Roy’s Sunday Letter for March 31,2024

** Today is Easter Sunday, as one writer said, “Three Days That Changed the World.” This week has been tragic: A school bus was hit by a concrete mixer causing a rollover with death and multiple injuries; Russians who came for an evening of music murdered; a cargo ship destroying a city’s lifeline and deaths of innocent people. In the middle of this chaos comes Easter…also tragic, violent, and unjust. The “Truths” of Easter proclaim Renewal, asking us to be mindful of our Faith walk, to believe in a life freed for Hope. So, Easter Sunday has a true place in our life, even this week.

• On Saturday, Beth put on her walking shoes and joined 60 other people in Arlington for a Peace Pilgrimage sponsored by the First United Methodist Church. The walk was a global walk for solidarity and advocacy to end this war. They walked 2.5 miles representing the 25 miles of the Gaza Strip. “God of Love…We lift up Palestine and Israel its people, its land, its creatures. War is a monster that consumes everything in its path. Peace is a gift shared at meals of memory with Christians, Muslims and Jews. Let us break bread, not bodies. Let us plant olive groves, not cemeteries. We beg for love and compassion to prevail on your holy mountains (part of the opening prayer by Marie Berger).”

**This week, Beth and I had the opportunity to attend a presentation on Sorrow, Grief, and Compassion Presented by the TCU school of Medicine. Patrick O’Malley, Ph.D., now at TCU teaches future physicians about the value of grief and its impact not only on patients but on physicians as well. His presentation gave the history and wording of grief, including Freud’s influence; the groundbreaking writing of Kubler-Ross; current trends and approaches to individual and community grief. TCU is making groundbreaking progress to promote Empathic Medicine. Historically many doctors have had little or no training in grief. I recommend Dr. O’s Malley’s 2017 book “Getting Grief Right.”

• Two quotes by Maria Cole on Sacred Dreams – Face Book: 1)” Inside every older person is a young person wondering, What Happened?” and 2) “Old trees have truths to say to us when we know how to listen.”

** It was fair and just to give college athletes an opportunity to benefit from their talent and performance to the team and college. However, in 2024 the real time outcome of “fair and just” means a student athlete can receive bids of $250,000 to $1.5 million to stay with that team or transfer to a new campus. Colleges are now developing regulations to protect themselves from themselves.

• Beth and I were present Wednesday at Trinity Episcopal for “Women of the Passion, A Journey to the Cross” written by Katie Sherrod and beautiful music interludes by our friend Paul Warren and Alisa Tomlinson. Five women read the traditional story of the arrest, trial, Golgotha and the empty tomb. These reflections were given through the eyes and words of Mary (mother of Jesus), and other women who followed and cared for him. The violence, the pain and the heart-breaking death of Mary’s son was told in a unique way still with me this Easter morning.

Roy, affirming the mystery and faith of Easter