Showing posts with label tragedy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tragedy. Show all posts

Friday, April 28, 2023

Nearer, My God, to Thee: A Titanic Stairway

The state-of-the-art ship was massive and was supposed to be unsinkable. It was one of the greatest achievements of the age, but an iceberg on a calm moonless night contributed to one of the greatest maritime disasters in recent history, and many souls found themselves literally nearer to God than they would have dreamed when setting out from England, France and Ireland just a few days previous.

But our story begins several millennia earlier.

c. 2000 BC, around 4000 years previous

The night was dark, and Jacob was exhausted from his trek across the land that would one day bear his future name of Israel. He found a stone and placed it on the ground to use as a pillow. As he slept, he dreamed about a stairway stretching into the sky with angels walking up and down it. God stood at the top and gave Jacob the following promise:

“I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”

Genesis 28:13-15
Upon waking, Jacob was awe-struck, and he named the place Bethel, or "House of God." He took the rock he had used as a pillow, and set it up as a pillar.

El sueño de Jacob/Jacob's Dream
Bartholomé Esteban Murillo
Oil on canvas
1665

1841

British actress Sarah Flower Adams had been obliged to leave the stage due to health troubles, and in 1841, her pastor was working on a sermon about Jacob's dream. He needed a song to go with it in the service, and Adams volunteered to write it. Her sister Eliza Flower set it to music, though a different tune by Lowell Mason would eventually become the one commonly used. (Incidentally, Mason also set the poem "Mary Had a Little Lamb" to music.) Summarizing Jacob's dream, Sarah wrote: 
Nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!
E'en though it be a cross that raiseth me,
still all my song shall be,
nearer, my God, to thee;
nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!

Though like the wanderer, the sun gone down,
darkness be over me, my rest a stone;
yet in my dreams I'd be
nearer, my God, to thee;
nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!

There let the way appear, steps unto heaven;
all that thou sendest me, in mercy given;
angels to beckon me
nearer, my God, to thee;
nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!

Then, with my waking thoughts bright with thy praise,
out of my stony griefs Bethel I'll raise;
so by my woes to be
nearer, my God, to thee;
nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!

Or if, on joyful wing cleaving the sky,
sun, moon, and stars forgot, upward I fly,
still all my song shall be,
nearer, my God, to thee;
nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!
Adams would write multiple poems and hymns, but this was her most well known. They couldn't know how poignant these words would be about 72 years later.

Sarah Flower Adams
Margaret Gillies
Sketch, touched with chalk
artwork c. 1850-1875

April 14-15, 1912

It was a dark but calm night. The appropriately-named ship was titanic (that is, massively huge), and it was on its maiden voyage. Just 39 years after the SS Ville du Havre had collided with another ship and sunk (inspiring another hymn), a much greater disaster was about to go down, literally. RMS Titanic also collided, but this time with an iceberg around 800 miles southwest of the other collision (if my calculations are accurate). 

Around 11:40 PM, lookout Frederick Fleet sounded the alarm: "Iceberg! Right ahead!" First Officer William Murdoch immediately ordered the ship "hard-a-starboard" to turn around posthaste! (Starboard is the ship's right side.) They did their best, but were too close to the iceberg, which scraped the starboard side, rupturing at least five watertight compartments. Captain Edward J. Smith ordered wireless operator Jack Phillips to begin sending distress signals, which he and his fellow operator Harold Bride did. The ship let off flares that lit up the sky. The RMS Carpathia received the signals, but being 58 nautical miles away, it would take them about three hours to reach the Titanic. The massive ship only had 20 lifeboats, not nearly enough for all their passengers.

As the ship broke apart and sank, multiple survivors recalled the ship's band, led by band leader Wallace Hartley, playing a hymn as some of the passengers sang along:
There let the way appear, steps unto heaven;
all that thou sendest me, in mercy given;
angels to beckon me
nearer, my God, to thee;
nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!
Hartley has said that he wanted that hymn played at his funeral. It would be the last song he would direct as he and the entire band found themselves nearer to God. Over 1500 souls were lost that night.

RMS Titanic departing Southampton
April 10, 1912
Photo by Francis Godolphin Osbourne Stuart

Tuesday, April 25, 2023

It Is Well: Lost at Sea

In late 1873, a heartbroken father stood on the deck of a ship gazing out to sea at the site of the disaster that had tragically claimed the lives of all four of his daughters. This was only two years after he had lost his son and his business. Now this.

Horatio Spafford was a lawyer and real estate investor who had seen great success. He had an amazing wife and beloved children. He had a lucrative business. But his successful life began to unravel in 1871 when his 4-year-old son contracted and succumbed to scarlet fever. It was a tragedy no parent should have to go through, having to bury their own son. But things would get worse. The Great Chicago Fire tore through the city, leaving large swathes of it in charred ruins. Shortly after losing his son, his successful business was quite literally up in smoke. In the face of such unimaginable loss, he could not know that even worse tragedy was on its way.

The Sinking of the Steamship Ville du Havre
Currier & Ives, 1873
Hand-colored lithograph
Image courtesy of Springfield Museums
Used with permission

Horatio and his wife Anna were devastated. The stress of raising children and rebuilding a business in the face of such unspeakable loss was heartrending. They decided that they needed a change of scene. A vacation to England would be just the thing. Horatio was detained by unexpected business obligations, so he saw his wife and four daughters off as they boarded the SS Ville du Havre, bound for England. He would take another ship and join them soon.

November 21, 1873 was a day that would shatter their lives, literally and figuratively. Over the Atlantic Ocean, the Ville du Havre collided with the Scottish iron-hulled ship Loch Earn. Anna Spafford gathered her four young daughters on the deck and they desperately prayed to be spared, or to be able to endure what was to come. The ship sank in 12 minutes. Over 200 lives were lost that day.

A few days later, Horatio received a telegram from Cardiff, Wales that began:

Saved alone. What shall I do?

A sailor on a small boat had spotted a woman floating on a piece of wreckage and pulled her aboard. They were then picked up by a larger boat bound for Cardiff. As soon as Anna arrived, she telegrammed her husband back in Chicago. Anna told another survivor of the Ville du Havre, "God gave me four daughters. Now they have been taken from me. Someday I will understand why."

Horatio and Anna Spafford's daughters

Gutted, Horatio booked the next available ship to Wales. The captain was aware of Spafford's tragedy and brought him out to the deck as they reached the site of the collision. As he looked out to sea and thought about his daughters, he was filled with a mixture of grief, comfort and peace. His emotions flowed on paper as he wrote the words that came to him to comfort in this horrible tragedy:

When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll—
Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to know,
It is well, it is well with my soul.

As the waves buffeted the ship back and forth, he wrote on:

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come
Let this blest assurance control
That Christ hath regarded my helpless estate
And hath shed his own blood for my soul.

Some of this is speculation on my part, but having gone through tragedies of my own, I know we are often plagued by the "what ifs" of life. What if they had stayed home? What if he had gone with them and could have protected them? What if he had committed some sin God was punishing him for? At their hour of greatest need, he was miles away, helplessly and ignorantly unable to help. Rational or not, I know my mind has gone to places like that, and I'm sure his did as well, particularly in light of his poem.

My sin—oh the bliss of this glorious thought—
My sin, not in part, but the whole,
Is nailed to His cross, & I bear it no more;
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, Oh my soul.

As he pondered, prayed, and agonized, it helped to remind himself that this was in God's hands, and God would bring him through it. Whatever sins he may have committed, whether or not they contributed to the tragedy, were forgiven and atoned on the cross. But even so, he missed his son and daughters horribly, and couldn't wait to see them again someday in heaven.

And Lord, haste the day when the faith shall be sight
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll—
The trump shall resound, & the Lord shall descend—
A song in the night, Oh my soul!

