A Letter from Lindy July 5

Pilgrims,
I've been reminiscing as we approach the 4th, and have been holding in my heart one of the ways Lanny and I learned to celebrate this day while living in DC. When we first moved there, we learned of, and joined, those who gathered on the front lawn for a Capitol 4th, with star-studded entertainers, a spectacular symphony-- the 1812 Overture always ushering in a sky-filled explosion of fireworks. The night filled my heart at being a part of this American experiment. 
 
Yesterday, as I had the joy of a few delightful, carefully sanctioned, outdoor, pastoral get-togethers, I confessed how conflicted I feel in commemorating our country's celebrated independence, knowing that my black, brown and indigenous siblings do not experience the same freedom and democracy of our country's founding documents, to quote the NY Times editorial board. How do we move from the true lamentation of the Juneteenth celebration in two short weeks to the bravado of July 4th, especially this year when the distance has been paved so plainly on our city streets?
 
Nor should we be summer-partying, indoor/outdoor, en masse, sharing food and drink and laughter, squeezed blanket to blanket as we have done, in this latest surge amidst the (still) first wave of this pandemic. It is dangerous. It is scary. And we need to take the call to hold off seriously. 
 
So much to hold with the millions of Americans who continue to file for unemployment, knowing the rise of coronavirus outbreaks will yet again increase that staggering figure even further. Amidst the seeming bleakness, how does one hold to God's hope? God's movement? God's ushering in kindom on earth as in....?
 
And maybe we can feel hope if we hold onto America truly being an experiment, not complete, still with much work to do. What is inspiring to me about the world of science is the recognition that each step is one of trial and error. And mistakes, missteps, do not stop the process in its tracks. Rather, failure offers the opportunity for learning, for addressing that which is lacking or that which has gone wrong, and making adjustments and improvements with every turn. Can we use this moment, this movement, as one to continue to learn from, to grow beyond, for God is birthing something new? Something breaking through more akin to God's shalom?
 
After Thompson was born, Lanny and I discovered that the production of the Capitol 4th had a long road of planning and rehearsal, culminating in a dress rehearsal the afternoon prior to Independence Day. With a little one who would have never sat still amidst the multitudes, a group of our new parent friends gathered instead to watch the performers get the kinks out to birth the well-polished end result. The crowd was much smaller. Relaxed. Low key. We watched the flubs and dubs. We heard the gaffes and jabs. Laughter abound from every corner. Funny, we never went back to the grander performance, loving instead being a part of the real humanity that brought it into being.
 
Happy 4th, Pilgrim.
Pastor Lindy