Jim Basinger, Rector of All Saints church in Anchorage, brought my attention to the Ash Wednesday passage he quotes during the Imposition of the Ashes. Quoting from Genesis 3 he says, “For dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” Sobering words. Reflective words.
I am in the airport in Amsterdam reflecting upon Jim’s words while I sit in Starbucks and doing my online work. Good things they are, updating my Face Book page, my blog, and the front page of the MCA website. More importantly, I chatted with my darling bride on Skype.
However, there is an urgency about my work here and now. My intensity builds just a bit. My concentration is a bit clearer. My heart speeds up just a tad.
The reason is not that I am dust. Notice the verse says for “Dust thou art.” I always quoted it wrongly, by saying “from dust thou art.” That is true, but it is much less humbling than, “Dust thou art.” Wow! I am dust. Yet, I am not thinking about how soon till I find myself back to dust.
I am hurrying because my MacBook battery is dying. Yep. Only a few percentage points left on this charge.
Hold it! Maybe that is Jim’s point the whole time. On our lives we should have a percentage meter that reveals for all to see how long until our lives lose their charge. Can you imagine it? “Excuse me sir. I see your dust meter says you will return to dust in just a couple of hours.”
It all makes me want to celebrate today. Make the most of my wife’s embrace. Dial in, totally in on what my daughter is saying. Listen to the chirping of the birds. Revel in the night sky. Laugh at life’s little funnies.
Gotta go. My battery is dying.