A President McKinley Life Intersection
Sometimes in the morning, while putting in my time on the exercise machine, I watch History Detectives on PBS. They typically have two or three episodes that discuss some artifact and its connection to a historical event. It makes my exercise go a little quicker, although not quick enough.
This morning, one of the episodes involved an investigation regarding the flag that was draped over the coffin of President McKinley. He had been assassinated, and as history records, that was the event that caused Secret Service to begin providing security for our Presidents. I am attaching information on this episode for your review.(PBS episode)
The episode revolved around whether a flag that had been passed down by a Charles Kennedy, was, in fact, one that had draped over the McKinley coffin. That part of the story and the course of investigation were very interesting. However, almost as an underlying story, the course of events that impacted Charles Kennedy was also life changing.
Apparently, Mr Kennedy was a sergeant at the time, who was ordered to head up the detail that went to Ohio, to preliminarily guard the body at the tomb that housed the casket, until the burial area memorial was set up. As a result, Sergeant Kennedy ended up moving to Ohio right after that. Then, when he got out of the service, he went to work as the administrator and keeper of that cemetery. He ultimately was buried in sight of the final resting place and memorial of the President. It was clear that his life ended up revolving around that moment when he was ordered to Ohio, with the McKinley detail.
There are files sitting on my desk right now as a result of a moment in time that have impacted my clients. That moment is usually a crash that has caused a life long injury or some emotional scar from the negligence of someone else. In my own life, having been in a crash, I sometimes intuitively feel as though a car is going to run a red light. This reaction, simply because of my memory from my own crash.
We cannot control those moments. We can only control how those moments effect us. Some clients are able to fully recover and seemingly put it behind them. Lurking in the background is probably some emotional scar from the crash. Other clients have life long problems and permanent injuries. When these cases settle, sometimes true value is not received because there is not enough insurance coverage. At some jury trials, I try to remind the jury that while they will leave this case behind when they leave the Courtroom, my client will be left with what the jury deems to be Justice.
A moment in time can effect a lifetime. If we truly thought about how a moment can change life, it may make us be more thankful for what we have and more considerate of the opportunities that God has given us. For me, that History Detective episode was that reminder.
I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don't know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.
Sharon
http://www.autoloans101.info
Posted by: Sharon | November 11, 2008 at 09:07 PM