What Are You Displaying in This Time?

I visited my mom at her retirement community this past weekend. Each independent-living apartment has a small display nicho outside the front door. One night we walked all the halls twice, once in each direction, as our evening exercise. I truly enjoyed seeing what her many neighbors were displaying, whether it was a piece of their personal or cultural history, some beloved artwork, or decorations from an upcoming holiday like today’s Cinco de Mayo.

The nicho display pictured above was definitely the most striking. Back in January, on Inauguration Day (which was also Martin Luther King Jr. Day), this neighbor placed roses in this cracked vase and let them die. If you look closely, you can see that the vase has stars on one side and stripes below it—an echo of the US flag.

To many of us, the message is clear. It’s also not the entire message. On the wall above this nicho, her neighbor hung the framed words to Leonard Cohen’s most well-known lyrics about how there is a crack in everything, and that’s how the light gets in. To me, this lends a welcome nuance to this display. Yes, the US is profoundly cracked. Much has died, and more will be destroyed. Yet the very fatal flaw in the vase, which can no longer hold life-giving water, is what allows a different kind of life to leak in.

As I think about recent gatherings, marches, articles and more that are coming to life across the US, I’m realizing that one hopeful aspect of this time is that more people are waking up. Many American citizens were displaying only apathy, largely ignoring government and politics to focus on their own lives. Now, they are realizing that the quality of their lives depends on a healthy civic community.

This week, I invite you to ponder what you are displaying to your neighbors. What are you saying through your artwork and other public displays? What new or different message could you be sending, and why would it matter?