Gone with the wind......or with life

Kathy just sent word that the last service at our church in Fort Collins was held last Sunday.

The church, which still looks fine, has to be torn down.  There are structural problems that cannot be fixed.

I'm very sad about this.  I attended this church during my teen years, while I lived in Fort Collins.  Our father was pastor for several years and spearheaded creating the additions which made it a vibrant place.  And was it ever vibrant.

Our father understood that a church was not just a place to worship, but was also a place for a community.  So in addition to Sunday morning Sunday School and Services, we also had Sunday night sings, and man could this congregation belt out that old time religion.  Once a month we had potluck family nights.  They were fun.  These, and more, were ways that people not only worshiped, but learned to care about each other in deeply meaningful ways. 

Our mother was in charge of music, and so music was part of our services and celebrations.  We had choirs (including a youth choir), and music at every service.  

Sadly, also, the central church itself is no longer vibrant.  Just as Graceland College, where I went, is no longer a real church college.  Religion is not as important to people these days, especially to younger people.

But it was an important part of my childhood.   

A photo of the church in 1964, when I was 16 years old and was part of the church community:

And a few photos we took last summer when we visited:

As an old man, now, reflecting back on my life, I realize that so many of those places that are important to me are now gone. 

In my childhood hometown, Stillwater, Oklahoma, almost nothing that was important to me remains.  My childhood home has been torn down to build student apartments, both of my schools have been torn down, and where we went to church has been torn down.  The park where we probably had hundreds of picnics and church meetings is now an overgrown disaster area.  The fields where I played are now covered with homes.

In Fort Collins, Steele's Market where I learned how to hold down a job and earned money so I could restore my Model A Ford has been torn down.  My High School is no longer a school.  And the church that was so important to my family, and that our parents put so much into to make it a special place for our family and community, is to be torn down. 

I found out about the last service today...ironically, just after both Vicky and I returned from having cardiology appointments.  Shortly after we returned home, she had a back appointment to get set for ablation surgery to cure the intense pain she is in at nights.  

Our bodies are like these buildings.  Because, like these buildings, they contain memories that are so very sweet.  Yet, eventually, everything, including our bodies, gets torn down in its own way.

These places will always live in my mind and memories, despite the fact that they no longer physically exist.  I am so grateful.