Roemer: Don’t believe the illusion, it’s a wonderful life | COMMENTARY

Remember in “Its a Wonderful Life” when Clarence tells George Bailey: “Strange, isn’t it? Each man’s life touches so many other lives. When he isn’t around he leaves an awful hole, doesn’t he?”

I love old movies. Jimmy Stewart, Donna Reed, Bette Davis, Spencer Tracey, Humphrey Bogart. These stars were American royalty. Most came from humble beginnings. They rose to the top of society on the strength of their celebrity. They were rich, famous, pampered, and adored.

And their lives were all illusions, created by an industry which specialized in creating illusions.

Movies are a metaphor for life. Much of life is an illusion, an illusion not based on actual circumstances, but on how we perceive those circumstances, and our perception of events is constantly being manipulated by those with a vested interest in doing so.

Anymore, when I watch an old movie, I think about when they were made, and what the lives of the actors must have been like. Because many of these movies are now more than 80 years old, most involved in the making of them are gone. These movie stars reached the pinnacle of success, they had everything this world has to offer, and then like everyone else they simply passed away. It’s kind of sad when you think about it, especially when you consider all the glitz and glitter was never real in the first place.

“Vanity of vanities; all is vanity.” Everything in life seems so important, but in the end, like the great actors of the past, our time will come and go soon enough, and like the old movies they made that we rarely watch anymore, all that will remain will be a few photographs and stories of our lives that family members will tell with less and less frequency until we pass from memory altogether.

I can’t fathom how an atheist gets through the day. If I didn’t have Christ, life would be unbearably meaningless. For an atheist, a person is born ... he lives ... and then he dies. And that’s it. Without God, there’s no point to anything. For the faithful, it’s God Who gives our lives purpose, and it is He who has chosen to share His eternity with us. He calls us His children, whom He loves with a boundless love, and ultimately, when all is said and done, only our relationship with God will remain.

In the meantime, we must contend with those who act to deceive us, who like spiritual Alfred Hitchcocks, create the illusion that what we are seeing on the screens of our lives is all so critically important.

Years ago, I remember a member of my church’s congregation who was dealing with the terminal illness of his father. When his dad eventually passed away, this individual stood before the congregation to thank the many members who had been so supportive over the course of his father’s illness. And then he said something to us I will never forget. He told us his father’s last words to him were, “All that worrying for nothing.”

As Christmas approaches, my wish for all of us this year is that God uses the glitter of the season to remind us that life is not always what it seems. To look beyond the apparent to see the profound. That when we see an ornament hanging on the tree, or a wreath hanging in the window, our minds will be drawn to the significance of a child born in a manger. That when we hear a carol played on the radio, we will listen for God’s voice whispering in our ear saying, “I’m here, waiting for you, waiting to give your life purpose.” Don’t be distracted by the flashing lights and the glittering tinsel. They are only special effects obscuring the message contained in a script written in eternity past. Illusions that draw your gaze away from the only Person who gives meaning to an otherwise meaningless existence.

As I grow older, I’m beginning to gain a better perspective on things that confounded me in the past. I’m approaching a point in my life when I can peek over the horizon to see the journey’s end. “When I will know as I am known.” When all the pieces of the puzzle finally come together, and I will understand the reason for everything that’s ever happened in my life. Don’t let the illusionists fool you. Circumstances are rarely as they seem. Even the old movie makers seemed to have recognized this.

It really is a wonderful life! Personally, I’m looking forward to seeing how it all plays out. What all the twists and turns will be as my life unfolds, because ultimately I know how my movie ends, and it’s a great finish!

Chris Roemer writes from Finksburg. Reach him at chrisroemer1960@gmail.com.

For any member of the community who would like to submit a guest community voices column for publication consideration, it should be approximately 700 words and sent to bob.blubaugh@carrollcountytimes.com.