Reflections of…

joe —  Sun 20-Nov-11

Moon FramedI love the moon. There are so many amazing sights in this world but nothing stops me in my tracks like a huge, glowing circle of orange light sitting on the fall horizon.

Not only is it beautiful, it often feels so close that you could actually touch it – and we did back in 1969. We will not be able to say this about any other celestial object in our lifetime.

This neighboring orb has always fascinated me. Many times I’ve pulled over on the side of an empty road with its radiant light directly in the center of the windshield (yes I get up early). It was always the perfect, solitary moment to sit an offer a prayer of thanksgiving.

The moon is special for another reason. It is the brightest object in the night sky yet generates no light of its own. To be beautiful requires another source, the sun. Let’s be honest, the sun in itself is not all that beautiful. It’s an amazing piece of science and I love the warmth it brings but you really can’t look at it.

The moon is most beautiful to me because it uses itself to reflect something else’s light.

This is what I aspire to be. As a Christian, I want everything I do to be a favorable reflection of God. Every one of my Starfish columns were the result of reflecting someone else’s light. Being a leader at work comes from redirecting a lot of incredible wisdom from previous leaders and co-workers. For this reason I am far more careful now to choose my job based on my boss and peers than any other factor.

Renee DescartesWe are all given light to either absorb or reflect. The moon absorbs the light it needs and then reflects the rest. Granted, there are many that think they are the Sun. That is a path filled with ultimate disappointment when they realize the Sun is actually very average in the scheme of the universe.

I often forget that those that gave us our light were enlightened by someone else. It’s a chain reaction that started at the advent of time and, depending on your worldview, may never finish.

We all stand on the shoulders of giants. The Thanksgiving season gives me a chance to ponder all of the giants which have lent me theirs. Many of them have no idea that I used them or that they are giants.

To Steve Gray and ultimately the anonymous woman standing at the bus stop. To Cassie the wonder dog and Mary Alice, my flight partner. To the Amerind father I never met, a co-worker named Mike, and Bryan Williams. Each of them inspired me enough to share their story. Given more time and energy I could easily write a story about someone new every day. Unlike the pundits, the writers and those with Klout scores greater than 50, not a single one set out to influence me.

CandleSo as I sit down and do my Thanksgiving pondering, clearly my Father and family members will rightfully get center stage. This message, however, is dedicated to the other sources of light that I reflect every day that may never know it.

You are very likely one of them.