Legacies of Ordinary Time

Every now and then, for all of us, come those moments that can make us feel ancient — or, at least, old beyond our years. Recently, I suffered from this phenomenon when I heard that among young adults my students’ ages, “retro 1990’s fashion” is making a comeback. I am not sure that the 1990s fashions were anything special enough to warrant a comeback. But, more alarmingly, I still regularly wear some clothes that I bought in the 1990’s. For me, they need not make a comeback because they never left my closet!

Could I really be that old that some of my favorite clothes have had time to both go out of fashion and then back into fashion in the blink of an eye? This makes the years seem to have gone by faster than glancing at old photographs or counting candles on birthday cakes.

While young fashionistas are, apparently, seeking inspiration from those of us who have gone before them, I have begun to wonder what else young adults may be seeing and copying from my generation.   Fashion trends are easy to notice, given the cyclical nature of sartorial style. But there are many other, far more important things that younger generations may seek to copy from their elders.

As I reflect on this, it is sobering to consider what we are leaving as our bequest to those who come after us and may turn to our generation for guidance not merely on what to wear but on what to value, how to live, who to trust, and where to spend their time, talent, and treasure.

Several decades from now, when those who follow us will be looking back at our times, what is it that they may wish to emulate?

Are we building for them a culture they will want to claim as their own?

Are we offering examples of faith, hope, and love that they will want to follow?

Are we creating things that are good, beautiful, and true for which they will be grateful?

Are we spreading our faith in and beyond our own corners of the world so that its fullness will be easy for them to find when they search for God?

Are we making the art, music, and literature that will bring forth the very best in human nature?

Are we striving to improve our civil institutions and our government so that the precious rights and liberties we cherish can be passed along to them?

Are we making sacrifices to keep them from inheriting our debts, financial and otherwise? Are we foregoing excesses so that the natural beauty of the world will remain for them?

Are we making our families havens of hope, security, and love where they will someday thrive and become all that God intended them to be?

Are we supporting our parishes so that they will be proud to follow in our footsteps to continue building up these faith communities?

Are we spreading our faith in and beyond our own corners of the world so that its fullness will be easy for them to find when they search for God?

Sometimes, life can get so busy that it is easy to move from one day to the next without thinking carefully about what it is that will last and what we will leave behind for those who will follow us — even if they reject our fashions! The choices and decisions that we make today will ripple down to those who follow us, both in our families and among strangers we will never know. They will be searching, just as we do, for answers and explanations for the questions that confront them. They will be searching, just as we do, to see the face of God in this world.

When they look back on our generation, I hope that they will see examples that they want to emulate and that may help them through their own lives in a time that may look different from our own. And, with that hope is a prayer that we will leave them many gifts more valuable than any “retro 2020’s fashions” they may someday embrace, and that we leave a worthy legacy to bless their ordinary time.