The above poem is from the original manuscript, which you can see here. A few words have been changed over the years for the hymn that we have grown up singing, but it is mostly intact. The biggest change I see is the last line. He would also write, 

"On Thursday last we passed over the spot where she went down in mid-ocean, the water three miles deep. But I do not think of our dear ones there. They are safe, folded, the dear lambs, and there, before very long, shall we be too. In the meantime, thanks to God, we have an opportunity to serve and praise Him for His love and mercy to us and ours. I will praise Him while I have my being. May we each one arise, leave all, and follow Him."

Naufrage du paquebot transatlantique la Ville-du-Havre.
L'arrière du navire est encore au-dessus des flots,
et le Loch-Earn envoie ses embarcations pour sauver les naufragés.

Translation:
Shipwreck of the transatlantic liner the Ville du Havre.
The back of the ship is still above the waves,
and the Loch Earn sends its small boats to 
save the shipwrecked.

Artwork by Évremond de Bérard in Le Monde illustré
December 13, 1873 based on information taken in 
Le Havre, France and a sketch by M.G. Roullet

Public Domain

After returning home, their friends rallied around them. Among those friends was Phillip Bliss, who was gifted in music and was so moved by Spafford's poem that he set it to music. It has comforted and moved generations ever since.

Following the tragedy, the Spaffords had three more children, losing another son to pneumonia. They would eventually move to Jerusalem. His "faith became sight" in 1888, when he passed away and was buried there.

This hymn has been special for me, particularly when I learned as a child that I was born on the anniversary of the shipwreck that inspired it. The first time I heard the story behind it was on the radio. We sang the song growing up, and hearing the story moved me. But now, it means more to me than ever.

In 2019, I took my parents on an errand to Bellingham, Washington, about a 2-hour drive north of us. On the way home, I could feel myself getting drowsy and pulled into a rest stop so I could get coffee and stretch my legs. But just as we were on the freeway exit into the rest stop, I dozed off momentarily. The car veered off the road into the grass, taking out a road sign as I desperately tried to regain control. The car went neatly between trees and slammed into another tree, momentarily going airborne and landing perpendicular from where it had hit the tree. (I'm hearing the crashes and feeling the shock again just typing this.) The airbags deployed. My dad found my glasses on the ground outside the passenger door. I was badly bruised. My parents were injured worse. My brother Tim, who was at work at the time, immediately left work and rushed to the hospital where we were taken. I was in the hospital a few hours, and my dad was in a bit longer. After nine days in the hospital, my mom had to spend a few weeks in rehab. I did a sleep study and CT scan to determine if there were any sleep or brain issues. (On one visit to the neurologist, I joked that I had to have my head examined.) There were no brain issues, but I was diagnosed with sleep apnea. While my glasses were thankfully intact, I got a new pair that wouldn't come off as easily. I went through terrible feelings of guilt and "what ifs"... What if I had pulled off the freeway sooner? What if I had stayed alert for five more minutes? On the other hand, what if we had been on a bridge over a river when it happened, which would have been worse? So many "what ifs"! My family and friends had to reassure me over and over that it wasn't my fault, and the feelings of guilt were not helpful. After I had worked through that, a well-meaning friend asked me if I was feeling guilt about it and offered unsolicited advice—but by that point, her efforts were a bit counterproductive as it revived it a bit. Never assume what someone is feeling when they are grieving. You could be reawakening things they've already worked through and don't need to be reminded.

In mid-November 2021, my dad was in the family room watching football. I thought it was a bit odd that he was still sitting there at midnight, which was not like him, but I told him I was going to bed. He offered to turn the TV down, but I assured him the volume was fine. About 3 and a half hours later, my mom woke me. She was in tears. My dad was still sitting in front of the TV, but the screen saver had come on, and when she asked him questions, his answers didn't make sense. I got up and went in and talked to him. Most of his answers to my questions also didn't make sense. At one point I commented that we were very worried, and he said, "I can see that." He didn't want us to call 911, because he was afraid they would ask him questions and he wouldn't know what to tell them. We finally decided to call 911 anyway, and paramedics rushed to the house. At the hospital, he was diagnosed with a hemorrhagic stroke, which involves bleeding in the brain, and eventually transferred to another hospital a bit farther away that was better equipped to help. While he was in the hospital, their COVID guidelines only allowed for one designated visitor throughout the stay. My mom was the obvious choice, so Tim and I waited in the parking lot while our mom visited him nearly daily. His condition was up and down. Due to COVID, I was working from home, so one day while I was working, Tim took my mom. They made the painful decision to move him to comfort care, as all attempts at getting food into him were failing, and the only other option had the potential of doing more harm than good. Tim called me and told me they were coming home to get me. I alerted my manager that I had to go, and once they arrived, we returned to the hospital. Since he was on comfort care, the one-guest rule didn't apply, so we went up. I had some things I needed to discuss with my dad, and I wish I could have discussed them with him when he was coherent. But I was able to tell him, clear some things up, and get some closure. He was clearly in pain, and was unable to talk right then, but I'm fairly certain he could hear me. We were hoping he would feel a bit better the following day and I might be able to talk some more. But that night, shortly after midnight, we were back home and had gone to bed. Tim got a call from the hospital. Once he had turned the phone over to our mom, he came and got me. I will never forget his next words: "Dad just died." We hurried back to the hospital. He was gone.

Once again, the "what ifs" came. What if I had realized before going to bed that something was physically wrong? What if we had called 911 sooner? Could they have saved him? With a stroke, minutes count. What if the accident in 2019 contributed to his stroke? What if I had listened to his lessons more and appreciated him more when he was alive? What if? What if? What if? I even had to work through some of the "what ifs" from the accident again.

It has been a difficult road since losing my dad. So many times I want to tell him something, ask him a question, give him a hug. While he was fighting for his life, I felt helpless. But "Christ has regarded my helpless estate and has shed His own blood for my soul." In some ways, I felt I failed as a son, and didn't honor and respect my dad as much as I should have. But "My sin—oh the bliss of this glorious thought—my sin, not in part, but the whole, is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more! Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, Oh my soul!" I miss my dad horribly, but I cling to that "peace like a river" that "attendeth my way" as "sorrows like sea billows roll." Someday the faith WILL become sight. I will see my dad again. He is completely healed. I miss him, but for his sake I don't want him to come back. So I sing with my brother in Christ Horatio Spafford:

And Lord, haste the day when the faith shall be sight
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll—
The trump shall resound, & the Lord shall descend—
A song in the night, Oh my soul!

Don't get me wrong, I plan to live for a long time yet, and I want to make an impact while I'm here, but a part of me yearns for that day when we run into each other's arms and joyfully sing Jesus' praises at His feet!

Sources:

https://www.staugustine.com/story/lifestyle/faith/2014/10/17/story-behind-song-it-well-my-soul/985525007/
https://www.thetabernaclechoir.org/articles/it-is-well-with-my-soul.html
https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/history-of-hymns-it-is-well-with-my-soul
https://seelemag.com/blog/story-behind-it-is-well-with-my-soul-cportee
https://springfieldmuseums.org/collections/item/the-sinking-of-the-steamship-ville-du-havre-currier-ives/
https://www.spaffordhymn.com/

Sunday, March 12, 2023

Where they left off...

I was in college on April 20, 1999, when 12 students not much younger than me, and a teacher, were murdered at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, near Denver. It rocked the nation. Next month is the 24th anniversary, and sadly, not a lot has changed over the years since then. We need to put an end to this! We must never forget the 13 innocent victims, who are listed at the bottom of this post. 

I wrote this poem in late April 1999.

