In Memoriam

An excerpt from a memorial reflection for Johnnie Drummond (1916-2008). It was in the 1970s when she was widowed that Johnnie decided that she wanted to take art classes. She had no inkling that she might have any talent, just a desire to learn to paint. If you haven’t already seen the paintings that are in the narthex, I invite you to take a look following the service. She had quite a gift that had been buried all those years, just waiting to be unearthed.

And perhaps there’s the lesson for us, that we’re never too old to learn something new. Or maybe it’s that no matter how many years we might live, we’ll never see the fullness of all that God has given us.

There’s one painting in particular: a still life with a hurricane globe, a candle’s gentle flame protected inside. The marble surface on which they stand reflect the light of that flame. It is my conviction that we are never closer to God than when we tap into our artistic gifts. God’s core nature is as one who creates; when we create, we offer up that part of us that bears that imprint of God’s touch on our lives. Or, as that painting creation of Johnnie’s might hint, at our best, we are like that marble table, reflecting the light of Christ that always shines on our lives. And in doing so, we invite others into that wondrous glow that banishes the darkness.