of tombstones and desire

In the ears for this evening:
Bon Iver
Gregory Alan Isakov
Chris Bathgate

In the air:
The scent of a vanilla/patchouli candle
Fresh baked cornbread and steamed kale
The berry-acidic waftings from a glass of merlot

On the mind:
What shall become of us all? And What shall we leave behind?

Today I seized coffee in both hands from the adored café of choice and booked over to Gordon to spend a tremendously productive afternoon with my friend Jesse. He was nestled in on a couch with his political science work, today featuring a long article on the Catholic perspective of "the image of man" while I sat- beginning my blogging adventure for http://www.afaint.wordpress.com as the new primary blogger. My first blog assignment from the non-profit's founder was to write on this idea of why we should care- about each other, about the world, about (in this case-) East Africa specifically.
So posed to me was the question: why give a shit?

In the end, I determine that it all boils down to a bridge between the sociological perspective on humanity and the Christian perspective. Somewhere between the scientific & social evidence that we are definitely not whole creatures outside of relationship with each other and the Biblical idea that we are created to be stewards of each other and this earth is the reason and motivation to care for one another.

Ultimately, we all long to be longed for. We desire to be desired. We learn communication through communicating with others. Our futures are pushed, encouraged and guided by those who invest in our lives, and we become better, fuller people by investing ourselves into others in return. We inherently desire to be in relationship with one another and we suffer when we go without even the most basic of human interactions.


So in the end- what will become of us? Will we invest in the lives of others and better whatever community we end up in? Will we leave more behind than a simple tombstone in a yard lost with thousands of others or will we leave some greater impact on this world?

A friend of mine in Uganda passed away a few days ago from a tragic boda accident. He was bright, he was stubborn, and his faith was strong and admirable. We rode fifteen hours in a bumby, stinky, dust coated bus through the Ugandan countryside down to Rwanda. I will remember him for his humor, his style, his mind. His ability to make everyone laugh. I will remember Fahad Philip Kasozi for the time he selflessly and patiently invested in us as American guests in his home-country, in his school, in his life. He taught us, he learned from us, he lived with us and he loved us. I will remember that, and he will be more than one more grave in the red dirt of Africa.

What will we leave behind?