A few years back I was introduced to a beautiful human being-- Warren Harbeck. I am sure my first meeting with Warren was at the coffee shop. I recall being immediately struck by a few notable qualities Warren has been sharpening for years - his curiosity, his genuine concern for others, and the discipline of active listening. I have met with Warren a number of times since. Some planned. Some unexpected collisions. At the local coffee shop and elsewhere in the community. But each time the same result-- I felt heard and received a dose of wisdom and insight from this gentle giant of a soul.
To me, Warren epitomizes the power of community connections. When I think of his staggering 1,212 uninterrupted weekly offerings in the Cochrane Eagle and beyond, what comes to mind is a prism (think 1973 album cover from Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side of the Moon, or a page from your middle school science textbook). The significance? Similar to myself, Warren ascribes to the belief that we are all spiritual. All unique. And we all have a piece of God in us. Divine light. The invitation to us all is discovering the unique colour of that divine light as it passes through each one of us out into the world. In a recent conversation with Cochrane Eagle editor Tim Kalinowski, Warren shared, “To me, the column is an exclamation of our shared humanity; our oneness. The Christ in you recognizes the Christ in me, and between us is sacred ground. This coffee table for me is our sacred ground where we experience the innermost being in each other."
Over the years Warren has served as that prism-- seeing the light in those around him, actively listening to capture its essence, then serving it up for the benefit of all. A tapestry of human story interwoven with the divine.
In Warren’s final column he referenced an individual key to his early column writing - Professor Ron Rolheiser. I never had the pleasure of this man’s acquaintance, but I am grateful to him. He has indirectly impacted many by his influence in Warren’s life. As Professor Rolheiser encouraged Warren all those years ago to bring his column-based offerings to the world, Warren has encouraged me to do the same. Not as a primary directive, but coming alongside the seed already inside me. Encouraging it to take root and generate fruit for the benefit of others. I am deeply grateful to Warren for his impact on my life-- helping fan to flame the divine expression in me as well.
That is the power of community connection. Seeing the divine in each other, and encouraging it to find its expression as the unique hue and offering it is, to the benefit of all it touches.
So our call to action is simple-- when we see the Divine in one another, let’s pause and call it out. It only takes few seconds. “Hey, when you did X just now, or shared Y, I noticed. Just wanted to pause and call that out”. In other words-- I see you.
When these glimpses of pure light are called out in us, they shine more brightly out into the world around us, to the benefit of all. Thank you Warren, for your many years of service in this end.
