Changing Tides
Those of us fortunate enough to live in
Rehoboth Beach—or any other beach, for that matter—have but to walk
down to the water’s edge to witness the amazing power of the changing
tide. Anyone who’s ever spent time carefully crafting a sand castle
knows all too well that eventually the rising water will erase the day’s
fun, leaving behind nothing but a smooth canvas of blank sand.
 The human experience is sometimes like the
beach and the tides. Though it changes constantly and is often fraught
with passionate highs and lows, eventually even they are worn down by or
filled in with the always present detritus of a busy life.
Even magnificent monuments must face the
changing tides of life and nature. To this day, like countless others, I
cannot walk through the streets of New York City without experiencing a
deep sense of loss when I look at the void that exists where the World
Trade towers used to be. I yearn for the day when that painful hole in the
skyline is empty no more. For now, though, it is a perfect example of how
swiftly something seemingly permanent can disappear from view.
 Those who struggle to make big changes in
their lives or in the world around them know about the devastating power
of forces outside of their control. Be it a natural disaster or the
painful loss of a loved one—or a job, or one’s health—the changing
tide of everyday life is relentless.
So how do we talk about making progress in
a world that is always being reshaped by a current tide of politics,
powers, money, religions and trends? How do we know our efforts will make
any difference at all in the world around us? The answer is—we don’t.
Time alone will reveal lasting change and real progress. The rest is swept
up in the turbulent tides of
our lives.
The fascinating story of John Adams, as
told in the Pulitzer Prize winning book by David McCullough and adapted by
HBO, opened a window into the early history of our country and on the
great men and women who built it. As I watched, spellbound, I realized how
much we take our history for granted and how little understanding we have
of our own lives and the time in which we live. None of us really know
what, if any, of our contributions will survive after we are gone—or
what forces will shape the world of the future.
To us here in Rehoboth Beach, the incoming
tide of tolerance and acceptance seems inevitable. But is it? None of us
know what circumstances could be present in the world of
tomorrow—enlightenment, another deadly disease, war, peace? We don’t
know. We can’t know.
In the beginning we made CAMP Rehoboth
because we needed a safe place to create understanding and community among
all the people who call Rehoboth home. At its core that is what the CAMP
Rehoboth Community Center is still about today, making a safe place for
all people—gay, straight, young, old, men and women, visitors and
residents alike.
Sometimes I get so involved in the work of
CAMP Rehoboth and of building the Community Center that I almost forget
why we started it in the first place—or I wonder to myself if we have
ever understood all that it could be. A part of me believes with all my
heart that it will be here long after we are gone. Another part of me
knows how fragile is all life and all human endeavors and how much we need
to appreciate all that we have while we have it.
Just imagine if all the places we take for
granted as a part of our community got swept away in the changing tide of
the times—the past is already littered with the bones of places where we
once danced, once dined, once shopped. Just imagine if there were no CAMP
Rehoboth, no Community Center, no place to find help, or information, or a
friendly face. We’ve spent 18 years building CAMP Rehoboth and helping
it to grow into the Community Center it has become. I have great faith
that the people of this community will rise to fight whatever the current
“changing tide” threatens us with—be it the current economic crisis
or something entirely new and unforeseen.
Thank You to all the CAMP Rehoboth
Community Center Volunteers for the period of May 2-May 15.
Tony Burns
Spencer Kingswell
Charlie Lee
Michael Muller
Chris Sampson
Rainbow Thumb Club
Matt
Carey|
Ward
Ellinger
Rob Freeman
Tony Ghigi
Steve Hoult
Bud Palmer
Ken Reilly
Tom White
Murray Archibald, Founder and
President of the Board of Directors of CAMP Rehoboth, is an artist in
Rehoboth Beach.
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