Just by coincidence, a thoughtful friend just sent me a collection of music and song entitled “Wartime Memories,” kindly noting that my late Dad …
Just by coincidence, a thoughtful friend just sent me a collection of music and song entitled “Wartime Memories,” kindly noting that my late Dad and my just-deceased Mom were part of that “greatest generation,” and that Dad served the Navy during World War II in the horror of the Pacific. Sure enough, as I listen to them, I can recall with crystal clarity being a kid and hearing my father and mother singing along, listening to these memorable tunes. What surprised me is how all these songs, while written and recorded in the anguish, threat, separation, loss, shortages, wounds, and death of those war years, were ripe with hope and confidence! Poets, philosophers and artists have long saluted the resilience of the human spirit as deep in our make-up, pointing to an innate trust in the Lord, who unfailingly sees us through. We sure need this now, especially with division and worries here at home, and tensions in the world. Ukraine stands out. In the face of a vicious assault, the people of Ukraine are one, coming together to resist, defend, and remain hopeful. They’ve had, sadly, a lot of practice. In the reign of terror during their oppression by Stalin, Jews and Christians in Ukraine were brutally persecuted.
