The Richest
Each and every year, it gets to me.
I start to gird myself as George Bailey is running through the streets of Bedford Falls
on a snowy Christmas eve and returns to “Mary!” and his kids
while his neighbors cobble together enough money to undo Uncle Billy’s mistake
and his brother Harry offers a toast to “the richest man in town.”
The tears always start flowing at that moment, as I allow myself to believe
if only for a moment, once every year,
that money and material possessions don’t really matter, or at least
they aren’t the most important things in life.
Watching Gus Walz explode with tears of joy and love
at the sight of his father describing his approach to government and running this country
hit me in exactly the same way.
Coach Tim Walz won’t ever appear on a business magazine’s “richest persons” list
but, at least in my book, he’s nothing less than George Bailey come to life
and I’m confident that the people of the real-life Bedford Falls
will be ready to welcome him home this November.
