For Wilshire Baptist Church
Moths ate my wedding suit. Well, they didn’t eat the whole suit; they just ate holes in it. And it might not even be moths because I’ve never seen moths in our closet and maybe there’s another critter that enjoys eating wool. The point is my wedding suit is ruined and I can’t wear it again; I probably can’t even give it away. It’s a waste, and it’s a shame, and that’s on me.
I’ve called the black suit my “wedding suit” because I bought it specifically for our wedding in 2011. It holds specials memories for me, and I decided soon after I wore it that first time that I wouldn’t wear it just any old time and any old place. I would save it for special events, and that mostly has been weddings and funerals. Over eight years I probably wore it a dozen times. The last time I wore it was in October for the wedding of my best friend Ken’s youngest daughter. That was a nice bookend, because Ken was my best man the first time I wore it.
I pulled it out last week for the memorial service of Sandra, Ken’s mother. My friendship with Ken began just after sixth grade when Sandra and my mother decided we needed better friends. They organized a sleepover, and that quickly became the best friendship imaginable. Our mothers became our second mothers, and our mothers became dear friends to each other. Sandra’s passing was prime time to wear the wedding suit again, but when I pulled it from the back of the closet and took off the plastic bag, I found holes in the sleeves.
It’s my own fault. I thought I was keeping it safe, but I was actually abetting its destruction. Under wraps and pushed to the back of the closet, it was an easy place for moths to hide. I should have hung it in the light where the moths would have been less tempted to nibble. Better yet, I should have hung it in plain sight where I would have been tempted to wear it more often. Instead of saving it for special occasions, I should have worn it wherever and whenever I wanted – making ordinary days special, and making every wearing a reminder to me of that first wearing.
When I realized my mistake, my mind went quickly to that verse in Matthew: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven.”
It’s mostly about setting priorities toward the heavenly instead of the earthly, but right now I’m thinking about the earthly, because most of us have more ordinary days than extraordinary days, and those ordinary days – like dear, lifelong friends – should be cherished and celebrated for the heavenly blessings they are. They should be adorned with thanksgiving and gratitude, and if the spirit leads, they should be reason enough to put on a wedding suit.
Down on the floor of the closet, my wedding shoes are wrapped in a plastic bag. Like the suit, they’ve been worn a dozen times. I wonder how they’d look with blue jeans?