Behind (I am, actually)

"ða Deniscan sæton þær be hindan forðæm hiora cyning wæs gewundod on ðæm gefeohte."
(The Danes stayed there behind, because their king was wounded in the battle.)
The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, circa A.D. 900

Behind: The OED gives a few definitions...
1. In a place whence those to whom the reference is made have departed; remaining after the others have gone.
2. In a place left by (one who has gone on). Usually with leave, remain, stay.

BE + hindan (Old English for at the back, in the rear). No mystery here.

We see the common root of "hind" popping up in hinder, hindmost, and hinterland. BE simply gives it a sense of position in relation to the object or person.

There are many things that lie behind us, figuratively. We can use behind to describe the passage of time--we face forward toward the future, inescapably, and all that has transpired is behind the present hour.

What we leave behind us is significant.

One of the most interesting facets of my genealogy work (see sidebar) is that I invariably discover the legacy of ancestors, people like us from another time who have left behind names and deeds, children and wills and choices of where to live. All of us were born where we were because some of our ancestors moved there.

I was born in Seattle because my mother's family lived there, and she returned to them when her marriage was in shambles, to have me. Therefore I was born in Washington, not Idaho (where I was conceived). As I go back in my family tree, I see the westward creep of my forefathers across 19th century North America. They have left behind a trail: sometimes a trail of tears, most often a trail of sweat.

What have your ancestors left behind for you? Is your name original, or borrowed from a grandparent? Doubtless your last name tells a secret of your family tree, and what country they came from (perhaps even the village!). and then there's the rest of us called Smith. Even that however, is a word-time machine that tells us how important it was to have smiths to work metal in the Middle Ages.

Then of course, I wonder what I am leaving behind. Hopefully not broken hearts & crushed toes. Today is holy because it is a chance to leave behind something eternal, something of lasting value that reaches beyond us, laying treasure in heaven--and reaches backward, blessing those who follow us.

May you and I leave behind a good day when we lie down tonight. And if not, the grace of God redeems the wasted time and leaves us longing for a different day.