This week marks the 25th anniversary observance of the 9/11 attack on the United States. I am always surprised by the emotions I feel about a story from long ago that I thought I knew so well. We reflected on the on-going impact of that day duringlast Sunday’s service. Dorothy and I, along with our daughters,visited the Memorial site in 2018. While we were in New York City, Dorothy and I attended the Broadway show, Come From Away. It is a musical play based on a true story of the days following the attack.
Come From Away is about the little community of Ganger, Newfoundland, the home to a little-used international airline refueling station. On September 11, 2001, every airplane going or coming to the U.S. was required to land immediately. The Ganger runway was big enough to land some of the international flights. In fact, 7,000 passengers, including infants and crew members from 38 airplanes, found themselves stranded in Ganger with nowhere to go and nothing to do. This story tells of the generous and heroic efforts of the townspeople to open their homes to these strangers in distress. And no one knew for how long they would be stranded there. Or the fact that nearly all the planes had animals on board! And of course, manyinternationals did not speak English or French Canadian. “Come from aways” are what Newfoundlanders call visitors. You can watch some clips of the production on the internet.
This is the story of people rising to meet a dramatic and uncertain situation. It brings to life the power of hospitality to transform times of distress to the good. Hospitality is the power to bless others. In the play, there are themes centered around fear and grief, neighborly love for strangers, with a kind of loaves and fishes quality about it all. The passengers were sheltered for5 or 6 days. At the end of the performance we attended, during the standing ovation, a small group of young people in front of us clapped vigorously. One young lady exclaimed for all to hear, “I have never been so proud to be a Canadian!”
Keep healthy. Pray mightily. Enjoy your life today. Bless the come from aways you encounter. And let’s experience the love and power of God together.
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