Simplicity

“ ’Tis the gift to be simple,
‘Tis the gift to be free,
‘Tis the gift to come down where you ought to be.
And when we find ourselves in the place just right,
It will be in the valley of love and delight.”
---Joseph Brackett, Jr. Simple Gifts 1848

“Do you know who you are? You are who you is.
You is who you am.”
--- Frank Zappa

I used to manage a branch of a well-known temporary labor agency (names will be withheld to protect the innocent!). While many of the workers had great attitudes and it was a pleasure helping them make money, there were some we would just as soon strangle. Let’s just say their work ethic left something to be desired. No matter how menial the task they were given, they would find a way to either mess it up or, worse, to become so bored that they’d just quit. Often, that meant they’d be found behind the building sleeping, drinking liquor, or doing drugs. My job was demanding enough without having to spend most of my day doing damage control over what the workers messed up. One of my customer service representatives was a great lady named Yvette. Before she would hand any worker their ticket, she would say, “I want eight solid (hours) out of you. NO DRAMA, YOU HEAR ME? NO DRAMA! I‘m gonna have me a good day!”.

No drama. I almost want to wear a sandwich board to announce it everywhere I go, just to warn people of my mental state. You see, by nature I’m a fairly calm and structured person. I wouldn’t say I’m organized. That’s the guy in my church who has a schedule for rotating his mattress. That’s not me. I admire his abilities from afar, but that’s not me.

Mine is more of a personality trait. I strive to be steady and loyal. Give me a list of things to do, get out of my way, and watch me do them. I know my limits. Don’t give me too much or I’ll go nuts. Don’t make me go too fast either. I need to concentrate on what I’m doing and if I speed up, I’ll ruin it. Don’t make excuses either. Put your hand to the plow and get to work. I’ll see you at the end. Maybe that’s why I love shopping. It’s a challenge to be focused. I can get all the groceries for a week in a little under an hour. That includes driving time. No messing around or rabbit trails.

There’s just one problem. Almost everyone else in my life is the exact opposite of me. Some days I laugh at it. Most days I’m screaming inside. They provide my daily dose of “drama”.

I knew a girl in college named Erica. She was fifteen minutes late for everything. You know people like that. Oh, you’ll be late for your own funeral. Once, I met her at her dorm room, then we were going to meet other friends for dinner. I’m waiting as she’s puttering around her room, doing this and that. And I’m waiting. I have no idea what she was achieving, maybe she did. Still waiting. And waiting some more. We ended up very late for dinner. I was mumbling death threats under my breath. Being late was so unnecessary and for me, painfully irritating! How can anyone live like that? I swore I would never be that late for everything. And I’d most certainly NEVER marry a girl who was like that.

Then along came Tricia, God’s perfect help meet for me. Well, she’ll be coming along soon. She’s running a few minutes late.

I work for two guys that I love dearly. They are two of the band of brothers that I’m going with to Colorado on Wednesday. I wouldn’t give up my job for anything. God put me there, literally. (I’ll tell that story some other time) And as men, I admire them greatly. They are fantastic leaders, visionaries, and businessmen. Do you feel the ‘but’ coming on? BUT one of them has ADD, while the other is completely undiagnosed. The absolute frantic pace they keep up most days just about kills me. Phone calls, appointments, projects - tons of irons in the fire. Always a lengthy “to do” list and three to five things going on all at the same time. To them, they’re just going through a day. Lots of things on the agenda and they all need to be done. To me, they’re teetering on the brink of complete anarchy. I get overwhelmed just writing this about them!

Are my wife and my co-workers in my life to drive me to the nice quiet room with the padded walls? Yes, Mr. Barkman, we have a nice new jacket for you. It’s the latest style - buckles in the BACK! I used to think so. I want to move to a deserted island and leave all the drama home. BYE-BYE!! And, to be honest, this article actually started out as a “God is telling everyone to slow down and be quiet” type of thing. But I don’t think that’s right. Unless you need it. Then, hey! SLOW DOWN!!!!!

Seriously though, I think God puts opposite people in our lives for a couple of reasons. First, is to learn how to deal successfully with ALL people. In church, work, or our communities, we are closely interconnected. Don’t let all this cyberspace stuff fool you - there will never be a day when we won’t have some personal interaction with other humans. We are communicative creatures. We crave togetherness. It’s part of our make-up. It’s easy for people of like mind to get along. It’s a natural fit, things just flow easily. But how many people do you know like that? I’m guessing few, if any. You probably pray for them to come along!

The hard part comes when the oil and water need to get together. They’re everywhere. So if you’re going to be successful, if you’re going to make it through life without having your brain explode, you’d better learn how to get along. Peace, joy and fulfillment in our relationships come when we can recognize the differences and appreciate them, not try to change them. What good thing have I taken from my two brothers, the “sons of the tornado”? Their energy level is inspiring! They are tireless in their pursuits, whatever they may be. Look at all they accomplish! It is incredible. As I trained with one of them before getting my state license, I realized I could never operate at his pace once I was working on my own. But looking back, if we had not worked at that pace, he never would’ve been able to teach me everything I needed to learn. And I’d never be as successful as I am now.

The second thing we learn is to appreciate the personality God put in us. You can call it “finding yourself” if you like. It is tied to the true heart. It’s the foundation. I think a big reason I’ve realized in a deeper way who God has made me is because I’m around my two brothers at work and my wife and I’m aware of who I’m NOT. When we can accept ourselves and they way we relate best to the world around us, everything kind of clicks. Little disagreements with people don’t matter as much because “that’s just the way he is”. Work goes easier because we learn our limitations and we establish priorities. Church life is better because we don’t over extend ourselves or jump into ministries we‘re not suited for. Marriages are smoother because we are not trying to be our spouses’ image of who we are. Our mission statements get refined. Life seems to make more sense.
Don’t apologize or disavow the way God made you. And don’t let others make you feel less important because you are who you are. IT’S NOT WRONG!!!!! Rejoice in it! Because you’re tapping in to the DNA structure God set up for you.

So, though I don’t like the drama, I guess I need it.

Author’s note: Ask Danny if I can have some of his “happy pills”. I think I’m going to need them!