Lincoln’s Treasure
Reflection given by Tom Williams at Interfaith Paths to Peace Board Meeting, Sept. 2008
I was asked this question: what is peace and how do we secure it? I think I saw an example of this the other day when I
was fishing with my sons Lincoln (6) and Nelson (3).
Lincoln just loves to fish. When we fish, we have a rule that it is a good day if we catch a fish or if we find some
treasure--like a lost bit of tackle, a turtle shell or something that young boys covet. On this particular day, we were trying
out his first stick bobber---Lincoln prized it very much.
We were fishing at Standard C.C. in the lake near the entrance. The area where we fish is shaded and there is a small
bush-like tree that hangs over the water kind of in the way for fishermen. The fish weren't biting so little eyes were
wandering. Lincoln noticed a stick bobber stuck in the tree apparently lost and abandoned by someone who had fished
there before. Being a six-year-old, he asked me to retrieve the bobber. As a forty-three-year-old, I explained to him that
it was out of reach and I didn't have the tools for the job. I wouldn't wade into the water and I didn't have something long
to pull the bobber off of the tree. Lincoln accepted this. At least it seemed that way at first.
I returned to the other side of the tree. A few minutes later, Lincoln called out that his hook was stuck on something. You
guessed right. When I returned, Lincoln's new bobber and his hook were tangled with the lost bobber stuck in the tree. I
looked at him and he gave me a sheepish grin. "Lincoln, were you trying to hook the bobber with your line?" No answer.
Well, now I had no choice. I grabbed the line and pulled on the tree branch fully expecting Lincoln's line to break and his
bobber to be lost in the tree too. You know what? Something of a miracle happened as I was able to pull both the lost
bobber and Lincoln's line within reach. Then, I broke the branches and we recovered Lincoln's line and the lost bobber.
Lincoln smiled at me and said, "I told you so." I paused ready to deliver an adult lecture. But, for some reason, I just
couldn't. Lincoln now had a new stick bobber, a sinker, and a new hook already tied. It was a great find--a real treasure
that he received because he was fully willing to risk his treasured bobber.
It has been about a week since we fished. The more I think about this incident the more I think Lincoln taught me a lesson
that I am thankful I didn't drown out with an adult lecture. This little incident is so much like what I do trying to find and
build something as mysterious, seemingly distant but treasured as peace. Adult ways, I think, won't land the bobber.
First, Lincoln showed me how we "get hooked." It was interesting that he didn't hook his prize—it actually had hooked
his line. Having walked this path for the last year, I am amazed how I come in to give but usually instead am the one
getting hooked--receiving more than I give. I also was reminded that this whole process is not clean--it is messy. We get
tangled up with it. My boys and I notice how our poles can never make it from home to the pond without getting
tangled. It is the same with people. When we are close, we just have a way of getting tangled up in each others lives. It
is a wonderful mystery.
Lincoln showed me that you don't have to wait for the right tools for the job. Use what you have right at hand. Take
a chance. Risk losing what you love by casting your line right at your prize. Think out of the box. In other words, be like
a child. Then, when you get tangled up with the prize and you can't get it out—ask for help…bring in others…let them
pull the prize to you and share the victory with you. This is love. We are one body.
Finally, Lincoln showed me his faith. He knew that it would be all right because he was with his father. It is an utter
mystery but I know that I embody a deep sense of security for him. Lincoln knows the love I have for him. That
gives Lincoln faith that everything will be OK.
Recently, I have thought about my love for Lincoln in relation to God's love for me and His love for all of us. How
comforting it is to know that my love times seven times seven is the measure of God's love for me. Knowing this, I know
that it is OK for me to see the prize, to cast my line into the tree, to get tangled up with what I see, to ask others to help me
pull it to shore and then to smile at the love of God who made me like this and brings me great joy with what we catch
together. As peacemakers, we are the children of God.