From the General Presbyter

“But on you will go, though the weather be foul.
On you will go, though your enemies prowl.
Onward up many a frightening creek,
Though your arms may get sore and your sneakers may leak.

— Oh the Places You Will Go by Dr. Seuss

My daughter received this book for her high school graduation and the staff patiently endured my reading excerpts for our staff devotions! I didn’t read this verse, however. I wanted to save it for this musing.

I attended the Racial Justice March in Howard County last week. It was a sunny day, in the mid-eighties, with a nice breeze. It was well organized, the speakers were powerful, and many folks wore masks and practiced social distancing. However, I have been watching marches in other cities, where it was raining, the police are fighting with protestors, peaceful protestors are tear gassed for a photo op and the crowds are dense, threatening another COVID-19 outbreak.

But on they go, and on we go. The virus has not stopped for us, so we continue to protect our lives and the lives of the most “vulnerable.” On we go, trying to balance our excitement of regathering with our sorrow for those who will never again regather because of COVID-19 or the enemy of unjust police brutality. On we go, as we together, work on racial justice, get mad, go to our corners, fight for control, fight to be heard, forget about it, or remember it forever.

On we go as fighters, as prayers, as activists, as organizers, as preachers, as teachers, as leaders, as followers, as advocates, as allies, as witnesses, as sign makers and car drivers and deliverers of hand sanitizers.

Wherever you see yourself (or not), justice and peace must prevail. So go!

— Jackie