IN EVERY CIRCUMSTANCE...

A time to pause and remember...

This morning and tomorrow the reality for me is that a tough week has come to a merciful end. I pause and remember those who were lost on Monday aboard Air France Flight #447. May God Bless them, their family members and their friends who are grieving terribly. As a member of the media for 14 years, I have covered the loss of life and I don't miss that part of my job. As a contributing editor of an international commercial aviation magazine I have spent a lot of time traveling to various airline headquarters in the United States and sitting down with CEO's for interviews. I have dated women who are pilots and flight attendants alike and today, we speak on a regular basis as friends and colleagues. It is impossible not to be empathic when an industry-related loss occurs. My heart is also with the staff at Airbus Industrie and with those who are involved in the dangerous recovery efforts underway in the Atlantic. They can all use our prayers and good wishes. David M. Bailey's new composition (below) is appropriate to help me close out this week.

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In Every Circumstance

by: David M. Bailey

Watched the sun go down beside the golden gate

The fog had started rising off the bay

Had a cup of Peets keeping me company

A perfect end to a less than perfect day

Now, blue skies have a way of lifting spirits

Then again, I’ve always loved the rain

I think if we could learn to just be grateful

We’d all be far less likely to complain

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That’s easy to say when the sun is shining

It’s easy to say when you wanna dance

Everybody knows that life ain’t easy and;

The Good Book says be thankful in every circumstance

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That kinda makes me stop and think:

There must be some exceptions to the rule

Surely it didn’t mean *every* single one

I may be dumb but I am not a fool

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But I wonder if there’s meaning in the sequence

Perhaps it deserves a second glance

It’s worth noting that the order to be thankful

Comes first – before the circumstance

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I mean, if gratitude is laid as the foundation

Maybe the house we build can stand up to the storm

We could give still give thanks when the cold winds blow

It wouldn’t be the exception; but the norm

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And yet, still, I find myself resisting

It’s easier to simply sing the blues

But the easy way doesn’t mean the right way

Yeah, the easy way often means you lose

The right way can be hard to choose

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Which brings me back to my golden sunset

I was grumpy bout the trip: it was hard and long

Had I known of the beauty that awaited

I might have sung a very different song

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In retrospect I should have been more thankful

But maybe that’s part of what faith is all about:

Believing there will always be a reason to be thankful

Even when your vision is clouded by your doubt

david m. bailey

6-4-09 - Berkeley, CA

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Amen.

Michael