When a human being acts like a human being. When they see someone in trouble, in real trouble and their instinct is to help, without thought of convenience, unselfishly giving off themselves to help someone else.
We see it after every natural disaster. We see that strong moral character that comes so close to being Divine, that deep-rooted instinctual reservoir of love that reaches out to the lost, the hopeless, the injured, to rescue them from the terrors of this world.
I have cried at people being pulled from the rubble of an earthquake. I have cried at people banding together to catch a person falling from a building on fire. Tears accompany my laughter when miners are released from a cave in, or a lost child is found against all odds. Tears of joy bathe my face when someone is rescued from an abusive relationship, trafficking, or from homelessness.
We have all heard these stories. Why do they touch us the way that they do? It’s because death, early death, untimely death, and unnecessary suffering is still an enemy, and love, unselfish, beautiful love is still a solution. Love is the hero and we welcome it when we see it. Our heart longs to welcome this cherished friend that meets a need with a helping hand.
And it’s not always people, it’s animals too. I watched a dog being rescued from a canal filled with water and guess what? Yup, I cried. A group of men grabbed the ankles of another and lowered him down to pulled that animal up to safety, and I cheered them, and I applauded, and the emotion swelled over and I cried. Death did not win that day. Love did.
I mourn the fact that rescue is necessary in our world, but I rejoice when I see the efforts of mankind on behalf of mankind. Because it reminds me of my saviour. Maybe not overtly, but somewhere in the recesses of my mind, I am being given an example of Agape love. We are connected by a common breath given of God, and when we see one person actively saving another, we are witnessing an echo of the Divine. The tears that follow are as sacred as the act of rescue itself because it is an acknowledgement of that common breath, that uncommon love that connects us all.
Musings of Roxanne LoMarc 