The first day of my high school chemistry class, the teacher greeted my classmates and I by holding onto a brown paper bag, which seemed to be filled to the brim. Making sure every one of her students looked at this paper bag, the teacher paraded around the room asking all of us to look at it and then touch it. Finally, the teacher stood behind her desk in the front of the room, shaking the bag vigorously (we were all waiting for some kind of an explosion, after all this was a chemistry class), then releasing her grip from the top of the bag, the teacher turned the bag upside down. Nothing, nothing at al fell from within the bag and there was no explosion. There were some giggles and perhaps a sigh or two of relief from the students followed by a comment from the teacher. “Hot air takes up a lot space”, she said, “Lots of empty space.” “Imagine how many things of real value could fit into that bag!”
Once again in America, we have witnessed a heinous act of violence, mayhem and murder. Cable News entertainers were jumping all over themselves to tell us the WHY, WHO, and WHAT FOR, letting their words become the news rather then reporting the news. Once again suggested blame was handed out like candy on Halloween. Once again talking heads crept from out of their graves to provide us with perspectives (Of course with their own opinions scattered in of good measure. Once again this latest crazy act was blamed on President Obama. And once again Breaking News with somber music played throughout the day. Lot’s of space, but ever so empty.
We had our moments of prayer said a few strong AMEN’s. We listened to perfectly choreographed sound bytes, watched snippets of angry people, sad people, dismayed people. Let the communities heal we were told. This time WILL be the last straw we were told. Lets define our newest enemy we were warned. All the while, Congress is on a 7 week recess, Trump wants to make America, great again. It was’t the GUN that murdered the innocent lives of men and women in blue, just doing their jobs… Nope it was mental illness…it was the Iraq or Afghanistan Wars… it was the black guy…it was the guy from Kenya who hates America. America’s love affair with avoidance is like that brown paper bag in my chemistry, it is nothing but a lot of hot air, sting no real purpose at all.