Credit: CBS


Thirteen lives
Snuffed out
Twelve students and a teacher.
How could this be?
Why did this happen?
Thirteen lives
Cut short

Several followers of Christ,
No longer in pain,
Are now with Christ.
They are with the One who gave His life
To save theirs.
Some of them martyrs
So young

Funerals.
"God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life."
How could God's plan for their lives happen
When they are dead?
A nationally-televised funeral.
A challenge for teens to pick up
Where these students left off
Millions of teens
Around the world
Take their places.
Millions of followers of Christ
Take their places.
How many millions
Will come to Christ
Because of this unspeakable tragedy?

Families
Left behind
Grieving their loss
Rejoicing Heaven's gain

Now see God work
Through the tragedy
In spite of the tragedy
To bring countless millions into the fold
How many millions
Will be saved from the abyss?
How many millions
Will take their place
To spread God's word?

Only God
Can bring joy from a tragedy
Only God
Can heal a fallen nation
May God have all the praise and all the glory!

I took these pictures of columbine
flowers in Utah, summer 2022


We remember the innocent victims:

Cassie Bernall
Steven Curnow
Corey DePooter
Kelly Fleming
Matthew Kechter
Daniel Mauser
Daniel Rohrbough
Dave Sanders
Rachel Scott
Isaiah Shoels
John Tomlin
Lauren Townsend
Kyle Velasquez

Sunday, February 26, 2023

Michael

I wrote this poem in May 1997 after attending the memorial service for 13-year-old Michael Morrison, who took a boat out May 3 of that year, and it likely capsized. As far as I know, his body was never found. I didn't know him personally and have not been able to find a picture of him for the purposes of this blog. The incident was in the news, and one of our local news anchors was at the service. The poem mentions memories that people shared at the memorial. It quotes Psalm 116:15, 55:22a and 1 Peter 5:7b. One of my favorite memories that people shared at the funeral (which the poem does not mention) was that most of his friends and classmates called him Seymour. His youth leader shared that he once asked Michael why they called him that, and he explained, "When I wear my glasses, I can see more." That's when I knew we could have been great friends.

Photo by Jeremy Bishop on Unsplash

The funeral's done
The media's gone
And here we are, left behind
With the memory of a boy:
A man of God

They said you were so wonderful
You used to cheer them up
With the story of a pickle chasing you
You loved them with all your heart
And prayed for them - your friends.

And Michael, I wish that I had known you
Your love for God shone through in what you did
In life, you glorified God
And now, you're in His arms forevermore.

Your friends are sad
There's a great big hole
In your school and in your church
But there you are
In the arms of Christ!

You are so much better off
No more colds or flu
No hypothermia
Only God's amazing grace!
Heaven has gained an outstanding soul!

And Michael, I wish that I had known you
Your love for God shone through in what you did
In life, you glorified God
And now, you're in His arms forevermore.

"Precious in the sight of the Lord
Is the death of His saints."

I can't imagine how elated God must be
He has brought another child to His eternal home
To everlasting reward!

"Cast all your cares on the Lord
And He will sustain you."
"For He cares for you."

I know that God will bring
Your friends and family through their grief!

And Michael, I wish that I had known you
Your love for God shone through in what you did
In life, you glorified God
And now, you're in His arms forevermore.

I did not know you very well
But I have heard that you loved God
You loved everyone you saw
You prayed for all your friends
That they would meet the Lord.

We could have been great friends
I wish I'd known you more
And enjoyed your brotherly love
I look forward to meeting you
In the everlasting arms of Christ!

And Michael, I'm glad that I will meet you
In the arms of our eternal God and King
On earth, you glorified God
Now you live in His loving arms forevermore.

Saturday, February 18, 2023

A Nightmare and a Legacy

I wrote this poem April 21, 2007 after the cowardly attack on Virginia Tech that senselessly took 32 innocent lives and that of the shooter. Sadly, not much has improved since then. I have been aghast with all the violence in the past few years all over the US. In the name of the victims at Virginia Tech, Columbine, Sandy Hook, Parkland, Las Vegas, Orlando, Uvalde, Michigan State, and so many more, we need to set aside our differences and put an end to this!

As many of the victims at Virginia Tech were in French and German classes, I translated it into French (with valuable proofreading help from the folks at the A la Française Forum, which is no longer online), and I appreciate the excellent translation work into German by Jessica Eberhardt and Beate Peter.

Photos: Virginia Tech

ENGLISH
A Nightmare and a Legacy

A senseless act
A heinous deed
And when the nightmare was over, 32 innocent lives had been snuffed out
32 lives with so much promise
Suddenly cut short in their prime

They studied to make the world a better place
They taught their students the skills they would need to succeed
But in one catastrophic morning
Their studies and lessons came to a horrifying end
And 33 families were left wondering why
While shockwaves reverberated across the campus,
Across the country,
Across the world

They came from all over the world:
From Israel, Indonesia, Peru, Lebanon, Canada, Vietnam, India, Egypt, Puerto Rico, and across the USA
Each had a dream
And each pursued it
So why did so much work, so much living,
Have to come crashing down in such a sudden heartbreaking manner?
What purpose did God have for allowing this to happen?
Could it be that others will pick up the torches?

Whatever the case,
May God be praised
For so many lives well lived
For sparing so many more lives –
Both by a professor's last selfless heroic act
And because so many other victims survived

God can work through even the worst tragedies
May He be glorified for what He will do
May their legacy live on
And may He comfort the families and friends
And heal the wounded
As only He can.

FRENCH
Un cauchemar et un legs

Un acte insensé
Un oeuvre épouvantable
Et lorsque le cauchemar fut terminé, 32 vies innocentes s'en étaient allées
32 vies avec tant de promesse
Fauchées dans la fleur de l'âge

Ils étudièrent pour rendre le monde meilleur
Ils enseignèrent à leurs étudiants les compétences dont ils auraient besoin pour réussir
Mais en une seule matinée catastrophique,
Leurs études et leurs leçons se terminèrent de façon horrifiante
Et 33 familles se demandèrent pourquoi
Tandis que l’onde de choc retentit à travers le campus,
À travers le pays,
À travers le monde

Ils vinrent du monde entier
D'Israël, de l'Indonésie, du Pérou, du Liban, du Canada, du Viêt Nam, d’Inde, d’Égypte, du Puerto Rico, et d'à travers les États-Unis
Chacun eut un rêve
Et chacun le poursuit
Pourquoi donc tant de travail, tant de joie de vivre,
Devaient-ils s'effondrer dans un déchirement si soudain?
Pourquoi Dieu a-t-Il permis que ceci se produise?
Se pourrait-il que des autres se passeront les flambeaux?

En tout cas,
Que Dieu soit loué
Pour tant de vies si bien vécues
Pour avoir épargné tant d'autres vies –
Et à cause du dernier acte désintéressé et héroïque d'un professeur,
Et parce que tant de monde survécut

Dieu peut oeuvrer même à travers les pires des tragédies
Qu'Il soit glorifié pour ce qu'Il fera
Que leur legs survive
Et qu'Il soulage les familles et les amis des morts
Qu'Il guérisse les blessés
Comme Il peut, Lui seul, le faire.

GERMAN
Ein Albtraum und ein Vermächtnis

Eine sinnlose Tat
Eine schandhafte Arbeit
Und als der Albtraum yu Ende war,
waren 32 unschuldige Leben ausgelöscht
32 Leben mit so viel Hoffnung
In ihrer höchsten Vollkommenheit auf einmal abgeschnitten

Sie studierten, um die Welt in einen besseren Ort zu verwandeln
Sie brachten ihren Schülern Wissen bei, um es in der Welt zu schaffen
Aber an einem katastrophalen Morgen
Fanden ihre erlernten Fähigkeiten plötzlich ein schreckliches Ende
Und 33 Familien standen mit der Frage nach dem Warum da
Während die Schockwellen über dem Campus zusammenschlugen
Über dem Land
Um die Welt

Sie kamen aus der gangen Welt
Aus Israel, Indonesien, Peru, dem Libanon, Indien, Ägypten, Puerto Rico und überall aus den Staaten
Jede/r hatte einen Traum
Und jede/r lebte ihn aus
Warum musste so viel Arbeit, so viel Leben in einem Herz zerbrechenden Zusammenstoβ auf uns niederfallen?
Welchen Grund hatte Gott für dieses Geschehen?
Könnte es sein, dass andere die Fackeln aufheben

Was der Grund auch sein mag
Mein Gott soll angebetet werden
Für so viele gut gelebte Leben
Und für die Leben, die nicht zu Ende gingen

Gott kann uns sogar in den schlimmsten Zeiten helfen
Er sei gepriesen für das, was er tun wird
Ihr Vermächtnis lebe
Er tröste die Familien und Freunde
Und er heile die Verwundeten
Nur er kann es tun

Wednesday, February 8, 2023

Tsunami!

