My father was a common man, long since gone the way of all the earth. The legacy he left us was one of kindness and devotion to his family. In the centuries ahead, there will be no monuments to his
My father was a common man, long since gone the way of all the earth. The legacy he left us was one of kindness and devotion to his family. In the centuries ahead, there will be no monuments to his name, no universities with libraries devoted to the study of his life. I am confident that, when I follow him, such will be the case with me as well.
Be that as it may, my father’s eyes looked past life’s commonalities to see the magnificent beauty and splendor created by those great masters who possessed talents that were anything but common, and he directed my eyes to them as well.
One of the greatest gifts my father gave me came as he introduced me to that which is so astonishingly uncommon as to be breathtaking. I have stood in awe at the feet of Michelangelo’s statue of David. I have been in wondrous museums and marveled at paintings that defy the imagination as to how any human hand could create such beauty.
My soul soars with exhilaration when I see masterful works of painting, woodcarving and sculpture. Across the wide expanse of our glorious earthly home are musical works by such beacons of light as Beethoven and Handel that thrill and inspire as few others can. There are perfected bodies hewn from solid marble by Michelangelo that mesmerize you with their lifelike realism. There is art by Leonardo de Vinci that has great artists of today devoting their lives, in a vain attempt, to capture his skills.
However, the gaining of such skills is much less important than striving for them. Most of us, like my father, will never attain the greatness in skill such as those whom God has seen fit to be a beacon for the rest of us “common” ones.
But because of human treasures like the woodcarver Grinling Gibbons, or pure genius like Albert Einstein, we have something to reach for. For until we see what is possible, we often think it is impossible. This reaching to acquire the skills of others is not limited to the arts and sciences. Think of Peter who never thought he could walk on water — until he saw someone do it!
How many have changed their lives after having watched one humble little man named Gandhi show that, through patience and the righteous convictions of one’s soul, mountains can be moved. Because of the towering faith of those like the Apostle Paul, Mother Theresa or Thomas Monson, we have been given beacons on a hill that show us what great faith in Jesus Christ can be as surely as Rembrandt showed us what great art can be.
So while no libraries may be built to our name, there will indeed be many lives built according to the light we radiate. The grand question is, what will we choose to see, and in what direction will we teach others to turn their eyes?
• Craig Lindquest is a Lihue business owner and regular contributor to The Garden Island.
