Labor Day 2023

 What happened to the summer? Of course it didn't go away because the thermometer is still rising up over the 85 degree mark however the calendar has turned to September and the morning temperature is below 60 degrees. There is hope for those of us that sweat profusely and stay lathered from June to August. How appropriate that Labor Day falls this time of year. School bells have been ringing and the splash of the pools are becoming a longed for memory. Yellow leaves are beginning to adorn the still green canopy of conifer trees, though their greenery is paling due to drying conditions. Nature is starting to lose it's grip of life and the multi- colors of autumn's tapestry waits to bloom with the onset of cooler weather and old Jack Frost himself. Labor Day offers one last fling of summer's delights: a spin on the lake, a hike in the mountains, camping at a favorite stream or a visit to the beach. It may also mean a chance to chill out at the house and enjoy old or new friends around the grill and the outdoor firepit. It is a respite, another red-letter day on the calendar, that allows us to assess the past few months and think retrospectively about our limited time. Holidays tend to do that, no matter what their genesis or when they occur during the year. Of course, we should be grateful for our predecessors that endured 16 hour shifts, 6 days a week, earning meager pay. Their plight was to also survive unsafe work conditions and the threat of termination without cause. However, we now live a world that seems to have tilted so favorably for most employees that some aren't willing to actually show up and give an honest day's work. Work is honorable no matter the type of work that we perform. In our society, we tend to worship only the kinds of work that are well paid. Pro athletes, medical personnel, lawyers, financers are the leading priests and priestesses in our world dancing to the tune of the dollar. If we do nothing else this weekend, let us be grateful for the less glamorous but vital jobs of  janitors, trash collectors, waiters and waitresses, short order cooks, child care workers and so many other positions that now stand empty in many locations. COVID and the rapid retirement of many Baby Boomers have perpetuated a seismic shift in our workforce. Hard work appears to be antiquated and undesirable for some of younger members of the workforce. Leisure should follow labor and not the other way around. I fear that  our emerging workforce is too consumed with the dollar and not being abused in their workplace rather than seeing work as a God-given means to glorify their maker and serve their fellow man.