Harry wrote this credo for one of his many ethics classes I guess schools think lawyers need to learn more about ethical living and said I could share it here. His professor asked to meet Harry for coffee or hot chocolate after reading his submission, calling his writing and story "powerful." I completely agree.
*****
"Rain pounded the windows. I pried open the drapes to catch a glimpse of the golf ball-sized water droplets only to peer into the endless black abyss. I could only hear them. The weather service issued a tornado warning for the area and the nurses would dance into the room with their light blue scrubs to instruct us on evacuation routes. I sensed it was only protocol. The weather, for once, was the least of our worries, because it was the early morning on June 16, 2018, and my wife had been in labor for eight hours. I slept next to her on the stiff, sterile couch in the delivery room. Sleeping a half hour every hour, I could not tell if I was waking up from that faux leather donned couch that squeaked every time I moved, the pounding rain, or my indescribable fear. I would wake up and examine my wife, who at this time was half-way through her epidural and rather enjoying it. She smiled at me, but I can see in her eyes the same unrest and uneasiness that I felt. In a few hours, our lives would change.
The great architect Frank Lloyd Wright designed his homes with small, enclosed hallways, doorways, and awnings dramatically opening to grand and open spaces. This idea promoted an emotional catharsis, or, a sudden release from pain, pressure, and stress. He conceptualized the theory of being born again in his designs. As I watched my son being born, the rain still pounded the windows, the sky emanated a pale green prominence, and tornados warnings remained in effect. However, my fear, uncertainty, and selfishness conceded to feelings of profound euphoria. As my son drew his first breath, the way I viewed the world rushed with indescribable clarity. It was no longer about my goals, aspirations, and desires. It was about him. And I could not be happier about it.
I was raised as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, or more colloquially known as, “Mormon.” I believe that the bible is the word of God. I believe in the Book of Mormon, not as a sacrilege Broadway musical, but as additional teachings from God’s prophets. I believe that families are not separated at death, but an entity that continues into the eternities. I do not drink alcohol, coffee, or tea. I try not to curse, lie, cheat, or steal. I do not gamble, shop on Sunday, or view R-rated movies. I believe in the cleansing power of Christ’s Atonement, that our mistakes, burdens, struggles, and sins will be completely, utterly exonerated. Lastly, I believe that God loves every man, woman, and child who ever lived on earth, lives now, and will live on this earth and amen to my salvation if I do not try to do the same.
When I was 19, I gave up my family, friends, worldly entertainment, and schooling to be a proselyting missionary for two years. I was assigned by church leaders to proselyte in Denmark. I learned Danish in nine weeks and before I knew it, I was doing the very thing that my parents, family members, church leaders, and friends had influenced me to do my whole life. I wore a white button-down shirt and tie every day. I trudged through the pelting rain and the brutal North Sea winds. I walked kilometers down winding, narrow country roads, along colorful beaches, and stumbled over cobblestones in three-century-year-old streets. I knocked on cottages with thatched roofs, crooked doorways from the medieval era, and luxurious downtown apartments. I spoke with atheists, Christians, Muslims, Hindus, and Jews. I spoke to drug addicts, single working mothers, college students, and wealthy businessmen. I spoke to them on the busses, on the trains, on the streets, in their homes and apartment buildings. I ministered to those that were in need, and I taught these people about what I believed in. This was among the hardest experiences I was yet to have, but by genuinely serving others and learning about others, regardless of their beliefs, I grew to love them deeply. There is a special veneration in my heart for the Danes.
My experiences living in Denmark and in Minnesota have taught me that there is no such thing as atheism. Most Danes claim that they believe science, or themselves, or in the power of love and kindness. What they did not realize is that God is manifested in all these areas. God is omnipotent and omnipresent, he is in everything good and wholesome, and is everywhere good and wholesome. People may not fully recognize that or are quick to disprove the forces they cannot see.
There have been many of my friends and family members, who Mormon or not, have failed to remember the goodness that God has brought them. The process of losing faith is not sudden. It begins by small sinful actions that go unrepentant, or it begins when we skip a couple days from reading in the bible or praying. It could also begin by skipping church a number of weeks in a row. When we fail to nourish our spiritual intellect, our spirits concede to worldly, tangible thinking. Science becomes a way to prove a nonexistent God, rather than science to prove the existence of God. They replace spiritual happiness with worldly happiness, chasing big jobs, expensive homes, and extravagant lifestyles. I have wet my pillow at night, when I see strong believers I loved and respected slip into states of faithlessness.
