YOU MISSED

Long ago when Kathleen and I were still under the responsibility of guiding the teens and preteens who fell under our parental stewardship, through the crazy maze of adolescence, we had many chances for meaningful eternal learning moments. On one of those infrequent special evenings when our entire family happened to be at home, Kathleen was suddenly struck with an overwhelming desire to record the moment for future reference on Polaroid.

Cevin, our eldest son, was entrusted with and dispatched on the errand to retrieve the magical camera from our bedroom. After a short period of time he returned juggling the camera in three parts; front, back and film. My mechanically gifted wife soon reassembled the camera into its original form and then desired to test the reliability of her handiwork.

Our third son, Troy, never known to be camera shy, volunteered to be her model. I have often wondered what might have been going through his mind. Perhaps it was something like, ‘the best chance the camera would have of resurrecting its functions would happen if the lens was concentrated on the best object available.’ After focusing, snapping and waiting the mandatory 60 seconds, Kathleen showed Troy the print which after going through its developing process remained a solid sheet of white. He looked up at his mother with a disgusted frown and with a whine of protest said, “You missed!”

During my life I have always enjoyed reading biographies and autobiographies about people whose lives seemed worthy of being accounted for because of the famous and infamous events of their mortal passage. These readings have included people who governed and those who were governed. They have included people on all levels of the social and educational spectrum. Their contributions have affected few or many. They spent their lives in a cacophony of talents and abilities, but, when they were no longer actively among us, our lives were still being influenced and being made different because they were here.

The one commonality they seemed to have shared was that for at least one other person and many times for innumerable persons, they had contributed in some way to an indelible change on those who fell within the influence of their shadows. When reading these histories during my life, more times than I can bring back to remembrance I paused to wonder why. Why had these made such a difference during mortality, and their names continually whispered in reverence for generations? Many of their contemporaries, will be remembered only as long as the engraved few lines remain on their headstones which will draw many a quizzical glace as future generations search through the unkempt remains of their last earthly home? We would hope that the winds of the decades working upon the engraved words would never change the epitaph so that it would read, “You Missed!”

Lest we immediately view our little corner in the field to be insignificant, and any contribution we might make to be less than dross for humanity, it would be well to contemplate the words of John Ruskin: “The strength and power of any country depend absolutely on the quality of the good men and women in it.” If we view the collective span of humanity dwelling on earth at any one time as a chain, it is easy to envision that each link is ultimately significant to the strength of the entire chain. Each link that does not achieve its potential, hastens the day when the chain becomes weakened and is thereby kept from reaching its intended purpose.

If, by some magical formula, it were made possible for us to stand side by side with our potential selves, most of us would probably be astonished by the gulf we see between what we are and what we have the capacity to be. I wonder as we gazed upon that expanse if the first words to leave our lips would be, “You Missed!” It may be possible that the most damaging limitations we put on our potential is our refusal to see ourselves in the same light our Heavenly Father views us. How often do we look in the mirror and see nothing but dust, while our Beloved Father sees only the specs of gold. How often do we walk along the calm lake’s shore and see reflected an insignificant being walking alone along the edge of the Universe, while He whom we call Father sees a soul readying itself for eternal life.

Generations ago, Herbert Hoover warned, “We are in danger of developing a cult of the common man.” I tremble to think that in some visionary way he was hearing a chorus sing the discordant melody, “We missed!”

It has been well studied and documented that innate talent and intelligence only partially determine the extent of a person’s contribution. As it turns out persistence, desire, direction and dedication are far more important in determining whether we cast a shadow of change or muddle through life in mediocrity adding our unsure ‘I missed,’ note to the choir.

As I go through the daily pull of life am I vigilantly watching that my link remains bright and clear of rust? Am I constantly ridding my small corner of unwanted weeds and nurturing the plants under my care. Have I come to understand and believe that every day, in fact every minute, is adding to the eternal-ness of our lives? When will I at last grasp the fact that our future is being formed in the present, our here and now will in a blink become our past? The seconds of now are such a slippery scene that I must grasp them securely, with a constant remembrance that how this fleeting moment is used is important to the ‘me’ that I am becoming.

Before this moment has escaped our grasp it might be a great time to re-evaluate ourselves in the darkroom of our potential. What am I developing into? Will my life turn out to be a negative? Does the possibility exist that my posterity will view the print of my life and with a disgusted frown, exclaim with a whine of protest, “You Missed?”

One last thought to remember. Heavenly Father has never created a disposable child, but only children who have the potential to become co-heirs with His Son Jesus the Christ.