Paul Richardson: The day before the other day

The other day, the story began, or it was a dark and story day, so many stories begin with just these words and yet I wonder, “What happened the day before the other day? Was it clear and sunny the day before the dark and stormy day? Why didn’t they start the story with that day? It would have changed my entire outlook from the very beginning.”

Maybe it is just me, but haven’t you ever wondered about the entire backstory? I don’t know when these thoughts that formulated the questions came to me, but it was just the other day, well there I go again, when it struck me, I would really like to know what was going on the day before. 

Was everyone just sitting around, taking a break, and thinking, “Tomorrow is the day. It’s going to be a big day, so we better get our rest and prepare because this is going to monumental.” Maybe they had a party. You know, like a brunch under white tents in the garden and a nice buffet of fresh fruits and quiche.

Some of them would have been so filled with angst awaiting the pending event, that they would either have to sleep the day away or torment themselves with constant visions about the future.

The Bible has a very comforting beginning. “In the beginning” adds a definitive starting point. Many have tried to build a backstory to that, but “In the beginning” really says it all. What happens after that point may be an issue for debate or speculation, but nothing exists prior to that point on the timeline.

Speculation and debate are just as rampant about the other end of the timeline as it is about the beginning. Every faith-based belief system has some type of definition for the end. Whether it is the end of our individual and personal existence or the end of humanity. The end is described. Much like the day before the other day, I find people preparing for “the end” in all of the same ways. 

Some are just sitting around and taking a break, while others are living life to the fullest in every manner, but they all envision it as a buffet fueled brunch. Then there are the ones that are living life in angst and torment. Those are the ones that I want to talk to.

If you are a person of faith and have read the end of the book, and from that have formulated a theory, then you must remember, it’s only a theory. Things can and have been interpreted in so many different ways, most with some valid points, that to get trapped in anxiety over the details is missing what we are intended to do. 

Don’t let the activities around you pull you into that muddy, murky waters that surround it. If you are the person you claim to be and if you believe the direction that you have been instructed to take, then take it. Bring hope and the message of hope to everyday. Hope existed the day before the other day and will continue to the day of the end.