|
?:reviewBody
|
-
Example: [Collected on the Internet, 2002] 17-year-old Brian Moore had only a short time to write something for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes meeting. It was his turn to lead the discussion so he sat down and wrote. He showed the essay, titled The Room to his mother, Beth, before he headed out the door. I wowed 'em. he later told his father, Bruce. It's a killer, It's the bomb. It's the best thing I ever wrote. It also was the last.Brian's parents had forgotten about the essay when a cousin found it while cleaning out the teenager's locker at Teary Valley High School. Brian had been dead only hours, but his parents desperately wantedevery piece of his life near them — the crepe paper that had adorned his locker during his senior football season, notes from classmates and teachers, his homework.Only two months before, he had handwritten the essay about encountering Jesus in a file room full of cards detailing every moment of the teen's life. But it was only after Brian's death that Beth and Bruce Moore realized that their son had described his view of heaven. It makes such an impact that people want to share it. You feel like you are there. Mr. Moore said.Brian Moore died May 27, 1997, — the day after Memorial Day. He was driving home from a friend's house when his car went off Bulen-Pierce Road in Pickaway County and struck a utility pole. He emerged from the wreck unharmed but stepped on a downed power line and was electrocuted.Brian seemed to excel at everything he did. He was an honor student. He told his parents he loved them ahundred times a day, Mrs. Moore said. He was a star wide receiver for the Teary's Valley Football team and had earned a four-year scholarship to Capital University in Columbus because of his athletic and academic abilities. He took it upon himself to learn how to help a fellow student who used a wheelchair at school. During one homecoming ceremony, Brian walked on his tiptoes so that the girl he was escorting wouldn't be embarrassed about being taller than him.He adored his kid brother, Bruce, now 14. He often escorted his grandmother, Evelyn Moore, who lives inColumbus, to church. I always called him the deep thinker, Evelyn said of her eldest grandson.Two years after his death, his family still struggles to understand why Brian was taken from them. They findcomfort at the cemetery where Brian is buried, just a few blocks from their home. They visit daily. A candleand dozens of silk and real flowers keep vigil over the gravesite.The Moore's framed a copy of Brian's essay and hung it among the family portraits in the living room. Ithink God used him to make a point. I think we were meant to find it and make something out of it, Mrs. Moore said of the essay. She and her husband want to share their son's vision of life after death. I'm happy for Brian. I know he's in heaven. I know I'll see him again someday. Mrs. Moore said. It just hurts so bad now.The Room...In that place between wakefulness and dreams, I found myself in the room. There were no distinguishingfeatures except for the one wall covered with small index card files. They were like the ones in libraries that list titles by author or subject in alphabetical order. But these files, which stretched from floor to ceiling and seemingly endless in either direction, had very different headings.As I drew near the wall of files, the first to catch my attention was one that read Brian Moore. I opened it and began flipping through the cards. I quickly shut it, shocked to realize that I recognized the names written on each one.And then without being told, I knew exactly where I was. This lifeless room with its small files was a crude catalog system for my life. Here were written the actions of my every moment, big and small, in a detail my memory couldn't match. A sense of wonder and curiosity, coupled with horror, stirred within me as I began randomly opening files and exploring their content. Some brought joy and sweet memories; others a sense of shame and regret so intense that I would look over my shoulder to see if anyone was watching.A file named Friends was next to one marked Friends I have betrayed. The titles ranged from the mundane to the outright weird. Books I Have Read, Lies I Have Told, Comfort I have Given, Jokes IHave Laughed at. Some were almost hilarious in their exactness: Things I've yelled at my brothers. Others I couldn't laugh at: Things I Have Done in My Anger, Things I Have Muttered Under My Breath at My Parents.I never ceased to be surprised by the contents. Often there were many more cards than I expected. Sometimes fewer than I hoped. I was overwhelmed by the sheer volume of the life I had lived. Could it be possible that I had the time in my years to write each of these thousands or even millions of cards? But each card confirmed this truth. Each was written in my own handwriting. Each signed with my signature.When I pulled out the file marked Songs I have listened to, I realized the files grew to contain their contents. The cards were packed tightly, and yet after two or three yards, I hadn't found the end of the file. I shut it, shamed, not so much by the quality of music but more by