Today is December 7, 2015. Thinking back to December 7, 1941.
From what I have been told, it started out as a beautiful day in Pearl Harbor.
But at 7:55 a.m. Hawaiian time, that quickly changed.
And before it was all over, 2,403 people lost their lives and 1,200 were wounded. With Pearl Harbor, America was thrown into WWII.
Terrifying. Stunning. Devastating. Rallying. As a baby boomer, I was not alive then, but my (now late) parents were. I can only imagine the feelings of both vulnerability and patriotism this event evoked in people who previously assumed their world would remain safe.
Not unlike what the 2011 attacks on the World Trade Tours did—reawakened a global resolve to restore some level of peace and order to a turbulent world.
Debates about all the issues will go on forever. But for just a moment, let’s stop and think about what war does to us. Death is not the only result. Fear. Loss of trust. Disorientation about where we fit in the world. Worry over younger members of our family who might be thrown right into its core. Disruption of our belief system. Rifts with relatives who take the opposite side in political views. Veterans who can’t receive adequate medical care and live in poverty.
Hate. Sadness. Sorrow.
Why bring this up during the holiday season?
Because not only is the attack on Pearl Harbor a day in history we must remember, it is also a day to honor all the brave men and women who put their lives on the line for us every day. Servicemen and women. Police officers and firefighters. Doctors Without Borders. Ambassadors and missionaries. Foreign correspondents who report from the fighting. Emergency responders who pull people from flooded cars and rescue beloved pets from rooftops in natural disasters.
In a world filled with so much hate, there is still so much love. There will always be those who hate. But also, there will always be those who are willing to reach out, to accept, to listen, and most importantly, to love.
In 1941, we were mostly united in our fight against those who wished us harm. Today it’s a tougher call, with many innocent souls targeted for their religion, their country of origin, or their desperate desire to escape horrible living conditions.
No easy answers. Except a hope that peace on earth will come someday, for all peoples. What a gift that would be.
“Sometimes even to live is an act of courage.”
Seneca
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