Walking In with a Guitar Case
On a Sunday morning in 2008 July, in at least two Unitarian Universalist churches in this country, a man walked into the church with a guitar case in his hand.
At one of these churches, Greg Greenway walked in with a guitar case, and during the service, he pulled a guitar out of the case and started whacking away at it with his plastic-tipped fingers, producing inspiring music for us, such as "The Color Yellow", and "On the Side of Love".
At another one, Jim David Atkisson walked in with a guitar case, and during the service, he pulled a shotgun out of the case and started firing away at the congregants with his trigger-pulling finger, wounding several people and killing some, such as Greg McKendry and Linda Kraeger. His actions halted the service and brought in the police. It also scared and scarred the congregation, who tried to make sense out of the killings.
One of these churches had a service that encountered life. One of these churches had a service that encountered death.
We can say that perhaps Greenway was on the side of love, or in this case life. But earlier, Dave Atkisson played good music out of his guitar, including duets with his wife at the time, one of which was recorded in 1996 for SUUSI. What made him trade the guitar for the shotgun? That's one of the mysteries of life. It may have had something to do with his wife. It may have had something to do with hatred for liberals, but then why did he go to a church noted for liberal values? Did he feel discontent because his wife left him after he became angry at her? Did liberals represent his former wife to him?
Greenway also has his peeves, as indicated in his song "I Love Everybody", that is, except his ex-girl friends, most Republicans (the other side of "Liberals") and the state of Missouri. But he expressed his feelings to these with his guitar. What makes one person express feelings about girl friends, Republicans and Missourians with his guitar and another express his feelings about girl friends, liberals, and Tennesseans with his shotgun? Is it desperation? Is it feelings about life? Or about girl friends, liberals, Republicans and so forth?
That's a mystery. We choose to follow life the best we can, hoping that we find the way of life, like Greenway, and not the way of death, like Atkisson.
At one of these churches, Greg Greenway walked in with a guitar case, and during the service, he pulled a guitar out of the case and started whacking away at it with his plastic-tipped fingers, producing inspiring music for us, such as "The Color Yellow", and "On the Side of Love".
At another one, Jim David Atkisson walked in with a guitar case, and during the service, he pulled a shotgun out of the case and started firing away at the congregants with his trigger-pulling finger, wounding several people and killing some, such as Greg McKendry and Linda Kraeger. His actions halted the service and brought in the police. It also scared and scarred the congregation, who tried to make sense out of the killings.
One of these churches had a service that encountered life. One of these churches had a service that encountered death.
We can say that perhaps Greenway was on the side of love, or in this case life. But earlier, Dave Atkisson played good music out of his guitar, including duets with his wife at the time, one of which was recorded in 1996 for SUUSI. What made him trade the guitar for the shotgun? That's one of the mysteries of life. It may have had something to do with his wife. It may have had something to do with hatred for liberals, but then why did he go to a church noted for liberal values? Did he feel discontent because his wife left him after he became angry at her? Did liberals represent his former wife to him?
Greenway also has his peeves, as indicated in his song "I Love Everybody", that is, except his ex-girl friends, most Republicans (the other side of "Liberals") and the state of Missouri. But he expressed his feelings to these with his guitar. What makes one person express feelings about girl friends, Republicans and Missourians with his guitar and another express his feelings about girl friends, liberals, and Tennesseans with his shotgun? Is it desperation? Is it feelings about life? Or about girl friends, liberals, Republicans and so forth?
That's a mystery. We choose to follow life the best we can, hoping that we find the way of life, like Greenway, and not the way of death, like Atkisson.
posted by Jim at 6:01 AM
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