the vast time I knew that file represented.When I came to a file marked Lustful Thoughts, I felt a chill run through my body. I pulled the file out only an inch, not willing to test its size, and drew out a card. I shuddered at its detailed content. I felt sick to think that such a moment had been recorded. An almost animal rage broke on me. One thought dominated my mind: No one must ever see these cards! No one must ever see this room! I have to destroy them!In insane frenzy I yanked the file out. Its size didn't matter now. I had to empty it and burn the cards. But as I took it at one end and began pounding it on the floor, I could not dislodge a single card. I became desperate and pulled out a card, only to find it as strong as steel when I tried to tear it. Defeated and utterly helpless, I returned the file to its slot. Leaning my forehead against the wall, I let out a long, self-pitying sigh.And then I saw it. The title bore People I Have Shared the Gospel With. The handle was brighter than those around it, newer, almost unused. I pulled on its handle and a small box not more than three inches long fell into my hands. I could count the cards it contained on one hand. And then the tears came. I began to weep.Sobs so deep that they hurt. They started in my stomach and shook through me. I fell on my knees andcried. I cried out of shame, from the overwhelming shame of it all. The rows of file shelves swirled in my tear-filled eyes. No one must ever, ever know of this room. I must lock it up and hide the key. But then as I pushed away the tears, I saw Him. No, please not Him. Not here. Oh, anyone but Jesus. I watched helplessly as He began to open the files and read the cards. I couldn't bear to watch His response. And in the moments I could bring myself to look at His face, I saw a sorrow deeper than my own. He seemed tointuitively go to the worst boxes. Why did He have to read every one? Finally He turned and looked at mefrom across the room. He looked at me with pity in His eyes. But this was a pity that didn't anger me. I dropped my head, covered my face with my hands and began to cry again.He walked over and put His arm around me. He could have said so many things. But He didn't say a word. He just cried with me. Then He got up and walked back to the wall of files. Starting at one end of the room, He took out a file and, one by one, began to sign His name over mine on each card. No! I shouted rushing to Him. All I could find to say was No, no, as I pulled the card from Him. His name shouldn't be on these cards. But there it was, written in red so rich, so dark, so alive. The name of Jesus covered mine. It was written with His blood.He gently took the card back. He smiled a sad smile and began to sign the cards.I don't think I'll ever understand how He did it so quickly, but the next instant it seemed I heard Him close the last file and walk back to my side. He placed His hand on my shoulder and said, It is finished. I stood up, and He led me out of the room. There was no lock on its door. There were still cards to be written.Origins: Here we have a tale that contains an element of truth, but that element has almost been entirely submerged by a truth many apparently would prefer to believe. Moreover, that truth masks an unsavory reality not many know about. Brian Moore did read this essay aloud at a meeting of Christian athletes, and he did claim to his parents that he'd written it as an assignment for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes approximately two months before his death. The 17-year-old Teay's Valley High School student (not Teary Valley, as claimed in the e-mail) did die on 27 May 1997 in the manner described. All that is true. However, it's the little known story behind the story that proves most worthy of comment. You see, it turns out the deceased was a plagiarist. The piece he'd claimed authorship was actually the work of Joshua Harris, and it appeared in a book Harris published before Moore died. It had debuted two years earlier, in the Spring 1995 issue of New Attitude magazine, which was then edited by Harris. Moore's parents had no reason to suspect the work in question was not their son's, and it was read at the boy's funeral. They and other relatives and friends subsequently broadcast the essay as his work, sincerely believing that it was. Only after the piece was published in The Columbus Dispatch on the anniversary of Moore's death did the truth about its authorship become known, when readers responded with corrections that pointed the newspaper to Harris and his book. It's ironic that an essay describing the author's sense of shame over his personal accumulation of sins would be used by another to add a few file cards to his own stash. The dead boy not only stole someone else's work but also presented it as his own before a Christian fellowship he was part of and lied to his parents about it. That's three of the ten commandments right there (stealing, not honoring parents, and bearing false witness). Barbara lightning round Mikkelson Additional information: Authorship Controversy (JoshHarris.com)
(en)
|
![[This page as RDF]](http://data.gesis.org/claimskg/static/rdf-icon.gif){kind=icon}