One of my favorite songs goes:
“They say that all good things must end someday.
Autumn leaves must fall.”
The end will eventually come.
This causes anxiety in many people.
Specially with the turmoil going on around us.
Ferguson has just exploded again.
Wars, insurrections, earthquakes, famine, plagues.
These are the signs of the end-time.
But it is not yet.
The earth is not yet about to end.
The earth has gone through more cataclysmic upheavals
in her four and a half billion years.
And she has a few more billions to live.
The turmoil and the upheavals are within me.
My time will soon come to an end.
My pace has slowed down a lot from my hectic years.
But the turmoil inside has gotten more intense.
Knowing my remaining time is less than what I have lived,
I feel like raging against the dying of the light.
What more can I do?
What more can I give?
Is there one more gift I can offer?
Is there one more present I am longing for?
The end should be easy and relaxed.
But I find myself still searching, still hoping.
I seek permanence from a life lived in impermanence.
I still seek and ask for perfection in an imperfect world.
I long for love that has seen me through most of my days.
I know these things will stay with me
Even as I end my days on earth.
The Lord comes to judge the earth.
~Psalm 96
Then they asked him,
“Teacher, when will this happen?
And what sign will there be when all these things are about to happen?”
He answered, “See that you not be deceived,
for many will come in my name, saying,
‘I am he,’ and ‘The time has come.’
Do not follow them!
When you hear of wars and insurrections,
do not be terrified; for such things must happen first,
but it will not immediately be the end.”
Then he said to them,
“Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.
There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues from place to place;
and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky.”
Luke 21:7-11