Sunday, August 4, 2019
"SOMEBODY'S DARLING"
SOMEBODY'S DARLING was a song from the American Civil War that lamented the deaths of so many young men. The strong message was that they were not simply an impersonal statistic or collateral damage accompanying the violence and horrors of war. These were REAL PEOPLE with dreams, hopes, kinships, futures...
And, then, GONE !
Unfortunately, 'somebody's darlings' continue to die in combat that seems universal. A poignant line in Reuben James (about an American vessel sunk early in World War II): "Many years have passed since those brave men have gone, many years have passed and still I wonder why the worst of men must fight and the best of men must die ! "
Warfare while horrific hardly accounts for the deaths of
Somebody's darling. TWICE yesterday (August 3, 2019) innocent 'darlings' going about the normal routines of life, minding their own business, wishing no one harm did not return home. The latest body count that I have seen indicates 20 deaths in El Paso and 9 in Dayton, Ohio.
Before that, how many ? If, as is often claimed, 'violence is as American as apple pie', then the time has come for another kind of pie.
ANGUISH follows this violence. An online dictionary defines anguish like this: 'severe mental or physical pain or suffering'; 'sorrow, grief, heartache, heartbreak, woe, despair'. And, while 'thoughts and prayers' has become almost a benign cliche, there is little meaningful effort to address the complicated matter of guns.
Another Civil War song, Just Before the Battle, Mother,
indicated that those about to engage in battle knew that "on tomorrow, some may sleep beneath the sod'. But if you go to the mall to buy school supplies, or go to your holy place to worship, or to a musical concert, or to school to learn, or to . . ., you don't expect such to be your last ever activity.``
An anguished Psalmist implored, "How long, O Lord, how long ?" (Psalm 13) How long will 'somebody's darling' become a statistic ?
Satchel
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Each time I enter a public place now, I sit in the car and think to myself, "What will I do if a shooter comes in here?" It's a shame when we have to look at people as if they might be the "enemy" .
ReplyDeleteI could spend the day counting the affirmative adjectives that characterize this article, Ron. Sad, heartrending, poignant, powerful, timely, beautiful.... Thanks for writing it and getting it out so soon after our latest tragedies in El Paso and Dayton.
ReplyDeleteHow long America till we rise up as loving beings and say NO MORE!
ReplyDeleteHow can we help those who would kill heal? How can we protect all from harm? How can our crys of desperation, our efforts to show neighborly love move to action to bring about change?