I wrote this poem December 28, 2004 after the massive 9.0 earthquake and tsunami two days earlier across the Indian Ocean. It claimed over 225,000 lives in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar, Maldives, India, Somalia, Kenya and Seychelles, among other countries. The devastation was horrifying, and it claimed lives indiscriminately, from the poorest to the richest. Among the dead was 21-year-old Prince Poom Jensen (พุ่ม เจนเซน) of Thailand, grandson of King Bhumibol Adulyadej (ภูมิพลอดุลยเดช, 1927-2016), the third-longest-reigning monarch in history. The quote at the end of the poem is from Psalm 46:1-3.

This seemed appropriate to post now, in light of the recent devastating earthquake in Syria and Türkiye. The death toll for that is in the thousands last I heard. I can't begin to fathom the devastation and loss from either disaster.

Image by Viks_jin, Adobe Stock

The sun shone bright on the tropical sea
The palm trees swayed gently in the breeze
As the waves brushed softly against the beach.
Who could know what was about to happen?

His Highness the Prince set out on his jet skis
An old beggar asked for money to buy his next meal
A monk knelt before a statue of Buddha
While someone else, facing Mecca, said a prayer to Allah
A mother put her child down for a nap
And tourists lounged lazily on the beach
Snorklers took in the splendor of the magnificent coral
As the sun beat down on Asia and Africa

Then it happened.

The waves grew suddenly large
The rising water engulfed the beggar
As the trembling ground felled the ancient Indonesian temple
And the mosque collapsed in the force of the quake
As a great island shifted 100 feet to the southwest

The earth stopped shaking
But the disaster was far from over
The waves rose higher
Great walls of water threw His Highness into the sea
And dashed the snorklers against the rugged coral
The angry ocean crashed into the beaches
And took the tourists by surprise
3000 miles the water traveled
To wash away African villages
As countless mothers and children across the coasts of Asia and Africa
Were swept from their homes into the raging sea

The sheer force of the tsunamis
Lifted many off the ground
And hurled them far inland or out to sea

How many were lost that day?
How many more will be lost to disease?
Who can say?
But this I know:
God had a reason for this
May His Kingdom be advanced through this,
The worst tragedy of the young century

May this be our comfort:
"God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging"


Let us run to Him
And take shelter in His loving arms
God will be exalted.
Praise His holy Name!

Tuesday, January 31, 2023

Seven Astronauts

Tomorrow marks the 20th anniversary of the horrible disaster in the skies over Texas, when seven lives were lost in the Space Shuttle Columbia while re-entering our atmosphere.

I wrote this poem February 2, 2003, the day after it exploded almost exactly 17 years after the tragedy with the Space Shuttle Challenger. I still remember where I was when I watched the Challenger explode on January 28, 1986. Both explosions were deeply traumatic, and both included members who made history, not just in the explosions, but in breaking glass ceilings and paving the way for astronauts, explorers and scientists in the future.

Space Shuttle Columbia tribute poster
Graphic design credit: NASA/Amy Lombardo.
NASA publication number: SP-2010-08-163-KSC

Seven children once gazed up at the stars
And wondered what it was like up there.
Over Israel, India and the United States,
The skies looked down on them
Seeming to call to them

Seven children grew up
Dreaming of what they would do
They became pilots, doctors, scientists, colonels

They watched in horror
As the Challenger blew up
Shortly after takeoff
Not knowing that they would one day
Suffer a similar fate

Seven men and women were accepted by NASA
To explore the heavens
To conduct scientific experiments

Seven families and three nations
Watched in awe as the spaceship lifted off
They dreamed of their fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, brothers, sisters
Up there in the skies
Houston got reports of their findings
Scientific knowledge advanced
Until the communication stopped

Seven families waited at Cape Canaveral’s landing strip
Eagerly awaiting their loved ones’ return
They did not expect their joy to turn to tears
They did not expect to hear news of the Columbia
Exploding over Texas
Scattering all over the largest continental state in the US

Seven men and women were lost that day
Seven families learned that their loved ones
Would not be returning
Seven families suffered the same pain
As seven other families
Seventeen years earlier
Three nations lost their sons and daughters
The first Israeli and the first Indian in space

Lost.

Why did this happen?
How?
Praise the Lord
He can do wondrous things
He can work through tragedies
Who knows?
Perhaps this was the tragedy
That will cause many lost souls
To consider where they will go
Maybe people will be saved for eternity
Because God used an exploded space shuttle
And seven lost lives
To bring them to Him

May God have all the glory!


The crew of the Columbia
David Brown, Rick Husband, Laurel Clark,
Kalpana Chawla, Michael Anderson,
William McCool, Ilan Ramon
Photo by NASA

Monday, January 30, 2023

Disaster in the Skies

January 29, 1986 in the Philippines, January 28 in Florida. I was in second grade at the time, and my mom taught kindergarten at our school in the Philippines. I usually hung out in her classroom before and after school. The launch of the Challenger on its tenth mission had been at 12:38 AM Philippine time (11:38 AM the the day before, EST). I believe it was before school that we were to watch the historic launch. My mom said, "Let's go see the spaceship!" I was excited because spaceships and astronomy have always fascinated me. At the time, the entire elementary shared an Audiovisual (A/V) Room, where classes went when lessons involved movies. (I remember watching Back to the Future at a sleepover in that room in 4th grade, two years later.) We ran from her classroom to the A/V Room, where teachers were gathered to watch the launch at Cape Canaveral. Excitement turned to horror as we watched this projected on the big screen:

Photo by NASA, Kennedy Space Center

Christa McAuliffe was the first teacher and the first private citizen to join a space mission, as part of the first Teacher in Space Project, and it was a huge deal. As I was in second grade, I don't remember a lot about the aftermath, but I do remember running to the Audiovisual Room, and standing in horror as we watched the unthinkable disaster unfold. It is a moment I will never forget.

It's hard to believe this year marks the 37th anniversary of that awful disaster.

The final crew of the Challenger
Ellison Onizuka, Christa McAuliffe, Greg Jarvis, Judy Resnik
Michael Smith, Dick Scobee, Ron McNair
Photo by NASA

NASA Orbiter tribute poster for the Challenger
Graphic design credit: NASA/Lynda Brammer.
NASA publication number: SP-2010-08-162-KSC


Sunday, October 2, 2022

Come from Away: Stories and lessons from those who lived it

The news came as a shock. That morning I was emerging from my room when my mom met me in the hallway. “Steven!” she said. I could hear in her voice that something serious had happened. I wondered if I was in trouble for some reason. Her voice trembling, she said, “A plane crashed into the World Trade Center!”

I didn’t know what to think, and it didn’t sink in immediately. Surely it must have been an accident. But what a catastrophic accident! We rushed into the living room and watched as they showed the horrifying footage on the news. It was starting to sink in. Someone in a building near the WTC called in to the news and told the anchors that a plane had deliberately flown into the Tower. Deliberately? Who would do such a thing? It occurred to me that this was the “JFK” event of my generation. My parents remember where they were when they learned of his assassination. I looked at my watch to take note of the date. September 11, 2001. I needn’t have bothered.

