There is an epidemic in our land,
of massive proportions. No section of the country has proved to be immune
to them.
· It
appears that they break out in clusters. They are most often seen
indoors, and it is quite rare to see only one. Usually they group
together, preferring the areas which humans occupy indoors.
· Upon
close examination it will be seen that they appear primarily in geometric
shapes. Rectangles are the most common shape, though squares and even
circles are reported. Some reports also mention a tulip shape—but we must
make some allowance for the panic even one of these can cause.
· They
are, it appears, migratory. There is no north/south pattern, but it is
usually observed that a flock of them will follow a particular human almost
indefinitely.
· Individually,
they are relatively easy to dispose of. But the most common case seems to
be that no matter how many you get rid of, they continue to multiply.
Is this some dread disease?
Some horrible new insect? Alien invaders from space?
No, they are yellow sticky notes.
It is the nature of human beings
to forget. It is therefore also their nature to write down
reminders. In the oldest of civilizations we find broken bits of pottery called
potsherds which were used to write down little notes. We take a note of
what we want to remember.
It is not the only aid to our
memories. For more important things, we have ways which are more serious
than notes.
· We
create reminders. Calendars with recurring events on them, for
example. It would not do to forget your wedding anniversary, for example.
· We
build memorials—visible reminders to one and all of something which has
happened which should not be forgotten.
· We
conduct rituals. We post guards around the tomb of the Unknown Soldiers;
we raise the flag over the shattered hulk of the USS Arizona so that our
gratitude will not cease—nor our warning.
Communion is like that. It
comes about every week, so that we will not forget. We see its memorial
every time we look at a cross. We conduct the ritual so long ago adapted
from Passover by our Lord. Our Lord did so much for us, it is well that
we have these reminders. If the church forgets the Lord’s Supper, will
she not soon forget her Lord’s sacrifice?