For my brother, as he prepares for his confirmation

Last night I returned home to attend the rehearsal dinner for my younger brother's confirmation. He's worked hard to reach this point, having attended classes every other Saturday for the last three years. Naturally, I find myself thinking back on my own confirmation, nearly seven years ago.

I was the only child in my age set to finish Sunday school. My sister stopped going after a few years. I don't remember if my brother ever went. I loved church. I felt safe and loved there. Anytime I sat in the sanctuary, whether for worship or just waiting in silence for a meeting to begin, I always felt something stir inside of me.

For all that I loved church, I found my three years of confirmation classes to be tedious at times. We lived a twenty minute drive from the church, which meant that we'd have to leave home at 3:30 in order to be on time for the 4:00 class. When we finished at 6:00, I had to decide  if I would stay for service (another hour), or if I wanted to get up early on Sunday morning instead. Either way, many of my weekends were scheduled in a way that made spending time with friends very difficult. So I certainly understand my brother's frustrations in giving up so many Saturdays for three years.

In our third year (or, Level 3, as we knew it) we had to write a series of five essays. We wrote about our childhood, our first encounters with our faith, where we planned to go in life. The most difficult essay for me was one in which we had to describe ourselves. As a fourteen-year-old, I was still a long way from discovering who I was. I sympathized with my brother as he struggled with those five essays. He managed to write the longest collection out of his entire class. I recently reread my essays, and I hope my brother will do the same in a few years, and smile, as I did, to see how much changes in such a short time.

Last night, my brother received a cross for his wall. It is the same as those my sister and I received. The same as the one that still hangs on the wall over my bed. The congregation gave each confirmand a pendant with the Lutheran rose on it. I wore my pendant so often that the chain broke twice, and the pendant itself is turning green (thanks to a stubborn refusal to remove it while swimming or showering). I pray that my brother will treasure these gifts and the faith they represent for many years to come.

I look forward to this Sunday, when my brother and his twelve classmates will be confirmed on Pentecost. I feel blessed that I will be able to attend and watch these thirteen young people, wearing the same white capes worn by my classmates and I in 2004, take this important step in their lives of faith.

~*~

Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.

1 Timothy 4:12