As we watched in horror, a second plane slammed into the other tower, causing a massive fireball. This couldn’t be a coincidence. Two planes crashing into two of the tallest buildings in New York within a few minutes of each other doesn’t just happen by accident. By this time it was getting time for me to start preparing for my work day, as Seattle is 3 hours behind New York due to time zones. I took a small radio into the bathroom to listen while I prepared and prayed desperately. The radio announcer related that a third plane had crashed into the Pentagon. We later learned that a fourth plane crashed in a field near Pittsburgh, as the passengers tackled the hijackers.

American Airlines Flight, over the North Atlantic

Meanwhile, an American Airlines plane was flying westbound over the Atlantic Ocean, en route from Paris to Dallas. Captain Beverley Bass got word on their air to air radio frequency that the towers had been hit, and New York airspace was closed. The airspace for the entire country was closed soon after. They knew then that they would need to divert to Canada, initially considering Toronto or Montreal. They then got word that a remote area would be wiser, so they were ordered to land in the small town of Gander, Newfoundland.

Air France, over the North Atlantic

The plane bound from Paris to Newark suddenly dropped in elevation, and passenger Kevin Tuerff, accustomed to flying, looked up at the GPS map on the ceiling of their jumbo jet. He wondered why they were suddenly flying due north rather than due west. Were they flying to the North Pole?

Continental Airlines, over the Atlantic

The flight was bound from Gatwick, England to Houston, Texas. Diane was returning home from visiting her son Mike and his family, stationed in the US Air Force in the UK. On the same flight was an oil industry professional named Nick, whose business took him to Houston. Neither of them knew that tragedy would bring together two strangers from opposite sides of the ocean.

Gander, Newfoundland

Gander Academy French immersion teacher Diane Davis heard of the attacks that morning. She went home for lunch and watched live as the towers fell. She would return to school to teach that afternoon. Her colleagues asked her to help mobilize help, possibly preparing food, and she readily volunteered as a point person for staff. With a staff phone list in hand, she registered with the town of Gander, telling them she had about 50 names and could probably count on half of them helping out. They moved desks and set up computers in the front at three schools, starting with the local high school. By the time they got to Gander Academy, they had about 100 volunteers setting up. After being up for 72 hours straight, she was ordered home to rest. She slept three hours and went back to work. By that time they had 770 people who needed help.

As the people of Gander prepared, so did the nearby towns of Appleton, Glenwood, Lewisporte, Norris Arm and Gambo. Six towns got ready to welcome thousands of people diverted to Newfoundland. Janice Young, a nurse from Lewisporte, worked 12-hour shifts to help people in need. Members of the local media, including Janice Goudie and Brian Mosher, would work tirelessly over the next few days, splitting their time between reporting the news and bringing aid to those who needed it.

“The world changed today, for the worse. Our flight from Paris to New York missed an international terrorist disaster in New York and Washington, DC. (Hijacked planes crashed into WTC & Pentagon.) We’ve been sitting on our plane now for 12 hours (7 now on the ground). All we can do is wait patiently for news about the tragedy, for a place to try to talk to our families. We’ve been told we may have to sleep here overnight (on board). We are fortunate to be alive. Many on the plane cried when we heard the news. Everyone is shell-shocked. No one can imagine what is next regarding our national security. Who can we trust now? Will this heinous crime start a war? All we can do is pray. P.S. Just learned we will soon depart plane and perhaps spend night in school here. At least 30 planes here waiting with stranded passengers aboard.”

So wrote Kevin Tuerff on his in-flight menu, on September 11, 2001. He was travelling with his partner Kevin Jung. Very few people had working phones on the plane, though Tuerff was able to attempt making calls from a first-class seat that a first-class passenger graciously allowed him to use. He didn’t get through because most people in the US were calling each other to make sure everyone was all right. He finally got through to a friend in Amsterdam, who was able to fill him in on what he had heard on the news. He then went back to their seat and told everyone what he had found out. Between trying to call out, watching Shrek twice, and dealing with an upset passenger behind them (Kevin Jung offered her some medication for her nerves, which she declined), they passed the long hours. Their plane was on the tarmac for 15 hours before they were finally allowed to deplane, one of the first of the 38 planes, containing a combined total of 6,579 passengers. They had to leave their checked luggage on the plane, so they were only allowed their carryon items. So Kevin and Kevin had only their bags containing cameras, passports and two bottles of Grey Goose vodka that Kevin Jung had managed to procure in Paris.

In his book Channel of Peace: Stranded in Gander on 9/11, Kevin Tuerff relates what happened when they left the plane. Security at the airport was tight. Members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) were stationed at the airport. (As another character in the musical comments, “There were soldiers everywhere.”) They went through immigration and customs, and Kevin says, “And that’s when the first wave of unconditional love hit us: the terminal was filled with volunteers greeting us as we registered. It was like we had walked into a party!” The people of Gander had stepped up and provided help and food for their thousands of guests. People had homemade baked food, chicken from KFC, and everything in between. Kevin managed to find a pay phone and call his parents, but had to go, as his ride was there. He watched people at the airport put “Out of Order” signs on the phones so they could get people to the places they were to stay.

Captain Bass’s plane deplaned early the morning of September 12, having been on the plane for 28 hours. She tells me that they “walked into the terminal building in Gander. I was shocked to see all of the food that had been prepared for the nearly 7k passengers and crew members. It was evident the folks of Gander and the surrounding communities had stayed up all night preparing and cooking for all of us. It was so heartwarming. During our 5 days there nearly 285,000 meals were served to the come from aways…as they call folks who are not from Newfoundland.”

The come from aways were housed all over Gander and the surrounding communities. Beverley Bass and her crew stayed at Gander’s Comfort Inn. She mainly stayed put at the inn, as she did not have a cell phone at the time and she needed to know right away if they were ready to leave. Kevin and Kevin were among a large group housed at the College of the North Atlantic. A Ganderite teenager gave them an air mattress, and it deflated the first night. The Society of United Fishermen Hall in nearby Gambo welcomed Nick, Diane, and the other passengers from their plane. Janice Young of Lewisporte hosted a couple British women in her home and helped out at a local church. Gander resident Beulah Cooper aided passengers from an Irish Aer Lingus flight, and filled four rooms in her house with passengers. The people of Newfoundland welcomed strangers into their schools, churches, businesses and homes with open arms. As Mayor Claude Elliott points out in his foreword to Kevin Tuerff’s Channel of Peace, they came from over three dozen countries. (Kevin tells me there were people from more than 90 countries.)

Among the passengers on the Aer Lingus flight was a couple named Dennis and Hannah O’Rourke, returning to New York from visiting Ireland. Beulah Cooper helped them as they desperately attempted to contact their son Kevin, a firefighter back home in New York. She developed a friendship with Hannah, which would be invaluable later when the O’Rourkes arrived back in New York and found that their son didn’t make it. His name is inscribed on the 9/11 Memorial at Ground Zero:

Photo by Steven Sauke

Diane Davis tells me, “As one of hundreds who helped at the school, I fell into an organizational role. I helped with general information in the office of the school for passengers. Like others, I helped passengers make international phone calls, I did announcements and took notes for captain Burgess when he met his flight. I organized bulletin boards for communication for each flight and helped to answer questions. Other teachers organized food and clothing. Some planned games and activities for children. Some took people home for showers, to sleep, or for laundry. We did not do things that were out of our skill set or extraordinary. We did the same thing we would do for anyone needing help. What is remarkable is how many need help and how many came to give it in the most basic of ways. Food, clothing, a drive somewhere, use of a phone.”

Kevin Tuerff relates that wherever they went in Gander, strangers stopped and offered to drive them to their destination. Others had similar experiences.

Stop the World!

