Well, it’s that time of year again. Yes, it’s Labor Day weekend and the summer has basically come to an end. The days are getting shorter, the nights are cooler, and in the Midwest, we are drying up from the unusual amount of rain that we have received this summer. Soon the birds will be congregating and making their plans to head back south for the winter (this is always a temptation for us as well). Another sign of seasonal change is the annual migration of college students back into our area and back into our church. As we near the one-year mark of Hannah’s fateful bite of brownie, we are beginning to relive everything all over again.
It was one year ago tomorrow that we helped her move into her dorm room. Going to college was always her goal and dream. It’s what she talked about, it’s what she worked so hard for, and it’s what she saved for. She looked forward to being on campus as a student with her friends, to the beginning of in-person classes, and to the buffet of food offered to her nearly all day. (Hannah had the metabolism of a hummingbird and she took great pride in always being hungry.) For us as parents, dropping her off was a mixed emotion. We were excited for her to see that all her sacrifice was starting to pay off. We were happy to know that she was happy and finally beginning to live out her dream. We were also recognizing the turning of a page, so to speak, and the beginning of a new chapter in our lives. Although she would always be our daughter and our “little girl,” she had also become an amazing young woman, and an adult…
Now here we are, one year later. The students are returning, but Hannah will not be among them. As students and families come back to Watertown tomorrow, in our minds a clock has been reset. We begin to relive the things that took place all over again. Today, last year, she was packing her car, double-checking that she had everything that she needed, and texting her friends about how great it was going to be. Tomorrow would be her arrival on campus and the culmination of all her dreams and efforts. It was also the beginning of a new chapter in all our lives, a chapter that ended in an unexpected way. Again, for us now, the clock is wound. Tomorrow, it begins to count down, and on November 10 at 3:57, it will STOP. There will be no dramatic pauses or thematic music. Time will just continue to slip by, silently, with the sun rising and setting as it always has since the beginning. The seasons will continue to change and by the first snowfall, one year will have passed.
Perhaps this needs to be a reminder to all of us that our lives are just a “vapor” that’s only here for a short time. Although often viewed as morbid, this thought actually needs to be more motivational. The time is counting down on all our “clocks.” What are we doing with our lives? Are they of any profit or value? Have fear of imperfection and failure, paralysis-by-analysis, or procrastination prevented us from doing something/anything meaningful with our lives? No one cares about the apology that you almost gave, the card that you didn’t send, or the love that you never showed. The value of good intentions without actions is an empty and meaningless deception of the heart.
Hannah lived only nineteen years and the majority of her “influence” was only felt for two months on campus and now it lives on posthumously in her memory. Was she perfect, no! Was she different, yes? What was the difference, ACTION! Hannah actually put her words and intentions into real, tangible actions. The quantity of time that we have is irrelevant when compared to the effectiveness of time spent in a quality manner. If she were here today, writing this post, Hannah’s exact challenge to all of us would be simple and clear, “Alright people, let’s get to work!”
We are blessed
Hannah Helps 