Flag at half mast

          Well that title could easily be taken dirty. It could also represent a sad day when someone famous has died. It’s not often we see a flag at half-mast. We all know what it means. Many years ago, I used to have a flag pole in my yard. I took the time to dig a hole, pour the cement, and plant a pole. I bought a flag and raised it in honor of my country. It symbolized my devotion but it also symbolizes my emotion.

            Years ago, Princess Dianna died in a fiery crash and I lowered my flag. This last week a controversial Alberta leader died with three other men in a plane crash. The province lowered the flag. I guess I had to sit back and think about it. I hated that guy. He was a terrible Premier and ruined this province. Yet, the flag was lowered. Is it about respect or is it more about honoring the famous? Some thought Princess Dianna died for no reason. Others felt she had done nothing special. However, she captured my heart enough to lower the flag. Would I have done that last week for a former leader.

            My flag is a place of respect and honor. For anyone? I struggle with lowering my flag. It’s mine right? It’s my country, too right? For some reason, I think I own my flag. As I see it there is a distinct rift in how we think. Some think we should honor the famous. Others believe we should honor the smart, poor, or quirky. We love famous music and quotes. I went to Madonna back in about 1984 and it was one of the best concerts ever. Fast forward to seeing her this year: I walked out. I am not sure if I should have lowered my flag in disgust or disappointment.

            Was it my place to use a flag to make a point? Is the flag used to honor? Is it used to express a feeling or emotion? Recently a player in the NFL has used the anthem to express his emotions. Some say he is disrespecting the anthem. If I lower my flag for a social point is that fair game? What does the flag or anthem have to do with social agenda? The American anthem was written because after a fierce battle the flag was still there when the smoke cleared. I am Canadian that that story still gives me shivers and emotions.

            What does God have to say about a flag? As I can tell it’s not much. I think it comes down to Moses snake staff. At one point the Israelite's were really bad. God had Moses hold up a staff with a snake head on it. If the people kept their eyes on the staff they would be spared from poisoned snakes. The staff and the snakes were the symbols of God and evil desires. Hundreds of years later we find the nation honoring the staff as an idol. They forgot it was about God and not the stick with a snake head on it.

            Today do we honor the flag the wrong way? Has the red white and blue; the stars and stripes been reduced to an idol. This flag represents freedom. Does it also symbolize a social agenda? Can we use the anthem to spread a message that fuels us? Would the makers of the nation, flag, and anthem roll in their grave right now? Are we not using the symbols of a country for the wrong reasons?

            A soldier is bloody and broken. The night’s battle was more than he could take. They were overwhelmed, beaten, and crushed. Yet, in the morning as the sun rose and smoke cleared the tattered flag of the union was still flying high. They had won. We had won. That inspired a song, a poem, an inspiration to inspire a nation. The flood was the same way for Noah and God. A rainbow was created to mark the event. The flag and an anthem we created to inspire a nation, not fuel an agenda.

            It’s something I have to think about. Why lower a flag for a politician? Why lower a flag for a queen from a distant land? We kneel for an anthem that demands we stand. Why refuse to sing an anthem that should pull your heart strings. A flag at half-mast should mean so much more. Recently we have used the word genocide to mark injustice. It’s a terrible disrespect to the people who died by hatred. To lower the flag or kneel for the wrong reasons is a terrible disrespect to the reason it was created. Maybe we should kneel and be lowered to the men and women that sacrificed their lives so that we have a chance to sing a song of victory and freedom for all.

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