As I wrote this credo, I reflected upon the instances that defined me. My job now is to take what defines me and be confident in raising my newborn son and strengthening my marriage. Everything I do, whether it is being a successful lawyer, a strong member of a workplace community, or a societal figurehead, trickles down to what provides me with the greatest sense of self-worth and happiness: my family. On June 15, 2018 I did not see that. It is incredible how your entire perspective can change in 24 hours."
The great architect Frank Lloyd Wright designed his homes with small, enclosed hallways, doorways, and awnings dramatically opening to grand and open spaces. This idea promoted an emotional catharsis, or, a sudden release from pain, pressure, and stress. He conceptualized the theory of being born again in his designs. As I watched my son being born, the rain still pounded the windows, the sky emanated a pale green prominence, and tornados warnings remained in effect. However, my fear, uncertainty, and selfishness conceded to feelings of profound euphoria. As my son drew his first breath, the way I viewed the world rushed with indescribable clarity. It was no longer about my goals, aspirations, and desires. It was about him. And I could not be happier about it.
I was raised as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, or more colloquially known as, “Mormon.” I believe that the bible is the word of God. I believe in the Book of Mormon, not as a sacrilege Broadway musical, but as additional teachings from God’s prophets. I believe that families are not separated at death, but an entity that continues into the eternities. I do not drink alcohol, coffee, or tea. I try not to curse, lie, cheat, or steal. I do not gamble, shop on Sunday, or view R-rated movies. I believe in the cleansing power of Christ’s Atonement, that our mistakes, burdens, struggles, and sins will be completely, utterly exonerated. Lastly, I believe that God loves every man, woman, and child who ever lived on earth, lives now, and will live on this earth and amen to my salvation if I do not try to do the same.
When I was 19, I gave up my family, friends, worldly entertainment, and schooling to be a proselyting missionary for two years. I was assigned by church leaders to proselyte in Denmark. I learned Danish in nine weeks and before I knew it, I was doing the very thing that my parents, family members, church leaders, and friends had influenced me to do my whole life. I wore a white button-down shirt and tie every day. I trudged through the pelting rain and the brutal North Sea winds. I walked kilometers down winding, narrow country roads, along colorful beaches, and stumbled over cobblestones in three-century-year-old streets. I knocked on cottages with thatched roofs, crooked doorways from the medieval era, and luxurious downtown apartments. I spoke with atheists, Christians, Muslims, Hindus, and Jews. I spoke to drug addicts, single working mothers, college students, and wealthy businessmen. I spoke to them on the busses, on the trains, on the streets, in their homes and apartment buildings. I ministered to those that were in need, and I taught these people about what I believed in. This was among the hardest experiences I was yet to have, but by genuinely serving others and learning about others, regardless of their beliefs, I grew to love them deeply. There is a special veneration in my heart for the Danes.
My experiences living in Denmark and in Minnesota have taught me that there is no such thing as atheism. Most Danes claim that they believe science, or themselves, or in the power of love and kindness. What they did not realize is that God is manifested in all these areas. God is omnipotent and omnipresent, he is in everything good and wholesome, and is everywhere good and wholesome. People may not fully recognize that or are quick to disprove the forces they cannot see.
There have been many of my friends and family members, who Mormon or not, have failed to remember the goodness that God has brought them. The process of losing faith is not sudden. It begins by small sinful actions that go unrepentant, or it begins when we skip a couple days from reading in the bible or praying. It could also begin by skipping church a number of weeks in a row. When we fail to nourish our spiritual intellect, our spirits concede to worldly, tangible thinking. Science becomes a way to prove a nonexistent God, rather than science to prove the existence of God. They replace spiritual happiness with worldly happiness, chasing big jobs, expensive homes, and extravagant lifestyles. I have wet my pillow at night, when I see strong believers I loved and respected slip into states of faithlessness.
As I wrote this credo, I reflected upon the instances that defined me. My job now is to take what defines me and be confident in raising my newborn son and strengthening my marriage. Everything I do, whether it is being a successful lawyer, a strong member of a workplace community, or a societal figurehead, trickles down to what provides me with the greatest sense of self-worth and happiness: my family. On June 15, 2018 I did not see that. It is incredible how your entire perspective can change in 24 hours."
Photos by Mal Wolfgramm
@malwolfgrammphoto
