the reVERBeration of life

I know it's "early" for a patriotic post but this is more than patriotic.

My full name is Christopher Albert LaRue. I was named after my grandfather, Sergeant Albert William Meyer, who was a member of Service Battery, 38th Field Artillery Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division. He was taken Prisoner of War while fighting the enemy near Kunu-ri, North Korea on November 30, 1950, and died 122 days later on April 1, 1951. His remains were not recovered.

Last night Camille rang a replica of The Liberty Bell in memory of her great grandfather and in proxy for "Granny", her late great grandmother. She was able to do this at a presentation made by The American Fallen Soldier Project, which is an amazing organization (website).

After she rang the bell, we were encouraged to touch the "shoulder" of the bell (see picture) to feel the reverberation. The bell's sound was intense and audible from a far distance; it's movement, after only one hammer strike, would last for up to 2 minutes.
This was a very moving experience: to see other families dealing with their recent loss, to see Camille ring the bell in memory of her great grandfather in proxy for her Granny whom she loved so dearly, to remember the freedom I enjoy was paid for by a family member I never met. The weight of these realities hung heavy and as the memory of that experience continued to echo in my mind and heart, God challenged me.

Are the sounds of my words and
the movements of my life
a continuous reverberation of God's love and grace?
Or do they clash and fall to the ground
inconsistent, lifeless and unremarkable?

Interesting how God saw fit to put the word "verb" (action) in the middle of the word "reverberation" (sound).