On September 13, as Nick and Diane had been getting acquainted, they decided to take a gander (pun intended) at the nearby Dover Fault. Nick brought his camera, which he pulled out at the lookout. Diane suggested getting out of the way so he could photograph the beautiful scenery, but she didn’t realize that he was more interested in her than the scenery. With a single photograph, he “stopped the world” and preserved a memory that would be a turning point in their lives:

Photo by Nick Marson. Used with permission.

They would return a year later on their honeymoon, and again in 2017 when the town of Dover updated the plaque at the lookout with their story:


Photos by Nick and Diane Marson. Used with permission.

“What Was That Ungodly Screech?!”

During that time, some of the come from aways were “screeched in.” Kevin Tuerff would not have this privilege until 2011 at the 10-year celebration, and his (now former) partner would be screeched in later. The musical explained some of the background behind the Screech in ceremony, but I was still curious about it and asked Diane Davis. She tells me, “The Screech In had many variations. A Google search will get you some info but the Screech is a rum based drink that harkens back to when our salt fish was shipped to Jamaica and the ships came back with rum and molasses. It’s a bit of fun and when well done, it’s a good laugh. Kissing the cod is perhaps similar to the effort it takes to kiss the Blarney Stone in Ireland. You really need to want it bad to do it. I love the Screech in song. Another sing of the musical genius of Sankoff and Hein. Folks will be thinking it’s a traditional song.”

Departure, Tributes and Reflection

After five days in Newfoundland, the planes were finally allowed to leave. Kevin’s Air France flight returned to France, and they found themselves stranded once again, this time in Paris. At the airport, they witnessed a deeply moving show of support there and on the TVs as Europe came to a standstill, cars stopping on the road and people getting out of their cars to observe a moment of silence for the people of America. Europeans stopped what they were doing and stood at attention as “The Star-Spangled Banner” played.

For Diane Davis, “The most moving experience for me was helping to count money from a donation box to put it in the school safe. We were exhausted and my vice principal and I began to cry. There were so many denominations from 4 aircraft that we had to sort it by colour first to try to recognize currencies. There were 2 personal cheques for 1000 made to Gander Academy. When I see the scene of the collection on the aircraft and the passenger writes a cheque, I cry. We were overwhelmed with the gratitude of passengers. I still am by the hugs from strangers.”

A grateful American businesswoman welcomed by the town of Lewisporte took up a collection to fund scholarships for students there. It lasted for years, and both of Janice Young’s daughters benefitted from it.

Come from Away

Years later, the 10-year celebration and the musical Come from Away would serve to bring many people together. Mayor Claude Elliott met Kevin Tuerff at the celebration. Beulah Cooper and Diane Davis met when they learned that they had been combined into a single character named Beulah Davis. (They laughed about having never met before that.) The musical combined reporters Janice Goudie of the Gander Beacon newspaper and Brian Mosher of Rogers Cable into one person named Janice Mosher.

Kevin Tuerff finds the song “Prayer” from the musical particularly moving. He tells me that the “Most moving part of Come From Away for me is the song “Prayer” based in part on the Christian hymn “Make Me a Channel of Your Peace.”  I’d always loved that hymn. It had played in my head for days after 9/11, and was sometimes the only consolation when I would see the continuous loop of TV footage of planes crashing into the World Trade Center. Its lyrics were on my heart when I attended Mass at Notre Dame in Paris on September 16th, 2001. The first time I heard it, I immediately started crying. I never remembered telling the writers about this, Air France lied to us, saying we would leave Gander for New York, but instead they flew us back to Paris. We should’ve just stayed with the kind people in Gander!”

I must say I concur. The first time I heard that song, I was in tears. I love the combined Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Hindu prayers, in addition to multiple languages in one song, all praying for the same thing: peace (shalom in Hebrew, shaantih in Sanskrit) and praise to God (Allah in Arabic).

Response

Kevin founded an environmental marketing firm called EnviroMedia in 1997, and after his experiences in Gander, he started a new initiative called Pay It Forward 9/11. You can learn more about it at Pay it Forward 9/11. Basically, as described in the musical, every year on 9/11, he distributes $100 to groups of his employees and sends them out to do random good deeds for strangers. In this way he hopes to remember the horrific acts of 9/11 and the incredible selfless outpouring of love he was shown by strangers in Gander. He describes some of the deeds his employees have done, and they are truly moving. In this way he hopes to combat xenophobia, Islamophobia, homophobia and racism and replace them with compassion. He calls it a “jump start to the heart.” I highly recommend ordering his book Channel of Peace: Stranded in Gander on 9/11 on Amazon. I now own it in audiobook form (read by the author), as well as Kindle and the physical book. In addition to his story in Gander, and that of many of the others mentioned in the musical, he includes practical tips about how you can do good deeds for strangers. (You can also view the tips on the website for free.) It doesn’t have to be expensive, but he has seen lives changed for the better by some of the simple acts performed.

Similarly, since her retirement from teaching, Diane Davis has been instrumental in helping displaced Syrian refugees in Gander. Kevin Tuerff recently moved to New York so he can help his church to welcome immigrants and refugees there. Beverley Bass enjoys picking up the tab for first responders and others at restaurants. She paid airfare for the family of a member of Come from Away’s band when their homes in Dominica were destroyed in Hurricane Maria. Last summer she took her family to Newfoundland and personally thanked every mayor of every town that helped out.

Accuracy and Repeat Viewings

One thing I asked everyone I interviewed was how accurate their characters were represented in the musical Come from Away. The consensus was that they were very accurate. As mentioned above, some characters were combinations of two people. Kevin Tuerff told me that “The Kevins” actually lived in Austin, Texas rather than Los Angeles. Sankoff and Hein made this change so that they wouldn’t have “too many Texans” in the musical. (He also mentions in his book that they did not go to the Legion for a drink while stranded in Gander, and they were not Screeched In until years later.) Nick and Diane Marson pointed out that they made some minor changes to put everyone in one airplane and one shelter. Beverley Bass is deeply impressed with the way she is portrayed. She tells me that Jenn Colella is an ideal actress to play her. “First of all, she is adorable and has the most amazing voice. She belts out "Me and The Sky" which is my aviation life compacted into a 4:19 second solo, the only solo in the show. Her body language and everything is just the way that I am. We both have similar hair cuts and she used to have blonde hair like me, but has decided to let it go natural and is no longer blonde.” Diane Davis tells me that she personally observed most of what happened in the musical, and it brings back the memories of those events actually happening.

Another thing I asked everyone was how many times they have seen the musical. I believe Beverley Bass holds the record at 106 times as of the time she responded to my questions. Diane Davis hasn’t counted, but she believes it has been at least a dozen times, in Gander, Toronto, New York City and Winnipeg. It makes her cry every time. Kevin Tuerff recently attended his 26th performance over the course of five years, with his nephew and an African friend who was recently granted asylum in the US. Nick and Diane Marson are at second place among the people I interviewed, at 75 times in six cities and two countries. They tell me it is rewarding to show people who are older and yet have not found their “special someone” that there is still hope. Nick and Diane were “both into middle age, not 20 somethings” when they met. They also feel it is like renewing their vows every time they see it.

Relating to Come from Away

One thing I love about Come from Away is how much I can identify with it. I grew up in the Philippines, but I currently live in the Seattle area. I have also lived in Hong Kong and Montana. Having lived on opposite sides of the Pacific, I often feel like a come from away wherever I go. (“Where are you from?” is a complicated question for me.) In addition, I distinctly remember the events of 9/11. I remember the uncertainty of what would happen. That horrible morning, the hits kept coming. A plane hit one tower. A plane hit the other tower. A plane hit the Pentagon. A plane likely bound for the White House crashed in a field near Pittsburgh. Where would the next plane hit? After I got to work in a Seattle highrise that morning, I wondered if it would hit our building. Would a plane crash into the Space Needle? Our employer gave us the option of going home just in case. I decided that, worst case scenario, a plane would hit our building, and I would be killed and go to heaven. Heaven didn’t sound so bad.

