Last weekend was all about celebrating mothers. Those who gave us birth and nurtured us with love. In my case it also included Mother Nature, whose natural beauty and organic goodness sustains our lives.
This year, Mother’s Day weekend coincided with the Washington State Apple Blossom Festival. So in addition to spending time with my 84-year-old mom in Wenatchee last Saturday, I also got to attend the annual parade in my hometown that celebrates the life-restoring power of springtime.
How appropriate! Apple blossoms are Mom Nature’s reminder that no matter how bleak and barren life may be, things will get better if we just wait long enough. That’s a message my little mother reminded me of time and time again.
But that wasn’t the only message my mom communicated to me as I grew up. She was quick to point out the importance of other persons. That was a value rooted in her family’s Christian faith that blossomed in her life as she grew older. As she tended the orchard of my adolescence, she prayed that her Christ-like concern for others would bear fruit in my life.
Her example of putting others first helped shape my decision to become a clergyman. While studying in seminary, I discovered that Christianity is not the only world religion that celebrates the virtue of focus on others. I came to see that it is a universal concept that all cultures value. At the same time, it is also an innate goal we all struggle to reach.
We all know it is our calling in life to place the needs of others above our own. But we each attest to the fact that the soil of our souls is contaminated by self-focus. It is easy to rationalize why what we desire should dominate what is in another’s best interest. In Christianity, we call that sin. And if you look at that little three-letter word, you can see what is at the center of that theological concept (sIn). Sin is defined by capitalizing my wants, needs and preferences. Sin exists when “I” am at the center of the choices I make. When push comes to shove, we tend to shove what our moms taught us down and push ourselves to the head of the pack.
But this internal wrestling match we have with doing the right thing is nothing new. It’s as old as the first apple festival in the Garden of Eden. In a letter Saint Paul wrote to the Christians in Rome nearly 2,000 years ago, he made a case for a daily discipline that would counter our self-centered bias. He simply said, “Honor one another above yourselves” (Romans 12:10 NIV).
The thought occurred to me some time back, what if we followed up Mothers’ Day by designating a day when we purposely seek to honor others? You know, the others in our sphere of influence who comprise our individual worlds. Your children’s teacher at school. The superintendent of the school district. The mayor of our city. The postal carrier who delivers our mail. Our chief of police. The garbage collector. The rabbi, imam or pastor of your local congregation. The cashier at the South end QFC. The barista at the drive-thru Starbucks.
And guess what I would call this day? You guessed it! I’d call it Others’ Day! Why don’t we try it right here on Mercer Island? It’s worth a try. It just might catch on.
