Thoughts about Columbia...MISD Bond Election...
Category: News Commentary...
Posted Monday, February 03, 2003 at 07:45 AM [GMT-6]

I've just finished watching Katie Couric interview Evelyn Husband, wife of Columbia's flight commander. Katie seems to always draw these kinds of assignments, but she's certainly qualified for them. Having lost a husband herself, she brings a spirit of empathy and gentleness to the interview that can't be faked. She also appears to be genuinely interested in the people with whom she speaks, and, for the most part, is content to let them speak...a rarity for the typical ego-infused talking head.

Anyway, Ms. Husband exhibited a calm grace coupled with undeniable toughness that we've come to expect from Texas women, dating back to Lady Bird, and continuing through Barbara and now, of course, Laura. I suspect that some viewers will attribute Ms. Husband's almost cheery demeanor to post-traumatic shock, and I'm sure there's a little of that present...the NBC makeup techs couldn't disguise the stress and tears in her puffy eyes. But those of us who understand and share her faith recognize the "peace that passes all understanding" that can come only from a Source outside (and yet inside)...an assurance that the parting with a loved one is simply a temporary situation and that the reunion will be all the sweeter for the fleeting absence.

Ms. Husband admitted, "I don't understand any of this, but I just trust the Lord." She recited the Bible passage that Col. Husband added to his autographs: Proverbs 3:5-6 (and which, amazingly, NBC quoted on the screen as she read it). "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight."

By all indications, both the Husbands based their lives on this foundation. Why else would Col. Husband pursue a "career" in which the odds of dying on the job are now 1 in 75? He knew, like the Apostle Paul, that "to live is Christ and to die is gain." (Philippians 1:21). Ms. Husband knows that as well, and just as the human spirit of achievement has gained as a result of her husband's life, so has he gained through his death.

Meanwhile, life in all its comedic and tragic glory goes on. The good citizenry of Midland turned out in underwhelming numbers to finally - FINALLY! - approve one school bond proposition, and reject a second. My pre-election predictions were right, as far as the end result, although I thought Prop. 1 would be closer and Prop. 2 would be less so than the final tally revealed.

I hope the southside elementary supporters don't spend too much time trying to debrief where things went wrong; the power burns and missing toes on certain hands and feet should be evidence enough of the self-inflicted wounds, inevitable (from my perspective, anyway) fallout from last September's suckerpunching of that failed bond issue. It will be interesting to see the voter turnout and results by precinct; as of this morning, only the overall totals have been posted online.

Some have predicted that this election spelled the demise of the CFR. I don't think so. Its fallback position is inevitably one of gathering evidence for its "I told you so" proclamations, should MISD stumble at any point in the execution of the newly-approved plan (and should the Almighty Homestead Exemption be rescinded. By the way, I suspect that many citizens don't realize that the value of the state-mandated Homestead Exemption extends beyond the local-option tax shield.).

That's not necessarily a bad thing. The burden is now on the administration to prove its critics wrong. There is little margin for error in putting into place the improvements to be funded by the bond, and watchdogs do tend to keep the flock safe. We can only hope that our dogs don't eat the sheep.