With that in mind, I also asked everyone if there was a way they could relate to the musical.

Diane Davis shared that “9/11 was the hardest I worked ever to do something good, to volunteer, to be a contributing citizen. I am also on Gander Refugee Outreach Committee now and the time and energy involved in welcoming 4 Syrian families to Gander has renewed and polished all those citizen skills. Part of teaching our families was telling them the story of 9/11 and again, David and Irene selected stories that emphasize inclusion, compassion, empathy and community. For me though, the memory that always strikes me is the passengers seeing it on TV for the first time and when I see it on stage I cry. It’s the sense of helplessness, no matter how willing we were, that there was nothing we could do to make this not true or better.”

Nick and Diane Marson tell me, “As we travel to other cities where the show opens, and meet so many new people, we feel like we still are come from aways.   One of our favorite aspects of the show is meeting new people and sharing stories with them.”

Kevin Tuerff says, “As a gay Catholic, I know what it’s like to be marginalized. When I see the scene when the Muslim man (Ali) is scared because of how others are treating him simply because of his religion, it makes me sad. No doubt there was tremendous anxiety about who was a terrorist because the ones who hijacked the planes came from Muslim countries. But they were extremists who disobeyed their own religion. Virtually every religion in the world have one common teaching: The Golden Rule­–Treat others as you want to be treated. I hope as Come from Away goes on tour around the world, people are reminded of this, and take their experience in the theater and incorporate it into their daily lives.”

Tips for Visiting Newfoundland

Another question I asked everyone was where they would recommend going when visiting Newfoundland.

In addition to Gander, Beverley Bass recommends visiting Gambo and Lewisporte, as well as the other “adorable little towns” in the area. As far as restaurants in Gander, she recommends Bistro on the Roe, Rosie’s, and The Gander Bread Box Bakery & Café.. “Everyone is so incredibly nice that you really never want to leave.”

Diane Davis says, “There is a Beyond Words bus tour that will take visitors to the various sites around Gander and does a great job of telling Gander’s 9/11 and aviation history. I like to make sure people see Gander Heritage Memorial Park and read some of the letters at the town hall in Gander. I also recommend the Peace Park in Appleton and visiting all the town halls in the communities where passengers were housed. Gander, Appleton, Glenwood, Lewisporte, Norris Arm and Gambo. Everyone should visit the Dover Fault and sing “Stop the World” too.”

Kevin Tuerff says, “The best place to start a tour of Gander is at the North Atlantic Aviation Museum. They offer a seasons tour of the Gander International airport and several scenes in Come from Away called Beyond Words. I recently took a self-driving tour of other beautiful towns across Newfoundland from Maxxim Vacations, called the Come From Away Experience. The island has absolutely stunning beauty and remarkably kind people.”

Nick and Diane Marson have a rather unsurprising yet exciting suggestion: “Do we ever! Of course we like to see our Newfie families, but ….   Our visit to Dover Fault on Sept. 13th, 2001 highlighted the budding feelings between us…Nick wanted a photo of Diane not the beautiful scenery so that meant he was as interested in me as I was in him...  It is the “Stop the world” moment in our lives and is portrayed as such in the Play.”

Go See Come from Away!

[As of July 2018,] Come from Away is currently playing on Broadway and Toronto. The musical is kicking off its national tour in Seattle in October. (I can’t wait!) The tour is currently slated for Seattle, Salt Lake City, Denver, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Costa Mesa, Las Vegas, Portland (Oregon), Vancouver (British Columbia), Edmonton, Calgary, Omaha, Appleton (Wisconsin), Pittsburgh, Greenville, Baltimore, Hartford, Milwaukee, St. Louis, New Orleans, Tampa, Orlando, Miami, Atlanta, Cleveland, Chicago and Ottawa. The show opens in Melbourne, Australia in July 2019. Tickets are now on sale for the Dublin production, and it runs in London starting January 20, 2019. Tickets are now on sale there as well.

The show lasts 100 minutes, and there is no intermission. It is recommended for ages 10 and up.

You can get more information on the musical’s website, www.comefromaway.com. I also highly recommend visiting www.payitforward911.org for ways you can help spread the kindness that the people of Newfoundland showed to strangers. 


Monday, April 28, 2014

Bonnie's Story

My aunt wanted to share her story, and I suggested that I could do a guest blog. This is the first time I've done this on my blog, so here she is...

*****

I was born into God’s family when I was 6 or 7 years old - my Mom led me to the Lord.  I grew up a PK – my Dad took his first pastorate when I was 4 years old and he served 5 churches in the Evangelical Free Church, in Alberta, British Columbia and Montana.

My adult life is somewhat a Cinderella story – I can also relate very well to the story of “Joseph” and the sadness that was in his life.  When I got married we had 4 years together and I suddenly found myself a widow at 26 years old.  My husband Randy Rusk was killed instantly by a drunk driver in Missoula, MT.  I wish I could have had more time to mature and do life with him before that had to happen.  It is such a special time in our lives to be young and in love! but I know now that the night Randy was gone in a heartbeat, God came and got me that night too! where I was, and that he held me close for YEARS! – loving me and caring for me for as long as it took for me to recognize him in my life.  However, as time went by and while other people were busy doing life, I was busy coping with life and I wondered why, but when God changes our circumstances dramatically and as we pick up the pieces of our life, God can draw us to himself in a new way; time however means nothing to God! and it can sometimes take years.  We always miss those we love but God does bring us out of the pit of grief, life can be good again and we emerge from our dark tunnel changed forever as he works in our lives making our faith more personal.  Almost 20 years later I re-met Randy’s brother Vern who I hadn’t seen since Randy died – and of all the surprises in the world! – a year and a half later we were married. It’s not too many people who have a brother-in-law ride back into their life after 18 years, and become their prince!  So you never know what can happen in a day or where life will take you.

Through it all I read verses over and over trying to make sense out of it all; “Be still Bonnie and know that I am God” – Psalm 46:10.  My favorite verse after Randy died, “Be not dismayed Bonnie I am YOUR God, I will strengthen you.  I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious hand” – Isaiah 41:10. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge Me and I will direct your paths” – Proverbs 3:5-6.  “We live within the shadow of the Almighty, sheltered by the God who is above all.  He alone is my refuge, my place of safety” - Psalm 91:1&2.

I close with this thought from The Divine Conspiracy by Dallas Willard, “What God gets out of our lives and what we get out of our lives is the person we become.”  I love this verse, “'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.  You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart'”- Jeremiah 29:11&13.  I still can’t understand it all and still think of him and miss him sometimes but I believe that God takes special care of those who suffer deeply because of someone else’s mistakes.  My faith has grown so much and I am one who can tell you that he is truly a God of faithfulness, love and forgiveness as well as new opportunities.  I’m so thankful it’s not about where we’ve been, but about who we become!

Bonnie Rusk  

Monday, April 15, 2013

The Finish Line

I wrote this poem back in January of 2005 in memory of our former pastor Brad Smith, who died rather suddenly from a stroke, but I thought in light of the tragedy today at the Boston Marathon, it was appropriate.

