In Touch with New Beginnings and New Connections
By Betty Miller Buttram
Ink Spot Contributing Writer
It does not have to be the start of a new year to create a new beginning or a new connection. It can be at any time and any place during the year before the old year ends.
A marriage in my family will be taking place in the summer of 2022 and with that in mind, the engaged couple decided to have a dinner party with the elders and the seasoned seniors on both sides of the family on the afternoon of the day before Christmas Eve. It was important for the couple to have this older generation to formally introduce themselves and for each to hear their life stories and experiences. This older generation ranged in age from 65 to 80 years old; all born and raised in a segregated environment as youth while growing up.
The question presented to the group by the future groom was how these folks made it to Washington, D.C. It was an introductory question to open the conversation. The answer was quite simple; their parents came seeking a better life; some came on their own in their youth, and some were born in Washington, D.C. In the conversation, it was revealed that several attended the same high school, Paul Lawrence Dunbar, at various times; knew a few of the same acquaintances, discussed work-related issues in their job experiences; how they navigated through the prejudices shown toward them, but most of all, how they were connected by their faith regardless of their denominations. In the days before integration in Washington, D., black folks connected primarily by their neighborhoods, schools, fraternities, sororities, and churches. The churches were the main connection and for this engaged couple, this was to be a marriage of a Catholic to a Protestant. It did not matter to the families at this dinner party because the faith of God, the Father, Jesus Christ, the Son, and the Holy Spirit connected them to each other.
Jesus Christ’s birth was foretold by the prophets of the Old Testament that his arrival would be the beginning of the connection to spiritual well-being.
As we approach this new year, let us go into it with the Light which is the Hope that will lead us to Peace which will give us Joy and Love for all people because of our Faithfulness in the Lord Jesus who was born to save us all from our sins.
Do not make promises to yourself that you might not keep. Do not worry about tomorrow but live for today and always count your blessings. Reach out to a neighbor and not just the one who lives next door to you but to your neighborhood of people who need you. Be thankful to God for all the beginnings that He has given to you and stay connected to each other.
We are in a crisis mode at this moment, but if we stay in His Light, we will come through it all. Do not be afraid because His Light will shine on us during these troubling times.
God bless you, take care and stay safe.