Few others phrases are connected to America as much as what Jefferson wrote in the Declaration of Independence: that inalienable right endowed by our Creator to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It’s a notion intrinsic to the freedom that we enjoy, even when that freedom sometimes comes at a price.
It’s hard to escape the news these days, the tragedy at the elementary school in Sandy Hook, Connecticut. I was glued to the coverage for a while but to be honest I for one have needed to step away for a while. I continue to pray for those who were so tragically impacted by a senseless massacre, and can only rest in my trust that each one of those innocent children are now experiencing the incredible love and joy in Heaven.
In between our need to process what happened, to talk it over, to pray, both my husband and I left the news coverage behind for a while. I watched a couple old movies while baking yet more Christmas cookies while my husband caught up on some work and did some reading. One of the articles he shared with me was from Forbes magazine that stated pursuit is the most important leadership quality out there.
Our discussion inspired me to wonder what I’m pursuing these days. I’ve taken the holiday season off from writing, mostly, so I could concentrate on family needs. Holiday decorating, baking and shopping, wrapping presents, going to more social events than usual—all so opposite what may now be a new “norm” for residents of Sandy Hook since this happened during a season when we least expect such horror.
I must admit I look forward to January when I’ll once again pursue the things I love: writing the best story that I can, and in between taking care of my regular personal responsibilities in the best way possible. Because of this brief respite, I’m not feeling very “pursuitful.” Yet the older I get, the more people I know, the more stories I hear, I realize just how important is this concept of pursuit. If we aren’t pursuing something, what are we doing? Are we just going with the flow, letting others make our decisions, letting circumstances define our daily activities? Only when we’re going after something—whether it’s professional like publication or personal like better relationships, or in the case of those in Sandy Hook, in pursuit of healing—do we have a chance of getting what we want. Does the fulfillment of a goal ever just fall into our lap?
One of the lines from the article my husband read was something like: don’t wax eloquent about pursuing something. Know the difference between rhetoric and actual pursuit. Pursuit is more than a goal, it’s following through with those goals, and not being afraid of what you don’t know — consistently seeking to learn what you need to know. In short, not pursuing something leads to apathy, and here I’m adding the question: can apathy ever lead to happiness?
This may be a better post for the first of January, but there’s no sense putting off a thought that’s worth contemplation. What are you pursuing these days? It’s no less than our right for those who live in a country that values freedom than to pursue our worthy goals and then follow through in ways that reinforce success.
I think this week, especially in light of what happened on Friday, I’m a little more eager than usual to turn my thoughts to something hopeful. So I go to the future, even in the shadow of sadness that we as a country face right now, knowing that free will has come with a terrible price yet again but that God is still God and is even now enacting His plan to one day rid us from evil for once and for all.
To anyone wishing to send a card of sympathy and support to those who were impacted last Friday, here is the address:
Sandy Hook Elementary School
12 Dickenson Drive
Sandy Hook, CT 06482
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