Article November 1, 1982 Issue

The good ship Harmony

ALBERT ASHWORTH, JR.

A grandchild brought a present to my wife and me—a little ship inside a plastic container filled with water. When the container is shaken, little silver particles float about like a snowstorm, blotting out the ship.

One morning I took the little ship from the shelf and thought, I'll name it "the good ship Harmony," because it has a gentle stillness. When I shake it and the silver bits fly about, it's hard to see the ship, and I remember that a disturbance in my thinking can make it hard to see the perfection of man.

These thoughts led on to other questions and answers: When I go off to work, can I maintain the calm I enjoy when I am praying? If necessary, can I put down a stormy sense in order to see clearly man's unshakable perfection?

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