Each of Us is Essential
There isn't a day that goes by in which we fail to hear something about essential workers.
During this health crisis, and time of great need, they have come to us like masked angels to rescue, protect, and comfort. We cheer them sequestered behind windows, create home-made gowns and face coverings to keep them safe, and appreciate them in our hearts more than they will ever know. Here's to each one...essential in every way.
When working as a counselor/therapist/administrator in hospitals and clinics I was deemed to be essential for the wellbeing of our patients. If weather or some other crisis kept others home, it was necessary for me to show up so that medication and supportive treatment could be given.
The people I served were almost always grateful and glad to see me, and I have to admit, their appreciation was heartwarming and more treasured than any paycheck I ever received.
Retired from the field for half-a-decade, it still makes me feel like I did some things that made the world a little better. Now, I use those 46 years of experience to give a personal touch to my work as a professional journalist. Now I am non-essential by definition. But here's one thing I have learned. There is no one among us who would fit that characterization. Each of us is essential.
Father Giuseppe Berardelli
Father Hamlin's point of course is that our sacred and essential identity in God's eyes is at the core of who we are. We are powerfully made from all eternity. There has never been one like you and there will never be another. His prayer that our values might shift so that we could clearly see this in every person we encounter is one we all need to embrace. There is no obscure life nor is there an obscure death.
One example of many is that of Father Giuseppe Berardelli from Casnigo, Italy who gave away the life-saving respirator purchased for him by his parishioners to a younger patient who was also struggling with novel coronavirus. The priest didn't even know the person but gave his life so the other might survive. There was no fanfare for Berardelli. But he was certainly essential.
The pandemic will ultimately go away, becoming a part of history.
One hundred years from now few will be alive to share their memories of it. There might be some stories of silly people who crowded beaches at Spring Break in defiance of a disease that would kill so many due to their recklessness.
Mention might be made of irresponsible leaders who called COVID-19 a hoax, played golf and worked out in gyms despite the risks, or visited hospitals without protective equipment, setting a standard with untold consequences.
But there might be a better story to be told…not only of heroes who emerged but of a culture transformed. Our grandchildren and their descendants could live their lives with a universal awakening that every person and all living things are essential. Wouldn’t that be a game-changer.