Thanking 'Bar'

In her death, Barbara Bush performed one last bit of public service.

She brought the world together.

The world has never been a particularly pleasant place, with hatred, famine, genocide, war, pollution, corruption and various and assorted other acts of violence, aggression and oppression existing since the beginning of time. And here at home, we have not been the idyllic picture of equality and acceptance we would like the rest of the world to believe. 

Over the past two years or so, that home-grown ugliness has been more overt — encouraged and inspired by a political climate that has made our nation more divided than it has been in quite some time.

So it has done my heart good — but also saddened me — to see that if there was a positive thing to come of the death of perhaps our most beloved First Lady of my adult life, it was to make that togetherness happen.

Folks have left their partisan politics and philosophies behind as they have reached across the aisle of life to pay honor to the woman who was often referred to as “everyone’s grandmother.”

Elected leaders from this nation and abroad have set aside their differences to express condolences and share anecdotes, photographs and memories of a woman respected nearly universally.

I have been particularly moved by the very public sharing of her grandmother’s life and memories by Jenna Bush Hager, a correspondent with NBC. By all public accounts, Jenna enjoyed an extremely close relationship with her “Gans,” and it had to be tough for her emotionally to keep her wits about her to appear on camera so quickly after Mrs. Bush died.

Jenna shared on Facebook a cartoon that someone sent to her, showing Mrs. Bush being reunited with her late daughter, Robin, just inside the gates of heaven. Robin died of leukemia in 1953 at the age of 3.

After news of her death spread, many memes circulated online almost immediately with poignant, tear-evoking images and written passages.

One displayed a picture of the late Marine Gunny Sergeant-turned actor R. Lee Ermey along side of a portrait of Mrs. Bush with the caption: “Well the passing of GySgt Ermey makes some sense now. There had to be a Marine on standby to escort the former first lady through heaven’s gate.”

Another tribute came from the crew of the USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77). A photograph of Mrs. Bush from the dedication of the ship was published on Facebook with this message: “Our thoughts, prayers, and deepest sympathies are with all of the Bush family tonight. On behalf of every officer, chief, and Sailor aboard USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77), rest in peace, ma’am. We have the watch.”

Former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev, England’s Queen Elizabeth,  Kuwait’s ruler, Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah and former presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama are among those who have sent condolences to former President George H.W. Bush and his extended family upon the loss of the family’s matriarch.

At Mrs. Bush’s funeral today in Houston, the presence of Presidents Clinton and Obama was noted as being unusual; it is not common for former presidents to attend the funeral of a former first lady, according to NBC commentators.

The presence of the two men was because of the genuinely strong and loving relationships they developed with the family, despite differing ideologies, according to an NBC announcer.

Much has been made of “Bar’s” down-to-earth demeanor, the hair that turned white prematurely, the trademark pearls and the wrinkles she wore with pride because she earned every one of them.

She has been lauded for her treatment of the lesser members of our society, for her efforts on behalf of literacy — both for children and adults — and her general affection for all people, regardless of socioeconomic status, religion, political party or race. She was one of the first prominent people to publicly embrace a child with AIDS, in spite of the Republican party’s unwillingness to utter the word.

She ruffled feathers because she didn’t strictly follow the Republican agenda. She was a smart and sensitive woman who spoke her own very capable mind and followed her heart.

It’s unfortunate that I think we have come to know more about Mrs. Bush in these first few days after her death than we knew of her while she was here with us. 

But in the end, all that’s important is that we did learn more about her — I learned things that just make me love and respect her even more — which hopefully makes us realize that we are all more alike than we are different.

I know this reaching across the aisle afterglow won’t last long. 

Mrs. Bush will be laid to rest this afternoon — physically near the grave of Robin on the grounds of the Bush Presidential Library, and spiritually, if that’s your belief, reunited with her beloved daughter.

Life will go on and the nation and the world will all too soon get back to its ugly business as usual.

But I would like to thank God for the gift that was Barbara Pierce Bush; I’d like to thank the Bush family for sharing her with the world; and I’d like to thank Mrs. Bush for being the smart, kind, strong, loving, authentic, gracious woman who sought to bring us together while she lived and accomplished that in her death.

Godspeed, Mrs. Bush.