This poem makes reference to 2 Timothy 4:7-8, 1 Corinthians 9:24, Philippians 3:14 and John 14.

~~~

With a firm conviction and a strong faith
He ran the race
With all his heart, he encouraged and challenged many
To press on in the race of life
And to follow God earnestly


With a tender and steadfast love,
He was a wonderful husband to his wife,
A superb father to his children,
And a caring shepherd to his flocks.


A godly man,
He challenged us to remain in God's vine
And to pursue Him whole-heartedly
A humble yet goofy man,
He endured pie in the face and the dunking machine
And he made no secret of his disdain for lima beans.


He ran the race so as to gain the prize
And he guided many along the way
He lived his life in service to God
And sooner than anyone expected,
He triumphantly crossed the finish line.


In one stroke in time,
He finished the course
He has gained the prize
For which God called him heavenward
And in white robes and a glittering crown,
He bows before the Master.


He broke the ribbon on the finish line,
A ribbon we all must break some day
May we learn from the way he ran the race
To fix our eyes firmly on our Savior
And in His power, in His time,
We will triumphantly cross the line
And run straight into the loving arms of God.

Saturday, September 10, 2011

Who Knew?

I shared my memories of September 11, 2001 back in May, and now I thought I'd post this poem I wrote shortly after the horrible events of that fateful day.

Who Knew?
by Steven Sauke
© September 2001

It began as a peaceful Tuesday morning
The sun shone, the birds chirped
Who knew what was about to happen?
Who knew the peace would be shattered?
That planes would crash into buildings?
That thousands of lives would suddenly be cut short?
That fireballs so huge could billow out of national landmarks?
Who foresaw bodies falling 110 stories to the ground?
The World Trade Center plummeting after them?
The Pentagon in flames?
Smoke billowing into the sky,
Blotting out the sun,
Turning the bright blue sky a dismal gray?
Dust blanketing a city in a velvety, macabre coat?
Who could have known on such a bright sunny day
That in a few minutes a nation would be in shock?
That a planet would be in grief?
That in 225 years the US had never seen such a disaster
As what was about to happen?

Who would have guessed that in one morning,
A sharply divided nation would come together
To donate blood, to pick up the pieces, to pray for our fellow Americans?

Who could have known that in one morning,
A nation, an earth, would forever be changed?

Who foresaw an outpouring of grief,
Of sorrow,
Of love,
Of flowers,
Of candles,
Of silence,
Across the nation,
Across the earth?
Who knew flags across the world
Would soon be placed at half-mast?

Only God knew
And He held up the towers for an hour
To let people escape

Only God knew
And He caused the planes to hit the towers high enough
That they collapsed straight down
Rather than falling over
And wiping out more of Manhattan

Only God knew
And He diverted a plane away from the White House
Into the only part of the Pentagon
That had been retrofitted
For terrorist attacks

Only God knew
And He stopped in mid-flight
Another plane headed for the White House
Sending it crashing
Into a field.

Praise be to God
For sparing us from something worse
Praise be to God!

Monday, May 2, 2011

Mixed Feelings

Last night, I checked my e-mail "one last time" before going to bed and found some significant news. President Obama announced that a small group of Americans had found and killed Osama bin Laden, and they had positively identified his body via DNA tests.


It was 1993 the first time I remember hearing about Bin Laden. A bomb went off in the parking garage below the World Trade Center. Bin Laden took credit, and he was attempting to take the building down by destroying its base. Thankfully, that attempt failed, and the damage was repaired.

The next time I remember hearing of him was that fateful day in 2001. I woke up the morning of September 11, and I was headed toward the bathroom to start getting ready for work. My mom stopped me at the door of my room, and she was visibly shaken. She told me that a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center. Not being fully awake, my first thought was, "Who cares?" As it sank in, I started to realize that I cared. We hurried into the living room and watched in horror as the news reports showed a huge plume of fire and smoke billowing out of the World Trade Center. Further horror ensued as we watched a plane slam into the second building. At that point, I had to start getting ready for work, as I wanted to be sure to arrive on time. I took a small portable radio into the bathroom while I was getting ready, and I prayed desperately. It was then that I heard on the radio that a third plane had slammed into the Pentagon. I prayed even more desperately, and later heard that a fourth plane had crashed in a field in Pennsylvania, thanks to the heroic efforts of some passengers who had tackled the hijackers and prevented them from reaching their target. Walking to work, I glanced at the newsstands and saw a headline about whales...suddenly such a trivial subject. By lunch time, the papers had been replaced with special editions proclaiming, "ATTACKED!"

My job at the time was on the 9th floor of a Seattle highrise. At the time, nobody knew where the terrorists' next target would be, and early in the day, our managers told us we could go home if we wanted. I opted to stay, as the worst that could happen was that a plane would slam into our building, I would be killed, and then go to heaven, never to suffer again. That didn't seem to me such a bad option. Thankfully, there were no more attacks, but one thing I will never forget is the news reports of people dancing in the streets in the Middle East, celebrating the fact that America had been attacked and thousands had been killed. It hurt deeply to see their sick glee.

I never dreamed that nearly ten years later, the same celebrating over a death would be taking place in America. At long last, the perpetrator of these attacks has been caught and brought to eternal justice. Part of me is thankful that Bin Laden will no longer be inflicting his fierce hatred on America. I'm grateful to our brave troops for going in and doing the job that needed to be done, carefully avoiding the killing of innocent lives, and getting the bad guys. This is a great victory, and for that I'm glad. However, it saddens me to see Americans gleefully celebrating a man's death. I don't care who he was or what he did, celebrating any death is a sin. Proverbs 24:17-20 states:
Do not gloat when your enemy falls;
when they stumble, do not let your heart rejoice,
or the LORD will see and disapprove
and turn his wrath away from them.
Do not fret because of evildoers
or be envious of the wicked,
for the evildoer has no future hope,
and the lamp of the wicked will be snuffed out.
It makes me incredibly sad to think that a man who had so much potential could go so wrong. He was definitely an evildoer and an enemy, but Jesus gave His life for Osama bin Laden just as much as He did it for anyone else. Whatever evil Bin Laden did, it is truly a tragedy that he now has to pay with an eternity of fire and torment. It is without a doubt what he deserves, but that is a punishment I would not wish on my worst enemy, and it is what all of us deserve.

I think about Bin Laden's sympathizers dancing in the streets celebrating the attack on America, and I am ashamed to think that we would do the same thing when Bin Laden is killed. Yes, victory is a cause for celebration, but death is not.

On the other hand, just yesterday our pastor preached on King David's friends later in life. One of those friends was General Joab. David's reign was threatened by a bitter enemy named Absalom, who was determined to overthrow the King and take over. One catch: Absalom was David's son. David commanded Joab to crush the rebellion but to spare the life of his son. However, when Absalom's hair got caught in a tree and Joab was nearby, Joab took that opportunity to put an end to the threat to the King's life. When David heard the news that his son was dead, he was heartbroken. He mourned so deeply that his army slunk away as if they had suffered a defeat rather than a great victory. Joab then had to go to the King and remind him that the army had saved his life. While David didn't celebrate his son's death, he did realize the need to encourage the army and his subjects, and he returned to his duties.

Another thing that just came to mind was that after the Israelites crossed the Red Sea on dry land, and then the sea collapsed on the Egyptian army, the Israelites sang a song of praise to God for delivering them from the oppressive Pharaoh. They brought out their tambourines and danced in celebration.

All that to say, I have mixed feelings about Bin Laden's death. This is a great victory, and I think we should be thankful for God's protection and that He allowed us to get the bad guy. I believe that this action saved thousands of lives, and the soldiers who carried out the attack on his compound did a truly heroic thing. But the fact that he died without a Savior or a hope of salvation is a great tragedy.

Maybe the thing we should be celebrating is not his death, but the fact that the lives of who-knows-how-many people that would otherwise have been killed by his evil have been saved.

Finally, I will say something that may sound strange at first. I am thankful for Osama bin Laden. I know he was an evil man. He was a perpetrator of genocide, and he probably would have made Hitler proud. But he did what very few people have done in recent American history. His deed on September 11 united America. Democrats and Republicans and people of all religions came together in a way that I have only seen once to march behind a common purpose, and for once, we all agreed on something. It was a beautiful thing. For that, I thank Bin Laden. May we continue in that spirit of unity.