they didn’t,
they kept going because they were holding on to something."
Frodo : "What are we holding on to, Sam?"
Sam : "That there’s some good in this world, Mr. Frodo.
And that's worth fighting for."
--J.R.R. Tolkien
Copyright © 2020
by Ralph F. Couey
These days it is hard to look around and not see darkness. The Pandemic, the spreading of that other virus, anger/hate/violence. It becomes easy to give in to the negativity, to just lay back and wait for the pending disasters to overwhelm. It is particularly difficult when it seems the whole world is collapsing and we feel there is nothing we can do to stop it. I've had those moments in the past couple of weeks, but today something happened.
I was out walking in the area of O'ahu known as Ewa (pronounced EVUH) this morning after delivering my mother-in-law to her activity center. Since I'm down there once a week, I use that place for my exercise walk. It's a nice break because it's all flat, none of the steep and difficult hills around Pearl City. And plenty of shade.
When you visit a particular place at roughly the same time often enough, you see the same people out doing the same thing as you. In this case, exercising. We don't know each other by name, but we wave, salute, or tip the hat just the same. As outdoor exercisers are still exempt from the mask rule, smiles were visible on just about every face I encountered. I began to reflect on how my spirit was lifted by these simple expressions. I thought about other times when strangers spoke to me, wished me well, made me laugh. I realized that in a dark world, light can come from such small, random moments, brightening the world even just a little.
No one person can change the world. But we all occupy a small corner, and I think we owe it to each other to try to make that small space better for us all. The great thing is that this doesn't require a ton of effort. All that is needed is an awareness of others, and perhaps some concern as well. Fear is nibbling at everybody's lives these days and I think we underestimate the tremendous good that can come from small acts of happy kindness. Night is scary sometimes. But kindnesses bring the dawn that can light up someone's life. Light dispels fear, and in these times, that is so very important.
I've spent the balance of today thinking about the ways I could try to bring that light. I came up with some possible ideas, but I figured out that I can't be passive about this effort. I have to reach out, try to connect with folks, even for a few moments, without violating the restrictive rules governing human contact.
It is still possible to create new friendships. And we need them, not just the new ones, but making sure we take care of those we already have. Separation can make people drift apart and during a pandemic, we have to work harder to keep those people close. There is nothing emptier than life without friends.
I've written before how much I miss hugs. I guess I'm not alone in that. Earlier this week, the Kansas City Royals had a short two-game series in Cincinnati against the Reds. On the Reds this year are two players who were part of the 2015 World Series Champs. That was a special group, players who had been together for most of their years in professional baseball. That closeness was easy to see in how they leaned on each other, especially during the playoffs and the Series. As happens in the business side of the sport, that team began to break up, some going to other teams, others completely out of baseball. But when those players are reunited, you can see that friendship alive and well. Former Royal Mike Moustakas of the Reds spoke to the press about how difficult it was not to hug his friends wearing the other uniform.
A hug is at the same time a simple and complicated event. Handshakes are, or were, an accepted formal expression. A hug, however, brings people in close. For that brief moment, you feel the welcome pressure that embrace, the shared warmth, and perhaps, a heartbeat. Once its over, you may leave the hug, but the joy, and the affirmation, remains.
Now that hugs are...well...illegal, we have to be more creative, finding those ways to spread joy that are sincere, while at the same time non-invasive. There are many who wish to rekindle the light of the human spirit. It is the way we can all push back the persistent darkness present in life. But we have to make that effort, because it won't make itself. There is so much that is a force for bad. It is up to us to be a force for good. Yes, it will be a struggle; perhaps a fight. But it is a fight for all the right reasons, to resurrect goodness.
There is still good in this world. And as Samwise said, it is worth fighting for.
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