A Rift in Perspective

The best perspective only comes from making a conscious effort to view the whole picture.

I've often wondered if my perspective on life is fair.  Do I acknowledge the good and the bad of a situation?  For the sake of clarity do I encourage myself to listen to people that I may be inclined to oppose?  Do I always try to keep the betterment of humanity in mind in my decision-making?

These questions came to mind as I've been reading a novel by Naomi Benaron called Running the Rift. This novel follows a young runner in Rwanda as he tries to succeed in his sport amid the growing tensions between the Tutsi and Hutu tribes which ultimately results in the Rwandan genocide of 1994.  The protagonist, Jean Patrck Nkuba, a young college student, experiences the struggle between believing what he hears on the radio and from other "trusted" sources or believing what he discovers to be right and just for humanity.  Ultimately, he must run the rift that is forming in his country and find out on what side he will end up.  Jean Patrick gathers perspectives from many people.  One such person is his younger brother, Zachary.  In one scene, Zachary brings Jean Patrick to an old hut near their home.  This hut was a fun play spot for Jean Patrick when he was a boy, and now, Zachary has his chance to make it his own.

An excerpt:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Zachary] had transformed the hut into a shrine.  The bookshelf served as an altar, an image of the sacred Virgin flanked by two candles.  A painting hung on the wall [. . .]. Two lambs, one black and one white, drank from a stream.  Orchids and lilies grew along the banks, and creatures -- birds or angels -- floated in an amethyst sky.  In the blocky, primitive shapes, Jean Patrick saw a child's view of heaven.

"Did you paint this? It looks like paradise."

"It is."  Zachary's countenance took on the innocence of a child.  [. . .] Zachary talks in low tones, as if speech would disturb some sleeping spirit.  "It's the best place for me to worship, the place I feel closest to God."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Do we use everyday settings like Zachary's hut to help us sense the Spirit in our everyday lives?

In a time of growing unrest, Jean Patrick found calm in the perspective of faith from his brother.  Good and genuine perspectives like this should give us the encouragement to enter our own places where we feel "closest to God."

May we be every-faithful, ever-mindful, and ever-joyful.