Another Greek Festival is behind us. Everyone involved is exhausted but as we kick back we have a sense of accomplishment and a job well done. I always shake my head thinking of what goes into such a difficult endeaver; the planning, dedication and long hours of truly hard work which start months before the event takes place. Young and old, they come together to celebrate their heritage and faith. Most importantly they provide the larger community living proof of what a group of people can achieve by working together unselfishly toward a common goal. I pray that those who came and struggled before us can see their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren from above and smile.
When I was a college student I washed dishes for two summers in a restaurant owned by a Greek who never went beyond high school yet eventually became a state senator. Mama was aghast when she found out what her son was doing. "We didn't come to America so you could wash dishes," she scolded her son, the scholar. "But Ma, I don't intend to wash dishes all my life, just long enough to get through school." So many years later, I find myself in the church kitchen every year, among others, washing a tower of pots and pans for three days. It is a humbling experience, exhausting work, but strangely satisfying. In doing it I often wonder about the young immigrants, past and present, who do such back breaking work, hoping for a better life. I am thankful for my family, my community and living in a country where we enjoy the freedoms that we do.
The highlight of the festivities, at least for me, is to watch our young people, dressed in the simple costumes of their ancestors and dancing their dances with the same spirit they once did. As Anna and I looked on as our younger son, Chris, lead the other dancers, our hearts swelled with pride and we were overwhelmed with a bittersweet sense that our youngest too is now a grown man. He is off to college in the Fall and as parents we can only hope that he carries in his big heart the heritage and faith that is our legacy to him.
Lee Ann Womack - I Hope You Dance
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